The Shane Kelley Lifter prep

[Strawdawg]

It would seem to me that the slicker the bottom of the lifter, the more difficulty it would encounter in rotating.  Any of us that have ever had a turbo Buick, or even the n.a. 232" buick of that generation knows that 3E is the most common lobe to fail as it is located almost dead center on the lobe so it rotates very slowly when running and is very obvious at idle. 

It would seem to me that the slicker the bottom of the lifter, the more difficult it would be to get rotation out of it.  Pores in the lifter foot would seem to be good for microscopic oil retention which would make it less likely to grind flat and suddenly get shorter...

Brad, most of us Buick guys have gone to rollers just to rid ourselves of the problem as the stronger the spring we use, the more likely that lobe in particular will be gone by the time we finish break in

[HP_Cuda]

Like Brad, if you go roller this is not a problem.

[1 Wild R/T]

I polished mine so much they looked like this ....... 

Thats some mighty fine polishing..

[Brads70]

Like Brad, if you go roller this is not a problem.

In all fairness, it is quite a bit more money.....

[Cudajason]

   Hurry up and get those wrenches flying , this rain we are having all weekend will wash all the salt and crap off the roads , making way for this...  

Yeah no kidding!!!  I got a bunch done on the car today. Lifters and all in, rockers and all installed and torqued down!

Now I am freaking out with all the comments on this thread...where were all you guys a few days ago?

I don't think that 1000 and 2000 grit sandpaper will take much off the lifter. I certainly did not sand with hard pressure for any length of time. You can feel that the lifter is not flat and need to slightly rock it back and forth the get the machining marks out.

The way I understand it from @Shane Kelley is that the machining marks are the reason you need to break  in the cam. The machining marks will quickly grind down a lobe if there is insufficient oil at start up. Given the way the cam and lifters are oiled, splashed for the rotating assembly, there is a high possibility of cam / lifter failure on start up.

If the breakin is done correctly, the lobes polish the lifters and eliminate the machining marks. This process accomplishes the same process and eliminates the need for the long break-in process.

Either way its done now, so we will see what happens.

[Chryco Psycho]

I think you will be fine , cam break in is always risky so this should help

[Cudajason]

I think you will be fine , cam break in is always risky so this should help

Yeah I have heard that a few times.  With all the issues I heard of a few years ago, I put off swapping cams until this year.   

Jason