Do you have to have special fuel pump rod with roiller cam?

goog luck finding info on this one ;) .
a few years ago when i went solid roller, i thought of the same question. all my buddys ran rollers already, and electric fuel pumps, so they were of no help. i called arp (had an arp pushrod), lets just say the quality of thier parts overshadows thier tech help... alot! they said call cam manufacturer. which i did, and they were very helpful, but not really totally able to say for sure, this was iskenderian, they have done this for awhile, i was getting worried about finding an answer.
looked a bit more, talked to some guys i know, and came to the conclusion yes, it should have one, but i talked with several guys that said they know people have used regular rods and had no issue.
so i found that comp cams has a bronze tipped pushrod, and thats what i'm using. i figure i cant go wrong, i just checked it after a year or two of use, and while there is some wear, its very slight. it looks like a litle gold tipped pool cue, so its easy to monitor wear, but i doubt its an issue at all. i've replaced 1 dist. gear, and the pushrod is fine still.
i figure if it needs a bronze gear (and even if it doesn't actually, since some cams use a pressed on gear that works with steel), it should have a bronze pump pushrod.
i think the reason its hard to find a definitive answer on this is most all aftermarket roller cammed motors you find run electric pumps, probably due to the performance nature, and it doesn't come up much.

Yes you have to have a bronze tipped pushrod with a billet steel cam, but a cast iron hydraulic roller would not need one.

ARP does makes a hollow chromemoly rod, but I could not find out if it was tipped or not. CompCams has the same hollow chromemoly rod, with a bronze tip (part number 4507) or the ceramic tipped (part number 4506). I chose the bronze, only because wear is predictable and under certain conditions (probably never encountered in a running engine) ceramic can shatter (but I have dropped plates before, and they all broke).

Larger Dave

I use the bronze tip with my Comp "austratempered" hydra roller for safety. The ceramic is better and only thing I think will shatter is your wallet. $$$

If you run more fuel pressure than 6 or 7# , you need the protection. Billet cams are differant...You want to wear the push rod and cam gear , not the cam.. But if you are running a billet roller , more than likely you are running elect pumps . Had some trouble with the chromemoly push rods,, lots of side wear.

On the side wear issue how long was the front block bolt (that goes in the pump rod holding hole for instalation (refered to as the shiping bolt)) and seals potential oil leak? Obviously if it presses on a moving rod I would expect wear.

Larger Dave

I've been running a roller tip fuel pump push rod since I installed my roller cam back in 2000. I took a picture of it last summer when I freshened up the motor. After 5 years there was no wear on the cam or the rod. I don't remember the brand but it was fairly expensive, like $100+.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v325/steve69ss396/DVC00102.jpg

Thanks every one after so many views, i'm going with either the bronze tip, or roller tip. Its seems no matter how well things are planed on your car its never ending process.

Thanks big time

..............Its seems no matter how well things are planed on your car its never ending process..........

Amen to that..........

-

[QUOTE=Steve69SS396] I've been running a roller tip fuel pump push rod since I installed my roller cam back in 2000... [QUOTE]

Hey Steve, what stops the roller pushrod from rotating in it's bore?

[QUOTE=Steve69SS396] I've been running a roller tip fuel pump push rod since I installed my roller cam back in 2000... [QUOTE]

Hey Steve, what stops the roller pushrod from rotating in it's bore?

The slot milled in the side of the rod and the pin on the end of the stud that engages it; the stud is installed in the "shipping bolt" hole in the front of the block, clearance set for engagement in the slot in the rod, and the jam nut locks the stud in position.

:beers:

Thanks John.
"Shipping bolt" hole.. They're only small blocks right?