Vintage Valve Adj Tool

[LD-Ordie]

So I'm lucky enough to have stumbled on to one of these jewels a number of years back, really makes running the valves a lot easier. Any one else still using one?

 

[Daves55Sedan]

Most people that run old Y-blocks (or Mileagemaker 6-cyls) having the old style rocker arms with the screw/locknut adjustment have thrown them out (along with the old heads) and replaced them with better heads from the '57/58 era. I believe the screw/locknut adjuster style rocker arms were discontinued in the '56 model year. In '57 they designed a resistance-fit thread that does not require dual tooling. Many people are after the ECZ heads, the ones that are posted and have larger valves than the '54/55/56 heads.
If you have the old style rockers, that tool makes adjustment a lot easier, but we don't all have the specialty tools and make due as best we can. They still get adjusted right in the end.

 

[Hot Rod Reverend]

Most people that run old Y-blocks (or Mileagemaker 6-cyls) having the old style rocker arms with the screw/locknut adjustment have thrown them out (along with the old heads) and replaced them with better heads from the '57/58 era. I believe the screw/locknut adjuster style rocker arms were discontinued in the '56 model year. In '57 they designed a resistance-fit thread that does not require dual tooling. Many people are after the ECZ heads, the ones that are posted and have larger valves than the '54/55/56 heads.
If you have the old style rockers, that tool makes adjustment a lot easier, but we don't all have the specialty tools and make due as best we can. They still get adjusted right in the end.

I guess I am a part of the few who like the two-piece adjusters. Never had much luck with the one piece "interference" fit - they always came loose.

Yes, I have had two of those different types of tools in the past - they work very well.

 

[Daves55Sedan]

That is one downfall of the resistance-fit type adjusters, but in my experience, this is a rare problem. In all my years of running the dickens out of these on two Y-blocks, I have only had to replace two loose adjusting screws. I do have a set of old style rocker assemblies here, but opted to use the later rockers, because the heads were later heads and better than the old 272 heads (which are not posted).