Good-Looking Seal
You should only use high-temp, oil-resistant RTV silicone on the ends of your intake manifold. The author prefers Permatex Black. After torquing the manifold in place, use a few paper towels to wipe off any extra silicone that squeezed out, and your engine will look much better.
Proper Alignment
It's common when installing new rocker arms on aftermarket cylinder heads not to have the rocker arm tips centered on the valves (note the rockers on left and right are not centered). Isky Cams (323/770-0930, www.iskycams.com) makes adjustable pushrod guideplates that can correct the problem on some heads. Or you can cut your guideplates in half, reposition them, and weld them back together. Don't ever try running cut guideplates without re-welding them or you could have a disaster on your hands.
Depth Charge
If you've just bought some new cylinder heads and are about to bolt them on, be sure to check your spark plug depth before proceeding. If the plug sticks too far inside the chamber, it could hit the piston. If it does not go far enough into the chamber, its spark will be shrouded, and you might lose some power.
Not Long Enough
You've just installed that brand-new set of rocker arms, and they hit the valvespring retainers. The way to fix this is with longer pushrods. The same may also be true if you've swapped cylinder heads, installed new springs and retainers, or even installed thicker head gaskets. Any of these could cause interference between the rocker arm and the retainer. Longer pushrods are the answer, and they're easy to get from just about any cam manufacturer.
Compression Gone
When swapping heads, make sure the heads you install don't have a larger combustion chamber than the ones you removed, otherwise you'll lose power. That's because a larger chamber will lower your compression ratio, which is usually a bad thing. The only time you'll want less compression is if you're adding a blower or turbo, or if your engine pings on Super Unleaded gas. Aluminum cylinder-headed engines can usually withstand about 1 point more compression without pinging than an iron-headed engine can.
A Little Gap
You should always check your ring gap, even when installing factory-fit rings. If you don't and your rings bind, you'll be in a world of hurt. The industry standard for ring gap in street engines is 0.004 inch of gap per 1 inch of cylinder bore. Therefore, a 4.00-inch bore small-block should have minimum 0.016-inch top ring gap (0.004 x 4 = 0.016). It's okay to use 0.002-0.003 less gap on the second rings. Check out www.federal-mogul.com/sealedpower for more tips on ring gaps.
Lube For Life
Even though roller-tip rocker arms produce less power-robbing friction than stamped rockers, they still need plenty of oil to live. That's especially true upon startup with a fresh set of rockers. We advise soaking the rocker arms in an oil can for at least 10 minutes prior to installation to allow the oil to seep into and lubricate the roller's trunion. If included, always apply any special lubricant to the rocker arms just before startup.
Hi-Perf Lifters
You may not want to believe it, but high-performance hydraulic lifters like the Pro Magnum lifter from COMP Cams (901/795-2400, www.compcams.com), shown on the left, can make some power for you. Their special internal valving helps make more power at higher rpm. They're more expensive but worth it, even for a daily driver that gets pushed hard from time to time.