Lifter won’t charge

First time posting on the forum so please go easy on me. My grandson has a 2003 Ram 1500 4wd with a 5.9 Magnum that we are rebuilding as a project. We started by rebuilding the engine. Let me add here that I am a retired mechanic and machinist so I do know my way around engines a bit. New heads, lifters, cam and cam bushings, pistons, rod and main bearings and new oil pump were installed. Had the block cleaned at a local engine shop.

My problem is with the #2 exhaust lifter will not charge with oil. This is the first lifter on the right bank. All the others on both banks are fine. So far I have: replaced the lifter (3 times) replaced the valve, rocker arm, rocker arm pivot and push rod. Disassembled the engine several times chasing this issue going so far as pulling the cam and checking it against the original cam by chucking it up in my lathe and dial indicating the lobes and comparing them. Everything’s right on. Drilled a small hole in the galley plug thinking that it might be an air trap issue. No luck. Removed the plug from that side which leaves the cam cover plate to block the oil per a suggestion from an engine builder. No luck. Put the old oil pump back in to cover that angle. Bore scoped the galley and the lifter bore looking for something unusual. Measured the bore with a bore gauge. Spot on. Valve installed height is good (.655) Spring rate is good.

Probably a few more things that have been tried that I forgot about but you get the extent of what we have been through. Sorry to be so long winded but I want to try and give as good a background as I can. Has anybody had this experience? I called a company that builds cams for Mopar and they said they never heard of this issue. BTW, the cam is a Melling and it is an OEM grind.

Would appreciate any and all help!

First off was anything done to the head like valve seats, valve guides, was the block hot tanked, removing sludge, is it possible one of the oil galleys is still plugged, put a mechanical oil pressure gauge on it, when you start it up does it go way high meaning something is plugged, did you prime the oil pump by holding the accelerator down to the floor while cranking.

Is there any play in either (Intake or exhaust) rocker/pushrod at TDC for #2 cylinder?

I have seen head gaskets put on the wrong side or upside down cause an engine to overheat (blocked coolant channels). I know you said that you are a retired mechanic, but sometimes things happen, are your head gaskets correctly oriented?

When you pulled the cam out did you check cam bearings for alignment with the oil galleries? That is whare the valve train receives oil right??


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I'm intrigued now. Did you get it figured out?

03 5.9 magnum #2 lifter not pumping up? The only logical answer is #9 rod bearing has swollen up from excess whare blocking the injection process for #2 lifter

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Dodge 1500 4X4 said:

First off was anything done to the head like valve seats, valve guides, was the block hot tanked, removing sludge, is it possible one of the oil galleys is still plugged, put a mechanical oil pressure gauge on it, when you start it up does it go way high meaning something is plugged, did you prime the oil pump by holding the accelerator down to the floor while cranking.

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Both heads were replaced with new aftermarket heads that a local engine builder got for me. I don’t know what brand these are. We ground the valves and lapped them to the new heads. Checked installed height and ground the tops to equal height. I replaced the valve on that cylinder just to make sure the old one wasn’t sticking. No luck.
The block was hot tanked even though there was very little sludge. I recently found out there is a plug in the oil galley that the pump feeds to divert oil to the oil filter. We will pull the pan this weekend and as long as we are at it I ordered a high volume pump. We’ll see.
As far as checking oil pressure, is there some place in the front of the engine to connect a gauge?

pacofortacos said:

Is there any play in either (Intake or exhaust) rocker/pushrod at TDC for #2 cylinder?

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No

LoneWolf3574 said:

I have seen head gaskets put on the wrong side or upside down cause an engine to overheat (blocked coolant channels). I know you said that you are a retired mechanic, but sometimes things happen, are your head gaskets correctly oriented?

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Yes. No issues with overheating.

Dan98 said:

When you pulled the cam out did you check cam bearings for alignment with the oil galleries? That is whare the valve train receives oil right??


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No. The oil to the lifters are supplied by horizontal drilled galleys directly from the oil pump.

Dan98 said:

03 5.9 magnum #2 lifter not pumping up? The only logical answer is #9 rod bearing has swollen up from excess whare blocking the injection process for #2 lifter

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???

Wow my small brain has been blown away. You mean to tell me that those large holes in the Lower bottom of the lifter bores are not to pickup oil off the cam?? Cant be for drain back

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Have you tried removing the lifter and priming the oil pump via a shaft or cranking and verified that oil does reach that lifter?

pacofortacos said:

Have you tried removing the lifter and priming the oil pump via a shaft or cranking and verified that oil does reach that lifter?

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Yes. We have also run the engine with the valve cover off and all the other lifters are oiling good. We played with shimming the lifter post to see if maybe the lifter wasn’t going high enough in the bore to seal the oil groove. Interestingly, it would start to pump oil for awhile and then quit. But it wasn’t at the rate of the other lifters down the line. But at least we know that lifter will pump

Dan98 said:

Wow my small brain has been blown away. You mean to tell me that those large holes in the Lower bottom of the lifter bores are not to pickup oil off the cam?? Cant be for drain back

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No disrespect but the lifter gets its charge of oil through the horizontal oil galley. There will be some oil migrating around the lifter and on to the cam, but certainly not from the cam to the lifter.

Mysfyt said:

Yes. We have also run the engine with the valve cover off and all the other lifters are oiling good. We played with shimming the lifter post to see if maybe the lifter wasn’t going high enough in the bore to seal the oil groove. Interestingly, it would start to pump oil for awhile and then quit. But it wasn’t at the rate of the other lifters down the line. But at least we know that lifter will pump

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Do you have a picture of the oiling path? Could there be a blockage near that lifter in the galley - the oil only goes to one place after the Number 2 exhaust lifter, but I can't tell exactly to where in the picture - maybe the end main bearing or somewhere near the timing chain?

Did you only try it with the lifter in or did you try it with the lifter out and watch the oil flow in the galley?

Is the lifter bore damaged at all, crack, etc? Plugged pushrod? Though I would think that would still allow the lifter to fill and just smoke the rocker/valve instead.

pacofortacos said:

Do you have a picture of the oiling path? Could there be a blockage near that lifter in the galley - the oil only goes to one place after the Number 2 exhaust lifter, but I can't tell exactly to where in the picture - maybe the end main bearing or somewhere near the timing chain?

Did you only try it with the lifter in or did you try it with the lifter out and watch the oil flow in the galley?

Is the lifter bore damaged at all, crack, etc? Plugged pushrod? Though I would think that would still allow the lifter to fill and just smoke the rocker/valve instead.

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I have been down the galley and the lifter bore with a camera and no blockages or cracks. Two weeks ago we pulled the head back off and I went down the lifter bore with a bore gauge to check dimensions. All OK. The oil passage on that end is a drilled hole from the first main bearing. The horizontal galley has a freeze plug in the front behind the cam cover plate. I have drilled a small hole in this plug thinking maybe the issue is trapped air. No luck.

That is a stumper for sure.

You didn't mention - was the motor ok prior to rebuild?

I wonder if the block is machined properly. I assume you're putting in with oil hole in the side facing up toward intake And the pushrod is not plugged or the rocker

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