So I took the engine & transmission out of my 72 Cutlass over the weekend to rebuild over the winter. Original 350 Rocket & 3 speed transmission. The first of what will probably be a few questions during this bulid is: I am going to put in a new camshaft & lifters. I'm looking at a CompCams Magnum, either the 270H or the 280H. I'm also looking at putting a 2500 stall converter & Transgo 1-2 kit in the trans. Will the rocker arms, pivots, & pushrods have to be replaced as well or can they still be used with the new cam? They are still in great shape, hardly any wear at all on them considering they have gone 200000 miles.

 

Yay! You're doing it after only 200K miles... I would suggest that at that stage of miles you should be looking to replace just about everything. Use what you KNOW to be safe, anything that's got a ? beside it - turf for new. Take your time and plan the build carefully. I'm not a mech so I can't give you all the specific details you're looking for. There are a lot of guys on the site however who will be helpful with their suggestions.

Looking forward to this build. Will be nice to see what you accomplished at the show next year!

 

I mainly ask because of the rocker arm pivots. This is actually the first Olds engine I've rebuilt. I'm used to chevy engines & having to adjust the rocker arms with the engine running, oil going everywhere, etc. These rocker arm pivots being a bolt on & torque deal, is there an issue with pushrod length & putting in a different camshaft? I would hate to have a valve smack the top of a piston because the rocker pivots were wrong.

 

I think all the rebuild will be the right length for pushrods as long as you specify it is SBO instead of SBC. I've always been fascinated by the Olds design of those pivots too. I haven't heard of too many issues with them breaking. The thing to check though is how much wear they have in the cup. It would be nice if you knew the cars history. The pivots are the same (as far as I know) in the 260, 330, 350, 400, 403 and 455. That means there should be a good supply of used and new parts if you need to replace them, and they're not that expensive.

 

If you plan on using the stock parts instead of an adjustable setup, chances are it's NOT going to be as simple as just replacing everything and finishing by torquing the rocker bolts 25 ft.lbs. when you take into consideration the valve job, thicker than original head gaskets, and possibly a cam with a smaller base circle (not sure about the two CompCams you listed).

 

From what I was told when i bought the car from the PO, he bought it from an older lady from California (not sure if from Pasadena). He said the motor hadn't been apart to his knowldge. However I did find the original head gskt on the right side & a Felpro on the left. So it has been partially apart at some time. Maybe just for a leaking head gskt. But everything inside is in really good shape. Will probably have to bore it out a little due to the mileage on it, but she ran great. Not a tick or knock at all. Maybe just to be safe i will go with changing to the adjustable rocker arms.