Sorry Dan, like you I have seen that info on here but didn't make a note of it. I wonder what a used lifter grinding set-up might cost someone? www.bing.com/videos/riverview/relatedvideo?q=utube+regrinding+hydraulic+lifters&mid=573301BB787EFF01FD42573301BB787EFF01FD42&FORM=VIRE and a little more detailed one www.bing.com/videos/riverview/relatedvideo?q=utube%20regrinding%20hydraulic%20lifters&mid=CB996BFAA1FB43EFA545CB996BFAA1FB43EFA545&ajaxhist=0
Sounds like @chicken and @PackardV8 either regrind lifters or know what HAMBer does resurfacing of lifters. Dan
I believe most shops that regrind cams will resurface lifters also. Schneider racing cams reground a cam for me and at the time they were resurfacing lifters also, I didn’t have my old lifters resurfaced as I had a set of new Isky lifters, can’t speak on resurfaced lifter quality but I was very happy with the cam from Schneider cams. I believe the price was $5.00 per lifter. Dan
Great info in your post. Really can get confusing when two companies use the 'Johnson' name in their products name. The key for me is "Topline" as this traces back to the original. And, as you astutely note, everyone should do their homework.
Thanks! I think the key here is that we are both trying to help and we both learn from each other. I have to wonder how two companies in the same (or nearly the same) area make lifters and have the same name.
Okay,,,I’m confused after looking at both websites ! Which company is the real one,,,,,,Topline,,,or Johnson ? Or are they both top quality and either one is good ? This might help stop the bashing of flat tappet lifters and cams ,,,,lol . Tommy
The 'real' one....? Let us know if you figure it out. Likely that most folks have made their choice, good or bad. And don't expect the 'bashing' to subside any time soon. Plenty of junk out there and folks simply relying on a brand name or vendor name to support their purchase.
There's a lot of info. on the internet about the Hylift-Johnson & Johnson lifters story. Including bankruptcy, theft of equipment and money and someone being incarcerated for awhile. Sounds like there are some hard feelings between the two companies. How much of it is true? It's the internet after all... All I know is that Hylift-Johnson was making FT hyd. lifters a few years ago and still lists them. As they were the only US manufacturer of the lifters I needed I put a set in my 390 Cad and have had no problems with them. Just wish they made lifters for the earlier 331 engines. Johnson Lifters on the other hand doesn't make lifters for any of the engines I have so no experience with them. All they make now are roller lifters.
Okay,,,,,,so again I’m asking ? Hy-Lyft Johnson,,,,or just Johnson ,,,,,or Topline,,,,,,or Johnson ? Reminds me of an old skit on the Sonny and Cher show ,,,or Redd Foxx,,,or something . Raymond Jay Johnson Junior . You can call me Ray,,,you can call me Jay,,,,,you can call me Johnny,,,,,,,it just keeps going on,,,,lol . Tommy
Hylift Johnson, owned by Topline: https://toplineauto.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Lifter-Application-Catalog.pdf Johnson Lifters, owned by ??: https://johnsonlifters.com/ There are the two companies... if you have a late model engine that uses roller lifters, do your due diligence and take your pick. If you have an older engine that only uses flat tappet lifters, then Hylift Johnson is your only choice of the two. As I said earlier, I have a set of Hylift Johnson lifters in my Cad and have had no problems...
Basically if someone wants flat tappet lifters then Johnson Lifters does not make them and the possible source is the HiLift Johnson company. I don't know enough about the quality of their (HiLift) lifters to comment on their current products...... Flat or Roller. They say they are made in the USA and show a picture of a foundry. The confusing thing to me is why they would not be the "go to" for all the cam manufacturers since there are lots of foreign made ones causing problems. I just don't know enough to comment on them. Johnson Lifters however has some type of association with Brian Tooley Racing and sells their products thru them. Not sure if there are other sources, but thats who I bought mine from. They have a good reputation in the industry, so that's a good place to start if looking for quality roller lifters. Brian Tooley Racing
Been following this with some interest as I lived in Muskegon, MI not two miles from HyLift Johnson's plant. They always had a good reputation and I bought lifters from them for a twin 283 powered ChrisCraft I built. Recently, I bought a Comp Cam and lifters set with some reservations about the quality of the hydraulic flat tappets. For the last few years, all I've been hearing on here was about the Chinesium lifters and how many engines got trashed in the first 20 minutes of run time. After reading the comments in this thread, I called the HyLift sales office and talked to a fellow named Dave. I told him what I was building, and one of the first things he told me was to soak the lifters overnight in whatever oil I was going to use for break in. Sounds just like the same advice I got thirty years ago for the engines in the boat, and I never had a minute's problem with the engines. I bought the HyLifts, anybody need a new set of Comp Cams flat tappet lifters?
How is soaking the lifters in break in oil going to make a difference? The critical break in period relies on the moly type paste on the cam lobes (and hence lifter bases). After that, the lubrication is from oil splash from the engine's oiling system. Keep in mind that the problem of camshaft and lifter failure is only the lobe / lifter base mating surfaces.
so , was the engine started and cam run in? if so I hope they put the lifters back where they came from. Take a non rotating lifter out and look at the base, put a 90 degree square on it and see, flat? bin it. see one of the above posts for some images. Whos cam? if its not ground right lifters wont spin. Why do they die? cheap castings not hardened right (cause no one wants to pay for good stuff) poorly ground, poorly ground lifters or cheap lifters not hard enough. I'm sure that place up there could make what's needed , from the right materials , hardened properly, but that's not what suppliers buy, they buy cheap.
below should give you an idea of whats good and whats not, this was pinched from a motortrend article. the point of contact is off centered to the lifter causing rotation. A dead flat lifter and a dead flat cam face will eat itself in minutes (in engines we own) the incorrect shape on either will eat itself quickly. Too soft material will eat itself no matter the shape , this last one you can check if you have a rockwell tester. The others can be measured and seen. There are a few things that have to align to not have a bad day, used to be most everything supplied was good to go, not now.
There has been some testing done on flat tappet cam cores and lifters....results were that no soft cams were found, some soft lifters found, but a lot more were just poorly crowned or incorrect crown radius on the lifters along with some cams ground with no lobe taper at all....like they forgot to re-dress the wheel after grinding roller cams. (roller lobes are flat, ....flat tappet lobes are tapered to promote their rotation on the block). Powell Machine on YouTube has several video's about this. Topline/HyLift Johnson is the only flat tappet manufacturer currently still in the USA and they make quality product. Johnson lifters is a different company, but all they make anymore is roller lifters, no flat tappet. They are also a quality product. Isky and Crower hydraulic roller lifters are Johnson.
Thanks for the info, Eric. It sounds like typical off-shore lack of quality control. I only watched the last video all the way through because they're so long, but oddly the narrator never mentioned a crown on the lifter face, only a taper. This implies that he's grinding them with a taper vs. a crown.
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