Triumph Repair: valve lash clearance., feeler gauge, rocker arms

Question
I have a 1960 triumph3A I need to check the valve lash clearance on.  How do I do that?
thank you.
Steven Dickerson

Answer
Steve,

I'm not an expert on the wetliner engines but I'll hazard a guess that they're similar to the small bore 4 cylinders.

You'll need a feeler gauge and appropriate wrenches to fit the rocker adjuster.

Normal clearance on the small bore cars is .010"

Most people refer to the process for 4 cylinders cars as the "rule of 9".  IE.. counting from cylinder #1 (front of engine) number the rocker arms in order from 1 to 8.  All the adjustments are done with rocker #s that add up to 9.  

adjust #1 with#8 fully open
      #3     #6
      #5     #4
      #2     #7
      #8     #1
      #6     #3
      #4     #5
      #7     #2

If you have a nice flat work area it's easy to put the car in an upper gear (3rd or 4th) and roll the car along to get the engine spun over.  Keep in mind that you want to only rotate the engine in one direction as you do this, not back and forth.


Cheers,

Jim