😆!!! Of the options listed above, the one I chose was to locate two of the sheet metal factory rocker covers that had seen better days and cut them in half laterally or from side to side. I chucked the upper half and used the lower portion as the base for a home-made splash guard by taking a length of thin poly-plastic sheeting like the kids use for sliding down hills in the winter;( or they used to before the helicopter mommy brigade went full paranoic mode and declared sliding down hills to be too dangerous for children)
I then took a piece of that plastic and cut it to length to fit the circumference of the cover base and used a combination of pop rivets and RTV black adhesive goo to both attach the plastic to the metal and then oil proof it. They work, sort of, but the oil pressure at the rockers is sufficient enough to totally oil guard the whole engine bay. Like Johnny noted, it will be a mess. Think mine are sitting on the south wall's storage shelves, meaning they are very buried behind Bay 3.
They sell little clip-on splash guards, you can cut the tops off of some old valve covers, or just deal with the mess. I've had the best luck just dealing with it and cleaning up afterwards.
When I was about 16, my buddy and I were "attempting" to do the valve lash on his mom's 73 Impala and we had it nosed in to the single car garage at his house. We pulled the covers, and fired it up...well I can tell you his old man was beyond pissed off at the both of us cuz the oil not only squirted all over the engine bay but past the fender and onto his nice clean, painted sheet-rocked wall. We later realized we could have just done a simple cold lash on it because it was hydraulic lifters, and would have been fine. Some one had told us (maybe parts store guy...??) we needed to do it while the engine was running, hot with feeler gauges, etc.. only to find out later he thought it was solid lifters.
Anyway, all the talk about making a mess with running without valve covers reminded me of that old story...hahaha we did have to fix and repaint the garage wall that got stained from the engine oil.
You can shoot oil all the way up to the rafters if you forget to plug the oil sending hole when your priming the motor. Also if you forget to put in the plug by the oil filter you can oil your shorts also. These are thing I have been told or experanced over the years.
So you hear tapping so you have seen scratches .let me suggest the old school methods here .first off were are you looking between valves ? Possibly mean nuthing at the first point . Without doing a compression build up from say 4 different comparison cylinders.If the compression test shows (that cylinders low) the cylinder in question? Be it scratched or pecking will say how it's what compressing yes...if it compresses all the way by 3strokes up at normal cranking speed [ no low battery or tight new rings] with say at least half the plugs still in motor and you perceive no difference of the poundage reading like 110 to 120 for a 305 or smaller.lets say 3 cylinders all hit 75 the first compression stroke then 95 the second stroke ( check 3 or more cylinders depending) then the 3rd stroke says its 120lbs. A small motor with 8.5 compression then valves are ok a bigger motor will stroke out higher with 3 strokes generally the 4 th compression stoke shows little build " from 3rd stroke agreed" ...I would then run the motor at idle ( plugs and wires reinstalled")take a wood stick say like a toilet plunger Handel,' hold It on one end of the stick against your ear the other end you place ( stick) against the valve cover over the valves but on top of the cover while it's running you can hear any loud clackers when moving that stick to each area above the valves a 4 cylinder you check 4 places ( 1 bank,) if valves are making the noise it will be a loud clacking ( pecking ) sound check all the areas each above the valves by listening to the sound at top" of (valve)cover remember whitch ones are noisy, ignor areas ( of sound) that sound like a sowing machine...1. If you find a loud rocker area remove the valve cover notice how if they are adjusted...nuts bolts, set screws, lock nuts ?. Secondly" with motor off" rotate the crank untill both valves2 ( or pairs 4) are closed ( base cicle of cam,) check if and sets are loose visibly ? I personally wiggle each rocker at by hand of any of the noisy valves you heard through the wood stick placed to your ear earlier in your stick test": if you have found any space in excess of the normal lash ( solid lifters or (cam followers on diffenent cars ect..4cyl) After finding any loose valves find out if / why there loose or not. Here's were your skill comes in how many threads are showing on the studs if we're taking about most motors ( on here)they have threaded studs all the valves should show the same number of threads above the adjustment nut if 75 % of the nuts are set too 5 threads then why is one at 2 threads and making noise then you found why by counting threads ( possibly)try setting these to say 4 threads first ( tightening)remembering the 5th thread to come..( finish later) before you adjust the loose ones look at the studs ( your motor) are any studs them selves sticking up higher is so find out why they have to be the same height if the studs are the same height good...move on once you have noisey valves roughed to the same distance ( adjusted) and your adjusting hydrolic type valve train not solids...see below*.. next get a peice of hose: heater hose or vacume cleaner hose..cut it about 2 feet long or use it longer your going to start motor with the valve cover off as far as the oil spraying out some motors do some don't, particularly when it's idling less then 700 rpm if you got a sprayer I get a peice of cardboard and scissors cut a piece of card board 2 inches longer then the area the valves occupy and about 6 inches tall i for instance 28x5" place the cardboard into the groove by the exhaust side of the valves and bend it around valves at ends if there are hoses or wires tie them back or up with strings or more wires if you got the card board cut and fitted you can trim it or bend it afterwards simply use the cardboard to cut a tin or aluminum splash pan..put it into the drain groove and use wire to tie it to the head useing valve cover bolts tie wire across top of tin so when you adjust valves the squinting oil will hit the tin and flow back into motor .Adjusting chevy sbc hydrolic valves basics are knowing the terms nill lash ,lash zone ( operating range), pumpup" and leakdown..running verses not running. Not enough room here to tell you everything but il try to suggest a safe method to set the loud rockers as follows...assuming you checked the adjustment by counting threads and stud lengths you may just need to tighten them to do so while the motors running will determine if they are responding or if the cam lobes are worn off * .possibly or if a rocker is defective.?.you need your tools a rachet a adjustment socket ( medium well) and and set screw allen wrenches ( or not) I use a hose as I can listen to the rockers click or clack buy holding the hose near rockers on the spring end just above the rocker any loose ones ( rockers) hold one of the hose to you ear end of rocket ' any misadjusted one will not "sound like the ones that are set right ( hypothetically noisy).. start by loosening the rockers you perceived as noisy turn them say a turn and a half back so you hear it's now louder time to go tighter turn it the amount you loosened it in quarter turns 1 quarter turn wait a second ( in time)and turn a quarter turn ( 90degree steps) repeat the turn 90 degrees... suppose you have lest then 2 turns at that point the sound will be noticeably quioter ? you are close to what is/was called the nill lash zoan but with hydrolic tappets particularly new tappets (refers here to valve train) you proceedurly need to turn the adjustment nut anouther 1/2 a turn from nill But on old motors" used a lot just going to nill ( when noise stop) it may be best to say fine ( stop tightening) then move to the next noisy valve..I'm going to mention I can feel a noisy tappet ( rocker ) as they click when the set the valve down by placing my thumb on the top of the running motors rockers and pressing lightly ( on rockers)the loose ones will feel different then... the ones... ( rockers) that are in the correct operating range... ( newer tapets) if you can't get the noise out by adjusting look at the pushrod is it being raised the same as the quiot valves ? if not stop motor: and measure the lift of the cam at the end of the pushrod if it's not moving up as far as the other majority of the valve types exhaust ?compared with another exhaust pushrod movement ( lift) I'm saying that if any pushrods lift ( range)seems to measure a lower lift ?, then you have rounded cam loab' most of the cam rounding occures on exhaust valves instead of intake sides most of the time, but it can happen to an intake loab, just don't count on it often. If you have a new rocker good you can use it in case thers one worn out rocker possibly 2 worn out rockers more for big blocks or strong hypo springs ...springs ok can a spring cause loud rockers? Yes but generally a broke spring will not run over 15 minits or less if they break the valve usually drops into the motor at that point you have little chance to save a motor unless it is shut down immediately..silly things to know are low oil pressure like 2 lbs from worn out bearings will make all the tappets click like they need adjusted but if you got 2 or 3 noisy tapets ( rocker s) then inspect and adjust is the idea.. cars / trucks with out adjustable rockers or followers ( actually a rocker too) will need inspection replacement or some custom type of adjustment I'm not going to attemp to explain..use your eyes and hands mark and number things keep them in order if you take several apart..and look for fine metal under the rockers on old motors that use flat tappets the pushrods should spin slower at an idle faster if you Rev motor to say 900 rpm something to be seen with valve cover off if one pushrod ( flat tappet cam type) didn't spin something was up most likely a worn cam lobe maybe a bent pushrod or crooked rocker arm ect.ect. now I come to the last worthwhile mention! Should you find your motor missing and your checking the valve train or its noisey so you look and low and behold ...you have some slack in the rocker ect the valve height compair the height of any valve noisey to see if its as high at the stem end' when shut during base circle position : don't know what base circle? is I can't help yah..? I'm just saying' all things considered if a valve isn't as high as valves of the same head (it's called installed height") it's bent /stuck,you need to pull the head best to figure out why could be timing gear issue past or/present could of been drebrie in the motor occasionally you find these bent valves were timing chains / belts have been jumping I'm going to stop there I'm getting way out there good luck while most know motors some are still leaning ( I am)to them I say good learning " and luck ..not so much luck , but a little is needed..odd facts to know valve cover on upside down or loose Rocker hitting valve cover...a badly worn / binding rocker can mimic a rounded cam loab with poping through the carburetor, old tappets may loose there springs and push the valve open to far making a loud noise and missing present.Old tapets may seem stuck when they have a crumb of dried oil stuck in there oil inlet hole in whitch case they make a loud noise ( pecking) any valve rocker you perceive is set right according to the threads on a old high mileage motor could be stuck or have a clogged oil inlet hole so in those cases checking the lifter replacement if stuck but not hollowed on bottom I's another possibility last word better looser then to tight .if you try to set old tappets like new ones you will get them to tight car will be hissy and loose power ( torque) there ( high millage) operation is at nill point not 1 turn more( or less) as possible to set newer hydrolic lifters . Also with ROLLER TAPPET cam engines the pushrods do not spin... I might need some editing here lol..
Wow, that's quite a bit of info. I've never tried a piece of cardboard as a splash shield but I don't know why- it seems so logical since it's easy to make and you just throw it away when done.
I've seen a few of that guy's videos and I can't say that I agree with him 100% of the time, and sometimes I just flat out disagree. Using a screwdriver, hose, etc as a stethoscope does work though. Real stethoscopes are fantastic to have unless you like to worry a lot.
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