94 suburban 454. Oil flow to the heads question. Dry on one side??

[tjguy]

94 suburban with a 454. Burnt a plug wire on manifold so replaced it. It was still running rough so I took the rocker arm covers to check arm, rods etc. The passenger side is dry, brown and has a rust color to it while the driver side is clean, moist with oil and its normal gray color. Any ideas why??

[Blue Bowtie]

The lifter gallery may be somewhat starved for oil, or a lifter(s) in that bank may have excessive bore clearance. Is the oil pressure normal?

You could loosen a couple rockers (count the turns to be sure, even though the valve train on '91-up BBCs should be non-adjustable) enough to get them out of the way and remove their push rods. Check the push rods to make sure they are clean and clear through. Check the oil holes in the rockers themselves.

The fact that the entire bank is relatively dry, however, tends to indicate a supply problem in that bank. Short of disassembly, you might try an engine flush or changing to fully synthetic lubricant to help clean out and accumulated deposits.

[tjguy]

Ok. Thanks. I don't know what the oil pressure is I havn't started it since I took the cover off. Do I need a torque wrench for the rocker arms or can I guess??