PRI 2017: Isky Racing Cams HPx Hydraulic Lifters Handle The Pressure

Isky Racing Cams, a name synonymous with high-performance since the beginning of high-performance, recently released its new line of heavy-duty HPX hydraulic roller lifters. “Now that there are so many hydraulic applications, people are rebuilding the engines with hydraulic lifters when going to a high performance application, instead of just converting to solids,” says Isky’s Nolan Jamora. “When you start getting aggressive–especially turbocharging or supercharging the engine–it’s killing the OEM hydraulic lifters. They just can’t take it.”

To that end, the two levels of Isky Racing Cams HPX series of hydraulic roller lifters–Silver and Gold–are designed to combat the weaknesses found in OEM and OEM-style hydraulic lifters. “The Silver version is a needle-bearing version of the lifter, while the Gold is an upgrade to the EZ-Roll solid bushing with no needles,” Jamora says. “The major difference between the two is that the life expectancy of the solid bushing is four times that of the needle bearings.”

Isky has coined the term “Big Foot Effect” to describe why the solid bushing has better wear characteristics than the needle bearing version. “When you are running on needle rollers, you are only putting pressure on three needles at a time,’ says Jamora. “With a bushing, you are running on a bed of oil, and what happens is that the load is spread about 350-percent more than with the needles. You’re running on hydraulic pressure, so there’s no metal-to-metal contact.”

Thanks to the specialized internal valving in the HPX lifters, they are designed to substantially exceed traditional hydraulic roller lifter limits. “A normal hydraulic roller lifter can only take about 130 pounds of seat pressure, and 350 pounds of pressure open. These HPX lifters can take 200 pounds of seat pressure and 550 pounds open,” says Jamora. “They don’t bleed down like a normal lifter, either. They are all short-travel designs, which means not only do they not compress under high spring loads, but they work up to 7,500 rpm and with high ramp rates, as well.”

Article Sources

About the author

Greg Acosta

Greg has spent nineteen years and counting in automotive publishing, with most of his work having a very technical focus. Always interested in how things work, he enjoys sharing his passion for automotive technology with the reader.
Read My Articles

Hot Rods and Muscle Cars in your inbox.

Build your own custom newsletter with the content you love from Street Muscle, directly to your inbox, absolutely FREE!

Free WordPress Themes
Street Muscle NEWSLETTER - SIGN UP FREE!

We will safeguard your e-mail and only send content you request.

Street Muscle - The Ultimate Muscle Car Magazine

streetmusclemag

We'll send you the most interesting Street Muscle articles, news, car features, and videos every week.

Street Muscle - The Ultimate Muscle Car Magazine

Street Muscle NEWSLETTER - SIGN UP FREE!

We will safeguard your e-mail and only send content you request.

Street Muscle - The Ultimate Muscle Car Magazine

streetmusclemag

Thank you for your subscription.

Subscribe to more FREE Online Magazines!

We think you might like...


fordmuscle
Classic Ford Performance
dragzine
Drag Racing
chevyhardcore
Classic Chevy Magazine

Street Muscle - The Ultimate Muscle Car Magazine

Thank you for your subscription.

Subscribe to more FREE Online Magazines!

We think you might like...

  • fordmuscle Classic Ford Performance
  • dragzine Drag Racing
  • chevyhardcore Classic Chevy Magazine

Street Muscle - The Ultimate Muscle Car Magazine

streetmusclemag

Thank you for your subscription.

Thank you for your subscription.

Street Muscle - The Ultimate Muscle Car Magazine

Thank you for your subscription.

Thank you for your subscription.

Loading