Best shafts for Crane ductile rockers.

[Curiousyellow71]

Looking for suggestions for shafts for ductile iron crane rockers. We plan to put on lots of street miles and I know galling can be a issue. Mancini has thick wall heavy duty, mopar performance brand, and chrome. It's been a long time since I've run ductile rockers. Anyone's experience/ input is appreciated, leaning toward chrome, any old school oil hole tricks to help them? Bought these cranes 15 years ago with no shafts, but ended up running harlan sharps. About time we used them.

 

[beanhead]

Hughes is what I've been using on the last couple builds..they're holding up very well with my setup, still looked brand new on a recent R&R but my springs are only about 430-ish over the nose. They're heavy wall shafts with the 'banana' grooves and the ends are threaded for screw-in plugs.

 

[Dodge 330]

I've used them on stock shafts in multiple builds. Never an issue and if anyone is the poster child for abusing their junk..

 

[zyzzyx]

A chromed shaft would be the ideal material for those rockers as the chrome is very hard and the rockers
are soft. The biggest problem is make sure your oil holes are on the bottom and 15 degrees towards the
valve springs! That is the area of the most load, and needs the oil supplied there. Do not use any oil restrictors
in the heads or block.

 

[ckessel]

Whatever you use for shafts, take a file to a spot on it. If it digs in, don't use it. Some years ago, I got some supposedly hardened units. One kept galling and causing problems. Turned out it didn't get hard chromed/hardened. File dug in. On the new one, file didn't touch it.

 

[1 Wild R/T]

I too have been running the Hughes shafts with good results.... Thick walls, Banana grooves... Not cheap but good quality..

 

[383man]

I too have been running the Hughes shafts with good results.... Thick walls, Banana grooves... Not cheap but good quality..

Same here have been using Hughes shafts in my eng since 2011. Still going strong. Ron

 

[ChargerST]

Bought these: https://www.ebay.com/itm/264431126226

 

[Curiousyellow71]

Thanks guys.
The difference in oil grooves is interesting. Chrome shafts has none( as far as I can tell)?
The ebay ones look identical to mancini HD with a straight oil groove and end plug.

The Hughes look like a excellent value.
and the banana grooves are pretty unique.
I hope they are available...

 

[1 Wild R/T]

FWIW the Hughes ones have extra thick walls so they don't deflect and a tapped thread for a plug so removing the plug the clean inside the shafts is easy... Think cleaning the inside of the shafts isn't a big deal? Well if everything is happy you'll never need to clean the shafts but have the misfortune to lose a camshaft & suddenly it's damn important.... Cause debris will get in there & if you don't get it out it will come out on it's own and find something to destroy...

 

[Curiousyellow71]

FWIW the Hughes ones have extra thick walls so they don't deflect and a tapped thread for a plug so removing the plug the clean inside the shafts is easy... Think cleaning the inside of the shafts isn't a big deal? Well if everything is happy you'll never need to clean the shafts but have the misfortune to lose a camshaft & suddenly it's damn important.... Cause debris will get in there & if you don't get it out it will come out on it's own and find something to destroy...

I could definately see that..I had to correct post 9. Hughes looks like the best way to go. I like the banana groove better then the Mancini's straight groove.
We are using these on a ultradyne .581/.585 lift.

 

[1 Wild R/T]

I could definately see that.. I had to correct post 9. Hughes looks like the best way to go. I like the banana groove better then the Mancini's straight groove.
We are using these on a ultradyne .581/.585 lift.

Sorta thought Hughes was what you mean to say...

Ultradyne makes nice grinds.. Got one going in a 440 I'm building..

 

[zyzzyx]

I popped the plugs out of mine to clean them and when I put them back in, I wondered what would happen if while I was cruising down the highway,
One of the plugs came out??? Not good!

 

[ChargerST]

I could definately see that..I had to correct post 9. Hughes looks like the best way to go. I like the banana groove better then the Mancini's straight groove.
We are using these on a ultradyne .581/.585 lift.

I think that the Hughes grooves are done by hand whereas the Mancini/Ebay (= Stanke Motorsports) are machined. Both types are thick wall and have removable end plugs. One difference is the coating: Hughes is chromed, Mancini is melonized.