GENUINE GM HYDRAULIC FLAT TAPPET LIFTERS (WITH HARDENED STELLITE CAP) IN STOCK!!
Price:
$495
Ships From:
Angola, Indiana, US
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Buy it now is for a full set of 16 BRAND NEW Genuine GM hydraulic flat tappet lifters for small block or big block Chevrolet engine. These lifters are the ONLY flat tappet lifters I will use that can be trusted to be machined correctly in the right harness and with the right taper to spin correctly on the cam lobe and not fail prematurely. They have the hardened stellite cap. We spent many months testing flat tappet lifters and have seen many consistent failures when using aftermarket non-OEM replacement lifters which DO NOT have the stellite face cap and are of questionable surface finish. Other lifters we tested failed within minutes of run time even though they were ran with zinc fortified oil and with the proper higher RPM break-in period. This is a genuine GM lifter and an interchange part number for GM's 12371044 part number that have been on back order for six months and completely sold out. Possibly discontinued... These lifters are in stock and will ship within 48 hours of ordering. These lifters are a prior GM number we have ordered in bulk which were used in GMs production V8 engines back decades ago, they will work as a direct replacement for the GM 12371044 lifters that are presently not available. It will cost you alot more in parts and labor to repair a failed cam and lifter set in your engine than the cost of these lifters. We tried the other lifters from the aftermarket with and without EDM and the more expensive kinds. They failed almost constantly. These genuine GM lifters we trust and have served us well over and over again... The buy it now is for a hydraulic set of 16. We also offer these same lifters in the mechanical solid configuration which also are built with the genuine GM bodies with hardened face. Inquire for additional information. **ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:** **See the attached photo. I circled the hardened foot that is pressed and fused on the bottom of the lifter. In 2026 if the lifters do not have this, they fail at a very high rate no matter how expensive the oil or how careful and precise the special break-in procedures. It really does not matter the brand or the price or where the lifters are made in USA or abroad or if they have EDM oiling, or not. Nitriding the camshafts will not help to avoid the problems. We have tested this. For ones that are almost impossible to experience failure one must use the hardened foot set, no ifs ands or buts--PERIOD. Take it from a shop that has done more recent current testing on flat tappet lifter failure in the past few years likely than anyone else. We have experienced many failures with proper break-in and expensive zinc fortified oils--it has gotten MUCH worse in past few years but started in the 1980's. GM on any and every flat tappet engine ever built by GM has used hardened foot lifter. The hardened foot solid lifter has been discontinued for decades by GM. However, I offer the GMs with hardened foot once again built by hand in-house. So, you guys sometimes have to learn in your own way. I cannot spend much more time trying to convince you. We have had cams nitrided and other things we have tried. Its not a cam problem, its a lifter problem!!! We do not specialize in lifter sales as a core product--its just something we offer on the sideline due to our failures and testing program to help others with what we have learned and proven. Roller cam conversion will cost over $1000 with price of quality lifters, the cam, and other special parts.And, you will have to give up the solid lash and go to hyd roller in most cases due to valve spring requirements of the solid roller lifter. Or, you can gamble with the non-hardened foot lifters, BUT a cam and lifter failure will cost a lot more then the hardened lifter price in time and repair costs and parts replacement.** **If you are tired of all the other flat tappet lifters which are failing almost constantly, this is the ONLY solution we know of outside of installing a roller camshaft. We have tried many different brands of other solid flat tappet lifter sold in the modern day, and they have a VERY high failure rate--some fail in the first few minutes of run time even with zinc fortified oil and proper high RPM break-in procedure. No other brand lifters offered in 2026 have this fused on hardened foot, outside of the Genuine GM. We are the only shop who can offer these presently due to the backorder in hydraulic, and the only shop who offers them in the solid/mechanical variation, regardless of backorders. Below is a general break-in procedure. However, with the hardened foot or hardened wafer lifter break-in is not as important if important at all. With the right lifters special oils and procedures for break-in are much less critical, dare I say irrelevant. Back in the good old days people installed camshaft and flat tappet lifters and knew nothing about break-in or special oils. They installed them started the engine and let them idle or whatever. The push for all these extravagant procedures and special oils is more of an excuse or cop out to pass the blame of failures away from the improperly made lifters--in reality. In reality flat tappet lifters have become so bad that in most cases special break-in oils and procedures even to the point of using light break-in valve springs is just a waste of time and the lifters will still fail and take out the camshaft along with them.** **I also can supply the camshafts and the correct valve springs for an additional charge. Did you know modern so call experts are recommending valve spring pressures that are WAY TOO HIGH in most cases which is likely contributing to the flat tappet camshaft crisis!** As a recap the factory spring used on the 302 by GM and solid lifter LT1 350 Z28 in 1967-1970 was 85 lbs closed pressure and right at 200 lbs open pressure. The GM #142 off road spring most people think was the stock spring was 135 lbs seat closed and right at 280 lbs open, but in truth this "142 offroad spring was put out by GM for only racing purposes "off-road". As discussed, the modern parts companies recommend things that are likely contributing to the failed cam and lifter crisis. Cited below. From Engine Builder Magazine 2017 "Flat tappet mechanical cams can be somewhat of a different animal in regards to setting up your spring pressures. Generally 130-145 lbs. on the seat with an open of around 350-360 lbs. should be adequate, but certain applications, particularly higher RPM builds, can be done with increased pressures. You can shut it off in between the first hour to check things. But when running keep idle up it for first 30 minutes to 1 hour. Spraying the oil pan with radiator with cool garden hose helps a lot too to keep temps down during camshaft break-in. A thermostat is not needed on these old higher compression engines. If one is used, forgo installing the thermostat until after cam break-in so water flow is immediate to keep engine temp down. Keeping the water and oil temps down helps reduce failures. Change oil and filter after break-in period. Run the diesel oil with bottle of zddp plus with each oil change indefinitely.** **\*We do not worry about fine tuning or setting timing with too much attention or exactly until after cam break-in. As long as engine does not have more than 40 degrees at 1800-2500 rpm do not worry about setting timing exactly until after cam break-in when you can then safely low idle engine. However, runing igntion timing excessively retarded at break-in will cause excessive exhaust temps and may burn exhaust valve or seize and exhaust guide and stick a valve, so be aware to not have timing too retarded at break-in. Timing should be set with vac advance hose unhooked and blocked off. These older motors on today's fuel normally like around 8-10 degrees idle timing at around 800rpm. However, fine tuning of ignition timing and carburetor should not be done until after camshaft break-in period. You can spot check timing with timing light while engine is high idling during break-in, but do not low idle engine until after 30 minutes to 1 hour run in time 1800-2500 rpm. Again, you can shut it off anytime as needed during first hour of run time (to check things or to deal with leaks or other issues) but when ever restarting be sure to keep idle up so lifters can get oil splash and spin-in / seat in correctly. When timing is finely set (after camshaft break-in period and oil change), vacuum advance distributor hose should be plugged back in.**
- Brand: GENUINE GM MADE IN USA
- Interchange Part Number: 12371044, 5232720
- OE/OEM Part Number: GM SBC BBC LIFTER
- Manufacturer Part Number: GENUINE GM SBC BBC LIFTER
- Country of Origin: United States
