Im building a 350 to put in my 86 trans am. I have heard that switching to roller lifters is one good way to add power to my setup. I was wondering what, if anything, i would need to change to get roller lifters to work. Any input would be appreciate.

 

If you use aftermarket roller lifters like Comps, then you don't really have to change anything to run them.
For the cam itself you will need a different cam gear, a cam button, and probably a bronze distributor gear depending on what cam you run. Consult your cam manufacturer.

 

More to the point, what exactly are you planning to do with the car? Mainly drive or race? If the first, don't waste your money, if the latter, you'll save money by getting the right block picked to begin with.

 

Even on the street roller lifters can make a big difference. The steeper ramps produce a flatter torque curve when used with a roller cam(not a racing one but a street one). With the aftermarket lifters you will need shorter pushrods.

 

Swapping form a hydraulic cam to a roller cam will generally cost you $1000..... you need a lot, its not as simple as swapping lifters

 

If by "cam gear" you mean the timing chain sprocket, it's the same for non-roller factory and retrofit roller.

Bronze distributor gears are only needed for full billet cams. The typical hydraulic retrofit roller cam won't require the use of a bronze gear.

 

The current Car Craft has an extensive section on cams with emphasis on the tappet vs roller debate. Most libraries prolly carry it if you really dont want to buy the issue.

 

I don't think its worth it to convert a non-roller block with a "retrofit" kit.... The $ to power ratio is way off. As said above, you can't just swap in some roller lifters, You'd need an entire retrofit kit that will put a huge dent in your wallet. I'd consider a solid flat tappet LONG before I thought about converting to a roller.