i got a 78 350 engine in my camaro and i wanted to adjust the vavles casue they werent right and so we did the way the internet showed us and we did it and i guess it was to tight casue wen we went to start it it poped threw the carb and wouldnt stay runnin. so i backed each lifter off my a 1/4 turn now it runs but still pops(barley) a lil wen punchin it out n feels like it studers on take off a little bit. anyone got a idea if i should go tigher o losen the lifters

 

How did your instructions say to set them?

 

to do each cyclinder at a time. say first cyclinder u bump it so that the exhasut is just bout to go down tightin the lifter till the rod dotn spin no more then 3/4s turn.then the intake then bump in again till the intakes all the way down then n do the same. o viversa i dont remeber

 

If you tightened it until the pushrod won't turn anymore, then it's way too tight, to the point that the valves are all hanging open.

 

I personally like to do it with the engine running. It is a bit messy. You can get clips that go on the rockers to divert most of the oil. It makes it a bit of a mess still, but not nearly as bad.

I do one valve at a time. Loosen the rocker until you just start to hear it tick. If after a couple seconds the ticking goes away loosen it a bit more (The lifter was not completely extended yet). Repeat this until it continuously ticks (Only slightly though). Slowly tighten it until the tick goes away. Wait a second or two. Then give it a kinda quick 1/8th to 1/4 turn. You should hear the engine flutter for a second or so, then smooth out. That is usually a decent prime on the lifters. You may need to go a full 1/2 to 3/4 turns. It seems to be a little different on each engine.

This is of course assuming the we are talking about hydraulic lifters. If they are solid lifters you will need to adjust these with a feeler gauge. Let us know if these are solid lifters and we can go from there.

 

If you would rather do it with the engine not running, get a big ratchet on the crank so you can roll the engine over, take of the valve covers and roll the engine over when you see one of the valve moving down adjust the oppisit valve, tighten the nut while spining the push rod between your fingers till you start to feel resitance, and the tighten the rocker nut an additional 1/4 turn, then roll the engine over till the valve starts to open you just adjusted and do the other one, and keep doing till you have finished all cylinders!
HOPE THIS HELPS!