Had a crack in a rocker arm pedestal that let go, caused the ball end of the arm to come off the pushrod - luckily at low speed, and shut the truck down in time to avoid any serious damage. Have a new pedestal on the way, but I've checked the pushrod and can't tell if it is really bent, or if paranoia is clouding my view. Seems that I can barely see a deflection when I roll it across a glass surface - against a straightedge, I can see an index card thickness gap/bow halfway down the 10.5" length of the shaft. Dodge shop manual just says if its bent, replace it - is there an acceptable tolerance here, or should it be perfectly straight? Any other method for a true test?

 

A push rod is less then $10.00, so I would say just change it to be safe. A push rod costs alot less then a engine.

CRIS

 

Hi Cris -
That's the route I'll take, but was asking more for education purposes - plus lets me know if I can keep this as a spare, or just use it as a thermometer trainer.....
Scott

 

I don't know much about Cummins engines, but I know a thing or two about gassers. I'd have a really good look at your engine before I'd say it was just the rocker and pushrod. The first thing I would do is check the compression on that cylinder.

 

f you can see even the slightest bend in it.It's bent.Also,if you drop it gentily on it's side,on a hard surface,it should "ring".If it sounds more like a thump,It's bent.