My fresh 225 has a clifford 264 hydraulic cam.When i start the motor it takes about 20 seconds for the lifters to pump up and stop clattering. what did i do wrong? also, there is a shudder in the running gear at a certain rpm when i run through the gears. any ideas? thanks....matt

We are talking about a complete hydraulic-lifter setup here, right? Either from the factory, or retrofitted to an earlier engine?

Did you check the Clifford cam to make sure it is drilled and ground correctly to feed the lifters enough oil, before you installed the cam?

Shudder up through the gears: What is this 225 installed in?

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Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

I brought the cam and kit to the rebuilder who put the motor together. It' installed in a 64 Signet with a 4 speed. there is one spot particularly in 1st and 2nd gear in the rpm range where i feel a shudder in the front of the car. When i just rev the motor, its not there, only when the car is moving, like its in the drive train.

Hyd. lifter SL6 engines need a lot of extra oil pumped-up to the rocker shaft in order to quickly feed (pump-up) the lifters. The extra oil flow is acceived by having a groove in the rear cam journal and / or rear cam bearing. It sounds like your set-up does not have either so it take a lot longer for the oil to make it's way to the lifters.
Sounds like a worn-out Ball and Trunion, front U-joint.
DD

Yup, what Doc said. Your '64 engine was not meant for hydraulic lifters, and there is some retrofitting necessary in order to run hydraulics in a pre-'81 engine. Sounds like that was not done. (Yet another reason why I refuse to give the jokers at Clifford any of my money—they should've told you this!)

And, yup again on what Doc said: Shudder up through the gears in a pre-'66 is almost always a worn front ball & trunnion U-joint. There are various different ways to go about fixing this. Rebuild the front U-joint, retrofit a front cross-and-roller type U-joint (requires driveshaft mods).

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Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Well....the driveshaft was rebuilt. as far as the cam.......looks like I'll need to chang it? am i right?

You can add the groove to the rear cam / cam bearing or you can add an exturnal oil feed line to get around the problem area.

To add an exturnal oil line, drill and tap the head for a hard line fitting that will deliver oil to the lower - rear head bolt hole.
DD

So you are saying remove the bolt drill and tap install fitting and head bolt and that will solve my problem.

You will have to plumb some tubing down to the oil pump to get pump pressure right up to the rocker arm shaft, without going through the rear cam journal & cam.
You should keep the line and feed hole small, a 1/16 (.060) oriface hole is fine.
DD

Thanks guys, I'm going to try that this week, and I'll let you know. thanks a bunch..................matt