Been reading and searching for the last two hours and read a lot of good info. I just adjusted the valves today and now its even worse than it was. Sounds like a damn diesel.
The motor had around 1000 miles on it when I bought the 4runner. Its been ticking since I bought it though, but steadily got worse.
Here is what I know about the motor:
New crank and bearings, rods resized. Toyota crank & clevite bearings
New oil pump. It now has around 7000mi on it.
The PO told me that he didn't go through the head at all. It showed no signs of wear in the head, or anywhere else. Still doesn't. For the most part it runs great, but the ticking has gotten worse. I checked the timing chain today and everything seemed fine. I also adjusted the valves to spec at .008 and .012. Seems that it got a little louder after that. Also, before the adjustment all of the valves were a little tighter than spec. I also checked the adjuster screws and they must have been replaced when the motor was rebuilt.
Just trying to figure this out. Seems that the valves were too tight initially, and that now they are louder at spec adjustments. Should I go slightly tight at say .006 and .010???
So give me some suggestions......