Mechanical valve lifter

Claim 2

A valve lifter comprising a cup member with a boss extending axially therein, said cup member being adapted to fit over the end of a valve stem and having a transverse opening therethrough in alignment with said boss, an adjuster wedge positioned in said cup member and having opposed tapered flat surfaces, one of which is positioned in abutment against said boss and the other flat surface being adapted to be contacted by the end of the valve stem, said adjuster wedge having parallel serrated side surfaces, and a retainer secured within said cup member and having a pair of spring fingers biased against said other flat surface of said adjuster wedge and a pair of opposed spring retainer fingers positioned to releasably engage the serrated side surfaces of said adjuster wedge whereby said adjuster wedge can be positioned to vary the effective length of said valve lifter.

Claim 3

A valve lifter according to claim 1 wherein said retainer is cup-shaped and includes a pierced base and a depending annular wall of a diameter slidably received in said cup member, tab means extending radially outward from said annular wall to extend into said windows, said base having a central transverse opening therein with pairs of upturned guide portions on opposite sides thereof with one of said spring fingers between each of said pairs of upturned guide portions extending downward relative to said guide portions and positioned in spaced apart relation to each other to yieldably engage said other flat surface of said adjuster wedge, and said spring retainer fingers being upturned from said base on opposite sides of said transverse opening therein and being positioned complementary to each other to yieldingly engage said serrated side surfaces of said adjuster wedge therebetween.

Claim 4

A valve lifter including a cup-shaped lifter body having a base and an integral depending annular wall, said base having an exterior flat cam engaging surface on one side thereof and a boss on the other side thereof extending axially within said annular wall, the surface of said boss being inclined at an angle relative to said flat cam engaging surface, a pair of window openings in said annular wall positioned diametrically opposite each other in alignment with the inclined surface of said boss, a cup-shaped retainer fixed in said lifter body and having a pair of spring fingers positioned in spaced axial relation to said boss, and an adjuster wedge having opposite tapered flat surfaces slidably engaged in said lifter body between said boss and said sprinG fingers, one of said flat surfaces engaging said inclined surface of said boss, said adjuster wedge having parallel serrated side surfaces, and said retainer having a pair of complementary-shaped spring retainer fingers positioned to releasably engage the serrated side surfaces of said adjuster wedge.

Claim 5

A valve lifter including a cup-shaped lifter body having a base and an integral depending annular wall, said base having an exterior flat cam engaging surface on one side thereof and a boss on the other side thereof extending axially within said annular wall, the surface of said boss being inclined at an angle relative to said flat cam engaging surface, a pair of window openings in said annular wall positioned diametrically opposite each other in alignment with the inclined surface of said boss, a cup-shaped retainer fixed in said lifter body and having a pair of spring fingers positioned in spaced axial relation to said boss, and an adjuster wedge having opposite tapered flat surfaces slidably engaged in said lifter body between said boss and said sprinG fingers, one of said flat surfaces engaging said inclined surface of said boss, said adjuster wedge having parallel serrated side surfaces, and said retainer having a pair of complementary-shaped spring retainer fingers positioned to releasably engage the serrated side surfaces of said adjuster wedge.