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Message: <blockquote data-quote="98-5.0" data-source="post: 559322" data-attributes="member: 9042">general rule of thumb for me is; if it makes the noise from cold start up, its probably not a rod. unless the bearings are litterally gone. if you start it up cold and it makes the noise, its usually valvetrain if its an internal motor noise. the screwdriver trick works but some people listen to the little noises that are already there. if you dont here a huge difference...then you got nothin. with that being said. i had a guy hit my old 96 car i swaped to 5.0, the strut tower came in and knocked off my tb and wide open she ran. i shut it off as soon as i could but motor was already blown. after the re-ring and all, i still had a noise...simular to yours but not as loud. leakdown results were messed up valve guides..its not common on a 302 but...its possible. might wanna break off the cover of the rockers and such your replaced and perform a leakdown test on them with piston at tdc and both rockers off....then 'with the handle of a hammer hit the tops of the valves and see if one is not seating right. you say it kinda goes away after a while or fades in and out. that leads me to the lifters. id seen alot of 302's that people rebuild and or throw away from bad lifters. somtimes they will fool you to thinking its a bottom end problem. fact is over 80% of engine failure comes from valvetrain. keep us updated on your diagnosis. its a pain but. the more you test the more you rule out...good luck</blockquote>