Stock Roller Rockers - Swappable?
 

Okay, so first, yes, I did a bad thing.

It's been 11 years since I pulled an M44 head, and, well, every detail doesn't stick with you over that time. I was pulling the exhaust cam and had the head standing on end so I could see the valves open and close, so I could get the cam to just the right spot where there was only pressure on one pair of springs, as I gradually loosened the cam bearing nuts, and two rockers dropped out at once. Of course luck had it that they weren't a "left" and a "right."

I've looked closely at the wear patterns, and can't match the rollers to either corresponding cam lobe.

So, the question is: In actual practice, can you swap these?
In theory, you can swap roller rockers, since they don't "wipe" across the cam like "old-style" rockers do, but in practice, I know this may not work.

New rockers seem to sell for about $35 each, so it's not a disaster if I have to replace them, but why spend close to a C-note (with tax and shipping) if you don't have to?

Thanks,

- Eric

So, in the absence of any truly enlightening responses, I will say that I spoke with two acquaintances who are machinists and who do a lot of BMW work, and both independently said that if there were no obvious identifying wear patterns or marks, they'd recommend just bolting them on wherever and not worry about them.

I'm still happy to read the responses of anyone who's experienced this, but I feel pretty confident just reusing these at this point.

Thanks anyway,

- Eric