Thanks for that. I'm going to try the MC809 and see if I notice a difference in drivability. Years ago when I put the 1994 engine in the 2000 xj I noticed right away the response and take off was not there anymore. I'm not trying to hot rod but it's nice having the pep when needed. This new cam will be similar in "does it feel the same or not."
I spoke with Melling. According to a tech, they used the wrong rocker arm ratio to multiply with; 1.5 ratio got 0.397 lift and 1.6 ratio got 0.423 lift. So, still not sure but Im going to try it and see. Ill report back how I said. Thank you for chiming in, much appreciated.

I think I need to change push rod length. According to Melling, the stock lifters JB2011 are 0.200 max travel. That's the hydraulic mechanism inside the lifter. Melling told me the range of preload for that lifter is 0.060 to 0.100
I did a preload test; With lifter bled down, dial indicator on rocker arm, zero lash, evenly snugged down both rocker arms for cylinder 1 at TDC, and got a 0.165 preload measurement at the push rod. I did this test twice with same results.
This leads me to believe I need a shorter push rod by 0.100 to get within that preload range of 0.060 to 0.100? Preload .165 subtract 0.100 = 0.065 ??
Ive come to realize lifter preload is a touchy subject where some people think it's not needed while some find it absolutely necessary.

I ordered Melling MPR327 push rods. It seems they gave the appropriate lifter preload. The oil flows out nicely from the rods on the rockers.

The camshaft and lifters seem to have survived break-in. It has 200 miles so far, so time will tell.

(MG-mechanical gauge)
I added a MG in-line with the vehicle’s oil sending unit. The MG is mounted vertically and the sending unit is still horizontal. The MG has about the same reading as the factory dash gauge; whether it’s higher psi at start up or lower psi after warming up. It hasn’t dropped below 15-20psi at idle after operating temperature. However, the MG needle bounces around rapidly at whichever position it is. I read a rapid needle fluctuation, indicates lose in oil pressure, meaning the oil is leaking past something. I read that’s usually lower end or camshaft bearings (which all bearings were replaced.)

Flashback to before cam/lifter swap:
I had been driving the jeep for 4 months after the rebuild. Oil pressure never got low. Oil pressure stayed at the usual 50psi at 60mph as it has the past 17 years of owning it. Then suddenly the oil pressure drops and isn’t normal anymore. So maybe the bearings go worn down during those 4 months of driving, for whatever reason? I don’t believe I have any coolant in the oil. I don’t know how much coolant is needed to start looking like a chocolate shake. So I’m at a loss on why the oil pressure still is not back to normal.

When I had a mechanical gauge on mine it bounced too. I Just assumed I needed a glycerin gauge.

It is a liquid filled gauge, not dry. Maybe it’s faulty but probably not. I can’t see why it would be cam, main or rod bearings. I guess I’ll run thicker oil 15w40 and just live with it. I’m tired of working on this jeep

Same with mine after 2 engine swaps...

I wouldnt worry about it too much. Lots of ports being covered/uncovered thousands of times a minute. IIRC on DeXJs video about oil pumps his gauge bounced too. Really should have a snubber or dampened gauge if youre going to run it right at the pump outlet.

If youre going to go to 40wt I would do a 5w40.

Im actually working on figuring out what oil to run in mine right now since its time for a change. Im considering M1 ESP 0w30, Castrol 0w30, QS FS 5w30, Edge HM10w30, M1 Euro 5w40, or QS UD 5w40, all are around 12CST, which is a high viscosity 30w/low vis 40w.

5W40...yes...no...maybe. I built my stroker about 10 years ago...100k plus since then. From day 1...10W40 low pressure when hot at idle excellent when cold or above 1500 rpm. Run 15w50 in summer, 15w 40 in winter. Maintains 20 at idle when hot summer or winter. Drops below 20 with 10w40 when hot at idle.Verified all crank and rod bearing clearances good..supposedly machine shop put in new cam bearings...never verified. Have run a secondary mechanical gauge as precaution since first stroker a million years ago. Mostly same result. $20 dollars from grainger...no glycerin...no flux at 20 psi hot or 60 psi cold. What does that mean for you...unsure...Can't sent video..too many megs..will take a new one tomorrow

Im going to try 15w40 rotella again and see how it does. And see how long it takes to reach the rocker arms on a cold start up. I dont believe I mentioned I'm still running the break in oil, but changed the filter after the break in procedure. It now has 300 on the new cam/lifters with lucas 30wt break-in oil. I wanted to make sure the cam and lifters still had adequate protection with the high zinc. So I'm sure it'll be fine now to change the oil.

On a little side note: The engine did seem to be getting hotter than usual after the new cam. I was thinking maybe it was just the new parts finding their home and causing extra heat. Sort of like breaking in differential gears. The axles stayed hot for a good amount of the first miles, then they started cooling down after more and more miles were put on.

Back to the gauge.....But yes the gauge fluctuates between 10 psi increments. That's why I'm thinking, "So my new bearings are worn out?" Or, "Hey, maybe I didn't install the oil pickup tube well enough and its sucking air causing the fluctuation?"
Interesting though, the oil pressure on the sensor side, dash gauge, is NOW staying around 15-20 psi at idle after reaching operating temp. Then, on the mechanical gauge it reads near 10 psi maybe 13 psi factory spec minimum at idle. So, that makes me think all these years, I thought the oil pressure was at 15-20 psi at idle according to my dash, when it was actually lower at around 10-13 psi. Still I would like for it to be a little higher but I'll report back with the 15w40.

Also, Im almost thinking if I should just run the recommended 10w30 weight, since that's what it calls for and considering everything is rebuild and new. BUT I guess it all comes down to preference.
My thoughts are: 10w30; it's going to have the same oil pressure as break-in oil. 13 psi at idle as stated in FSM, 40-50 psi highway speeds etc.
15w40; it might have more pressure at idle and highway speeds. Will it try to push out cam bearings, etc as Ive read before. Hopefully not. Will the added pressure cause any other issues? Hopefully not.

I like to overthink sometimes..... it's actually helped me avoid costly mistakes $$$

I dont really like 15w40 mainly for the high cold viscosity. Ive always run a 5w oil in my jeeps, whether 5w30 or 5w40.

Not necessarily. Depends on the 100* kinematic viscosity. 30wt oil can be anywhere between 9.3 and 12.49, 40wt 12.50-16.29.
For example, I just changed my oil. I decided on the M1 ESP 5w30. It has a viscosity of 11.8 vs the Pennzoil platinum 5w30 I had in before, with a viscosity of 9.8 (almost a 20W).
Of course I just changed it so there will be some shear, etc, before everything settles down, but right now I have gained about 10 PSI (15ish to 25ish) at idle and on road while still staying with an oil in the recommended grade.

I dont want to turn this into an oil thread, just my opinion.

10w40 brings me down to 15 psi when hot at idle...even when its cold 15w40 synthetic quiets down a second or two after start up. There is never any pulsing of either gauge set even when hot and oil press down to 20

You said out of both 5w30, the kinematic viscosity for one is 11.8 and the other is 9.8. You said the 9.8 is like a 20W? Meaning the 5w30 is almost like a 20w50? SO the smaller the number on the kinematic viscosity the thicker its going to be?
11.8 is thinner at 100 Celsius and 9.8 is thicker at 100 celsius ?

No I wrote that kinda goofy. Higher number cst@100 is thicker. So the pennzoil is on the thin side of sae30, almost a sae20, and m1 is on the thick side of 30 almost a sae40.