I think I mentioned how bad my lifters sounded yesterday. It hasn't been cranked in a week or so and they apparently bled down really far. I've heard them clack a little before, but nothing like this! Today I checked the oil again and cranked it up and drove it around the neighborhood and then out to get something to eat. By the time I got home they had finally pumped up enough and it was running quiet again.

Hydraulic lifters can be noisy when they're not pumped up. I guess I just didn't realize how noisy they can be!

Anytime I have built one of those, I keep the lifters in a flat dish, submerged in oil.  If not, I swear they clatter for a week before they finally shut up.

Like the hammer of Thor.
Marbles in a coffee can.
Golf balls in a blender.
Two skeletons copulating on a tin roof.