Help diagnosing top end engine noise

Without having heard it I can't say. The bucket issue sounds very similar to wide valve lash and is consistent with revs. 

If you had a sticky cam link/s making the noise it wouldn't be evey crank rev. 

​​​​​​I would get hold of a stethoscope and try to at least try to isolate the area that is causing the noise before doing anything else. 
They are cheap on ebay and handy to have in the tool box. 

A video would help identify the sound. On the smaller fours uneven carbs will cause all kinds of racket at idle but would go away at rev. I suspect a loose cam chain guide could cause it. 
Steve

It is possible for a timing chain to stretch farther than the tensioner will take up.  Did the engine make noise before you changed the tensioner?

Your opening  statement  said you have plenty of oil to the  valvetrain . 
But you now say the oil may not be getting to all the buckets . Ok   Which  valves are  lacking lubrication ?
Intakes  or exhaust ?    left or right  bank ?   When the block and head were installed  could to much  silicone  /  sealant 
have partially  or completely plugged  the passage at the cylinder stud ? 
All the above  suggestions from our membership make sense   but we are all guessing . 
Start with the simple answers  / mistakes  first..
PS    ALWAYS replace the timing chain while the cases are  split.. 
Happy New Years 
Dave

I just realized that my engine, a J engine, does not have a top cam chain idler sprocket. It relies on tension from the guide under the valve cover. So, I can't do this inspection of oil flow with the valve cover off. Does anyone out there have any ideas on how I can assess what the lubrication situation around the valve lifters is like?

With that type of system the cam cover must be put back on with the tensioner loose or a guide might be broken. That might be what you're hearing. 
Steve

Yes. With the manual tensioner, it still has room to take up slack, though the old automatic tensioner seemed maxed out. The advent of the manual tensioner has made no difference in the noise.

Indeed. I've always been cautious about that-- though I can't speak for the previous owners. From what I can tell, by inspecting the oil pan and looking at the guides with the valve cover off, it doesn't seem that any guides are broken.

Thanks. What would be the best way to determine if I have a loose cam chain guide?

You won't be able to tell until you take out the cams for a better look. Whoever put the valve cover on without a loose cam chain could have broken a guide and not knowing it.
Steve

I had a KZP cylinder head installed for a short time on this engine about ten years ago.  Among other issues it had, one sunken valve guide created a lot of engine rattle-noise at revs above 3K rpms.  Like Flatblackobsession, I was extremely concerned about blowing up the motor before finding the cause.

At one point I thought the rattle was caused by something loose in the exhaust.  While removing the exhaust system I could see that one valve guide was lower than the rest.

That guide was the culprit, and it must have hooked up with the valve for some incredibly hellacious rides. 

Another head took care of that problem.  

  

 

wrote:

You won't be able to tell until you take out the cams for a better look. Whoever put the valve cover on without a loose cam chain could have broken a guide and not knowing it.
Steve
 

Having swapped J-heads a few times, I suggest that breaking a cam-chain guide would take a noticeable amount of force. 

Only other thing I can think of is perhaps the cam cover was put on without it's chain-guide installed.  Can't imagine the chain noises that would make...