Ticking in the engine bay ...

[jwinkler]

It may well be the belt - I would not have thought to look at that, but I took a drive this morning and heard some belt squeal.

I am fairly certain it's something on the front of the motor - the sound is definitely coming from the front passenger-side accessories area.

I do have solid lifters, but the lash is good, there aren't any scratches on the inside of the valve covers (Okiesnake - your pictures gave me nightmares last night - hope you're back on the road!). Also, the screwdriver-stethescope reports nice smooth mechanical sounds from different points along both valve covers.

I'm also ruling out an exhaust leak for the moment - I've had those before, and right now I'm not getting the usual "gunshots and flames" backfires I used to get, and header and sidepipe bolts are secure (and based on advise from ClubCobra, I also got rid of header-to-sidepipe gaskets in favor of high temp RTV sealant, and that's been working well).