Until recently, aluminum rocker arms have been considered a more affordable but less durable option to steel rockers. Because when directly compared to steel, aluminum requires more material to handle the stress of a given force. Since more material is required and there is a limited amount of space available in the trunion, the bearing and axle are typically smaller in an aluminum rocker arm.

Previous designs weren't able to be used in extreme applications and featured decreased stiffness and increased deflection. But COMP Cams® has developed aluminum rockers that use precision-sorted needle bearing trunions to withstand both elevated spring pressures of 350 lbs) and valve lift. The newest COMP® aluminum rockers - the Ultra-Golds® - actually have the highest rocker-to-valve spring clearance of any aluminum rocker - up to 1.650" valve spring O.D. And while these newest aluminum rockers are lightweight, they are still incredibly strong and feature a lifetime warranty.