I am trying to complete my assembly of a roller 318 and have a question concering the placement of the dog bones and retainer for the roller camshaft and lifters.

When I place the dog bones over the roller lifters and then the retainer over the bones the three hole inside the lifter valley align up perfectly with the retainer, however, there is about a 1/4" gap between the retainer and the mounting bosses. If I were to thread in the bolts and tighten, this would cause the retainer to really bend and warp.

So my question is, am I missing some spacers that go between the retainer and the block or do I have the bones upside down. As it stands now, the bones raised center is pointing towards the intake manifold.

What is it that I am doing wrong to get such a gap between the bosses and the retainer. Or do I just need a bigger hammer?