So I went to start the 350 for the first time and didn't get any oil pressure. Shut it down and pulled a valve cover. Looks like there was some oil getting into the journals. Went ahead and pulled the distributor. Got a drill and started priming, no oil pressure. No oil in my oil pressure gauge tube. What do you guys think? I went and bought a new oil pump and plan on installing it this week sometime. Anything else to check out? What to look for when I pull the pan. Not a big motor guy, know enough for minor stuff. Fresh motor and it came out of a running truck. Anyone got some info? Thanks guys
You should have primed it as a routine thing before starting a fresh engine. Any idea how the oil got into the head? put there during assymbly or maybe pump started to work & something turned loose?
oil pump drive rod under the distributor? Sorry- didnt see that you primed with a drill. Bad gauge or the oil line is pinched? Bad oil pump?
to prime it you will either need an old distributor body with the guts removed(points , or electronic pick up) except for the oil pump rod, or the tool sold to do this job. The distributor body( the part that goes down into the engine that houses the distributor shaft/ oil pump rod) is part of the oil gally system with out it in there you will not push or build oil pressure into the gallys of the engine properly if you just stuck a rod down to the pump and turned it with a drill motor , thats not going to get the job done right. I would suggest priming it with the before mentioned tools..and prime it , than turn the crank 90 dgrees and prime it again etc..until its been 360 complete rotation this way you are sure all the cam, push rods and crank have gotten a good pressure feed.. than from there you should be good. if its not pushing oil up when you use the priming tool, than you should look into the pump , and the pick up tube. and yes, be sure there is enough oil in the pan 1st. also ..turn the pump / distributor shaft in the direction it turns when the engine is running(if it were to be a running engine)...not backwards, i really dont know if this makes a difference or not, but why push your luck I use an old SBC distributor that i canabalized just for this job,,Works on the SBC's and BBC's...oh yeah..remember to remove the cam gear..or it wont turn with your drill
Is it possible that the pick up in not positioned in the pump correctly or came completely out of the pump?
Check your clearance between the pick up screen and the pan, to close and the pump can't pull any oil in.
Ok all good info so far. Made my own prime tool on the lathe out of a old distributor. Did it clockwise, drill in forward same way it would run. Did rotate cam and also checked gauge tube. It's a clear view where it comes straight from the block. Oil in head was from me when I installed valve covers. I used assembly lube on everything. Guess I will pull the pan. Possible it is a bad pump or the pickup isn't in place. The motor was running before I tore it apart. Stupid me I used the same oil pump. Figured it worked before why not now? Right.... Well guess I'll look into the pump. I bought a hi velocity pump, should work fine?
Oh ya I do need to check out the pickup screen. I remember when I put it on I had the pump in and all I had to do was put the pan on. It was a week apart so I don't think I checked that. Thanks
Pick ups have been known to get knocked off/ or out when putting the pan back on.. I test fit mine with the pan (no oil) and use a piece of modeling clay to determine how close to the bottom of the pan it is..once i have it where i want it i put a small tac weld on it to the pump body, it keeps it from working back out or getting bumped and knocked out of my depth set up I have rarely seen an oil pump go bad..they run in oil..that is unless its been starved, then they turn to shit quick
That's actually "hi volume", or possibly "Hi Pressure". Hi pressure ones should be avoided Measure the depth on the pan & how far below the rail the pick up is.
It's a high volume pump. '75 350 mild cam 202 heads can I use the high volume or should I get a regular one?
I had the same problem with the 1973 350 that I rebuilt for the coupe. After re-checking EVERYTHING, I talked to an Auto machine shop owner about the problem. I found out that TWO different styles of cam bearings are used in the SBC for early and later models. One set has a narrow rear bearing and one set has a wider rear bearing. If you use the narrow rear bearing you have to make sure it is seated deep enough in the rear cam journal for the oil hole in the bearing to line up with the groove in the journal. I only seated mine with the edge of the bearing flush with the edge of the journal( just like the rest of the bearings are installed. This was not deep enough. I had to pull the cam and tap the bearing deeper into the journal until the oil hole lined up with the oil groove. I checked this by using a straightened out coat hanger with the end bent up 90 degrees so I could feel it go through the bearing and into the oil groove in the journal. After re-assembly Plenty of oil pressure. If I has used the correct "Wide" stylr rear bearing, just installing it flush with the journal would have been correct.
Oh man I don't remember exactly. My buddy was a machinist and was teaching me how to build a motor with this one. I do remember when I was installing the bearings he said the wider ones were special. I'm gonna call and ask him this week. Thanks
Kinda confusing. It sounds like you installed the old oil pump that came with the engine. It also sounds like you installed a new pick up tube. Not sure why you wouldn't have just used the tube that was installed on the pump, unless you changed to a different style/depth oil pan I guess. It has been my experience that you can't/shouldn't reuse a pickup tube, if they have been installed once (or even repositioned) they just don't fit tight enough. Not sure if you installed a new pick up tube or reused the old one but it does sound like you installed it when the pump was bolted to the engine. According to the instructions included with the last pump I installed (SBC), you are supposed to line up the tube with the pump on the engine but the actual install (pounding on) of the tube is supposed to be done off the engine, on a piece of wood,on the ground otherwise there is a possibility of pump damage during install. I'd say either the pump was damaged during install of the tube was reused and has fallen off the pump. Did you install a new plastic collar that joins the driveshaft to the pump? Part of the job of installing cam bearings is to verify that the holes line up, I would be very surprised if you machinist friend didn't do that (although it could have happened).
I had one drop oil pressue once for no reason at all. Pulled the pan and the pump it turned out that the bypass on the pump was stuck. But you could have also dropped the pickup if it isn't tacked to the pump that is a distinct possibility.
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