Oil Pressure

Peato40

Peato40

Well-Known Forum User
Hello All,

On a newly built engine, should I expect to be able to get oil delivery to the cam on cranking.
I filled up the pump and filter and then began cranking with the valve cover removed to ensure good flow before starting up for the first time, but unfortunately I'm not getting anything.
I then removed the pump and packed with Vaceline but still nothing.

Any advice will be very much appreciated
Phil
 
Yes you should be able to get oil at the cam on cranking like that. I’ll take a while though. May be even 1 min of cranking.
 
try taking the oil filter off and see if it will come out of there first, if it does then refit the filter and see if it will come out of the cam. be aware that when it does come out it will spray oil everywhere with the cam cover off.
take the plugs out too so theres no pressure on the crank and pistons whilst the oils not going around.
 
Thanks all,

I have a spray bar and there are oil holes in the camshaft too.
I did remove the spark plugs and also removed the oil pressure switch to see I got flow there but so far not.

I must confess that I haven't continually cranked for an entire minute, but I have tried cranking several times.
 
As long as you’re sure you’ve put the oil pickup, pump & drive bits on, it’ll work. Just make sure the cam lobes are well oiled from a squirt can, or covered in some appropriate grease while you’re cranking.
 
jonbills said:
As long as you’re sure you’ve put the oil pickup, pump & drive bits on, it’ll work. Just make sure the cam lobes are well oiled from a squirt can, or covered in some appropriate grease while you’re cranking.
Click to expand...

It'll be next weekend before I get a chance to try again but if it still doesn't work I'll remove the sump and double check the pick up pipe fitting and gasket.

I have been dripping break in grease on the cam as I've been cranking.
 
I remember trying to get oil pressure on a friends freshly built engine and we just couldn't get any by cranking. In the end we fired it up with immediate pressure. Not sure why it is so hard to get pressure on a zed engine by just cranking it.
 
even at low pressure you should get good flow.
i would be tempted to crank it for a bit longer and see what happens. just be mindfull you dont over do it.
you could try syringing oil in through the pressure sensor hole so it flows back to the pump untill it pours back out through the sensor hole then crank it.
if it throws it back out at you then you know the pumps working and may give it the kick start it needs to get pumping or prove the pickup is blocked if it runs dry again.
out of curiosity is the helix gear on the crank ok? is the pump to dizzy spindle engaged with it correctly?
i read somewhere you can make/ get a spindle with the gear removed then put it into the engine onto the oil pump through the dizzy hole then use a drill to turn the pump and prime the engine thus testing the pumps ability to pump.
 
Hello All,
Thank you once again for the advice.
I tried cranking for over a minute but I still didn't get any flow. I then removed the sump and checked the pick up pipe and all was healthy there.
So I then set up this system of getting oil into the gallery behind the pressure switch, which was surprisingly thirsty.
I also primed and replaced the pump without drive spindle and then got my drill out with profiled rod to engage with the pump and then hallelujah I got the flow I was looking for.
I thought I might have a problem because I then needed to remove the pump (lose Prime) in order to re-install the spindle but actually not. All back together now and producing flow on cranking so much happier thank you.

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