If your priming the engine with a drill you may need to turn the engine over by hand or bump it with the starter to get the oil through all the pushrods.

Kevin

 

changing heads and intake make no difference on you oil in your pushrods. simplt try repriming the engine by hand until you get oil. it may take a while with the engine in the vehicle.

 

my $.2

if you have the intake out use a drill into the dist hole and turn the oil pump slowly... if you have everything back in place remove the power to the ignition coil and crank it for few seconds few times and then fire it up; next time use some molly grease on the tip of every push rod!

 

The truck mechanic at work told me to oil all of the rockers with a can and just let the engine run.

About halfway up on the distributor is a part of the housing that blocks off the oil galley to provide oil to the pushrods. If you're using only a shaft to engage the oil pump driveshaft and trying to prime the motor, the oil is running back to the pan instead of through the pushrods.

To prime the motor properly, you need a tool that closes off the galley or use an old distributor with the gear removed or ground down so that it does not engage the cam drive gear, then chuck up on the distributor shaft to drive the oil pump. Here is a photo of the tool most of us use.....
http://paceperformance.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=25140

 

oil

Hold on...

Are you priming it?? Or is the engine running with no oil coming out of the push rods???

Keith

 

Thanks Keith....lol

 

Yeah, thanks Keith. I just assumed he changed heads and intake and was trying to prime it before firing it off.

 

the engine is running with no oil coming out of the pushrods. I used to have oil coming through the pushrods then after changing heads and intake the oil is gone from the pushrods.

 

It's improbable, but possible, that the pushrods are riding up on the face of the lifter plungers instead of in the socket. Right now, I can't think of another cause if you changed only the heads and intake and had oil through the pushrods before the change.

I know there are other contributors on this board who are sharper than I am, so maybe one of them will offer another scenario.

 

so does that mean I need offset rockers or offset lifters to be pushing down in the center of the lifter then.

 

Do you know if the new heads have +.100 length valves? If so your geometry may be off enough that the holes in the pushrods and the holes in the rockers never get fully lined up enough to create a path for the oil to come out. It's unlikely but you never know.

 

oil

DO-NOT START THAT ENGINE AGAIN UNTIL WE FIX THIS.

First thing is to think about what all you changed and start looking there.

Did you use the same rockers??

Are the heads and intake the only thing you changed??? Nothing else???

First thing i would do is pull 2 rockers off of a cylinder and using a priming tool, see if oil is making it through the push rods. If so then it's probably something in the rocker arm alignment, as Bill stated.

If not we need to look below the pushrods.

Keith

 

ok, I decided to cut out all of the middle men. I removed the intake today and dropped the distributor back into the hole and had someone role the engine over and there was no oil to the top of the engine. Should there be, with the lifter removed. Would I beable to see oil splash anywhere? I don't see any oil coming out of the back or front of the engine. I read on another post about oil running into the timing chain cover and back into the oil pan due to some plug behind the chain cover. Is this a possibility, if so is there any way to check this without removing the chain cover? I am carrying 60 psi of oil pressure on the gauge but nothing to the top of the engine. I felt down in a lifter hole and the cam felt like it was well oiled. I did try removing two of the rocker arms and role the engine over but I was still not getting any oil. I am in distress, please help.

 

engine

I didn't make my self real clear before.

You need to buy a priming tool and operate it with a drill. Stop turning the engine over with the starter. If you didn't allready your going to hurt something.

The starter is not enough to spin the engine fast enough to get oil up the pushrods.

Get a priming tool and a electric drill, don't use a cordless and spin the priming tool with the drill and see if oil comes out the push rods.

Lets us know and we will go from there.

Keith

 

i don't have a "priming tool" but I have an old distributor with the cam gear removed. The engine was run for about 15 minutes today while oiling the top end with an oil can. The engine ran good, some clattering but sat and idled for 15 minutes. I am just not getting oil through the push rods. I don't think it has anything to do with priming or the pump not picking up the oil because when I shut the engine off I can hear the oil running back into the pan.

 

next time use some molly grease on the tip of every push rod!

I'm wondering, and perhaps others are....Do you mean moly on the top of the pushrod where it seats into the cup on the bottom of the rocker? With the valve covers off and everything else assembled, where are all the spots that one should hit with some moly paste? Presuming its all new parts.

 

I'm wondering, and perhaps others are....Do you mean moly on the top of the pushrod where it seats into the cup on the bottom of the rocker? With the valve covers off and everything else assembled, where are all the spots that one should hit with some moly paste? Presuming its all new parts.

Normally before start up,
At both ends of pushrod, rocker arm pivot balls, valve stem tip.

 

oil

oh boy,,,

The priming tool has nothing to do with priming the engine. It is for helping you troubleshoot the problem with out starting the engine and hurting it.


If the engine had oil to the rockers before the parts change then we need to look at the parts that were changed.

Did you only change the heads and intake??? Did you change the rockers, pushrods, lifters etc???


Keith

 

Normally before start up,
At both ends of pushrod, rocker arm pivot balls, valve stem tip.

Thanks! Dont wanna derail this thread though.

 

the only thing I changed was the heads and intake. I put an edelbrock performer intake on but ended up switching back to the stock intake. the rocker arms are the stock rocker arms. When the engine was built I had oil to the top of the motor and lots of it. Changed the heads and had dribbles of oil for a short time, and now I have no oil. My priming tool to me would be an old distributor with the gear removed, that is what I am using to prime the engine. My uncle was talking about possibly a plug behind the timing cover has pushed out. If it is a push in plug and that is the problem is it possible to tap the hole for a threaded plug.

 

Yes, they can be tapped for pipe plugs. Allen head plugs work best.

 

I don't remember seeing a push-in plug in an oil galley. Water, yes. Oil, no.

 

I don't remember seeing a push-in plug in an oil galley. Water, yes. Oil, no.

Most older SBC's that have never been Remanned do have push/press type in the front and many have threaded in the rear.

 

It is a block from a 94 chevy k1500. Another question, can the hydraulic roller lifters be installed backwards. I see there is an oiling hole on one side of the lifter. I am willing to try anything to fix this problem. I don't care if it is way out advice, or a list of order of things to check, easiest being the first worst being the worst. Thanks everyone

 

ok, removed timing chain cover and found that none of the plugs are leaking. When I spin the priming tool oil runs out from around the cam and crank and that is it. If all lifters are removed and priming tool is spun fast enough would i see oil splash into the lifter valley or would I beable to stick my finger down the lifter hole and feel oil running through there?