Can't seem to catch a break

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dart_68

dart_68

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I know with our older cars problems can abound but it seems like every time I get one thing fixed something else pops up. I just replaced the hydraulic roller lifters in my 360 and now it has no oil pressure. Had good pressure before but not now. I've triple checked to make sure I installed the lifters correctly. Everything looks good. Why no oil pressure now doesn't make sense. I figure either the pressure relief valve is stuck open or the end of the intermediate shaft sheared off. Seen it before.

Anyone got any other ideas why I might not be getting pressure?

Thanks.
 
Wrong lifters? No oil pressure while priming or while running? Try priming the motor with the intake off. It's usually the last thing you touched.
 
Scampin said:
Wrong lifters? No oil pressure while priming or while running? Try priming the motor with the intake off. It's usually the last thing you touched.
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Correct lifters. Even measured them with a caliper. I primed the motor go and no pressure. It started right up...I ran it for a few seconds to see if the pressure would come up...it didn't.
 
Divenut said:
Try a different gauge? Long shot but stuff happens.

Good luck,
Pat
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Was my thought too so I pulled the line off of the gauge and cranked it...nothing came out. Checked the gauge line to see if maybe it was kinked...nope.
 
So rotor turned?
dart_68 said:
Yup, ran it for a few secs to see if the pressure came up.
Click to expand...
The shafts IF slotted should should have slots down and to the left (when humping the fender). Not all have slots, some are crescent shaped and orientation is slightly different with those.
dart_68 said:
Well, even if the shafts were wrong I'd still get oil pressure.
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What kind of lifters? I just installed Lunati (Morel) hydraulic lifters on mine and now I have low oil pressure. The oil band on those are twice as wide as the flat tappets and Im getting leaking out of the bottom. Comp rollers has the more narrow band and that should help it. I just dont want to tear it all back down again now,that will be a winter project. I think Howards also have the wider band. At idle the pressure is 15 lbs so I just keep the rpms up a little. Driving its fine 40- 45 lbs
 
I’m kinda surprised you’d start the motor if you tried priming the oil system and got no pressure.

I would also think that if you primed it, and got no pressure........ that would kinda rule out the oil pump shaft as being the problem.
 
Jax340Dart said:
What kind of lifters? I just installed Lunati (Morel) hydraulic lifters on mine and now I have low oil pressure. The oil band on those are twice as wide as the flat tappets and Im getting leaking out of the bottom. Comp rollers has the more narrow band and that should help it. I just dont want to tear it all back down again now,that will be a winter project. I think Howards also have the wider band. At idle the pressure is 15 lbs so I just keep the rpms up a little. Driving its fine 40- 45 lbs
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They are Melling stock reproduction lifters. The engine came with hydraulic roller lifters.
 
Most likely a stuck relief valve in the oil pump. Or, as you say, int shaft failure. If the tip of the dist shaft had sheared off, engine would not have started. Other possibility is wrong lifters exposing the oil band.
 
mygasser said:
so you fitted (like for like) stock repro' hydraulic roller lifters or swapped to stock repro' hydraulic flat tappet lifters? going from one to the other is a big difference.
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Stock repro lifters. Engine originally came with a hydraulic roller cam and lifters. I put a hydraulic roller cam from Oregon Cams in it with the original lifters. Replaced them with the new Melling roller lifters.
 
dart_68 said:
Stock repro lifters. Engine originally came with a hydraulic roller cam and lifters. I put a hydraulic roller cam from Oregon Cams in it with the original lifters. Replaced them with the new Melling roller lifters.
Click to expand...
ok, i also forgot to ask the reason 'why' you changed lifters?
 
Pull the intermediate shaft. How does the hex look? You tried priming with a hex drive?
 
Do the new lifters have "relief/spaces" in the lifter body that doesn't block the oil gallery, basically opening the gallery to puke oil into the block ?
Moving sequentially, the gallery could be constantly open one lifter at a time , if that makes sense .
 
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inertia said:
Do the new lifters have "relief/spaces" in the lifter body that doesn't block the oil gallery, basically opening the gallery to puke oil into the block ?
Moving sequentially, the gallery could be constantly open one lifter at a time , if that makes sense .
Click to expand...
I compare the new ones with the old ones. Even measure them including the wide groove. They were within a couple of thousanths of an inch by my measuring.
 
Until you find the issue, there is no need to rotate the entire engine for testing. Use a drill!!! Re-instal the problem lifters, the intake off. Observe engine valley while running the drill.
Hell, if you can do it, don't even install the pushrods.
 
What heads?
My first experience with an LA (318, In my case) was in an 88 D100. I went from great oil pressure to zip by changing the heads. That engine originally had '302s that turned out to be cracked (eng didn't run like cracked heads) and at the time I couldn't afford another set of them even from a junkyard. .
So I used a set of heads I had from an earlier 80s 318 just to get the thing running again. As it turns out the older head had smaller diameter pushrod holes and the flat tappet engine they came from had longer pushrods than the roller models did and had a different pushrod angle than the roller engine does and somehow I guess the roller pushrods need more room to pass thru the heads than the FT ones did ... I ended up getting money from dad and went to a yard and got me another set of '302s, bolted em up and my oil pressure came back....
I don't remember all the nitty gritty as that was back in the 90s.....
 
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