Slant oil pressure seems low?

-
I once tried to ask the Lucas reps at PRI (you'd figure they at least would have some product training) what exactly that oil-climbing-the-gears demo Lucas puts in every parts store is meant to demonstrate. Their responses left me feeling like I'd asked Nigel Tuffnel why he didn't just make 10 louder.
…these go to eleven.

Bet the breeze felt nice from all that handwaving they must've been doing, tho.
 
Yeah, I know. Thing is, they lie so much about their oil "stabilizer" that I don't trust them to tell the truth about anything else they sell. And since there are so many options in legitimate, non-lying brands of proven-good oil, for less money, it's kind of an easy pick. But oil selection is a religious matter for a lot of people, and religious beliefs don't really bend for puny facts and science and stuff, so…carry on!



Not quite, no. Look again/closer at the oil viscosity recommendation chart.
Could you make some recommendations of what you call "legitimate, non-lying brands?
 
Just to be a jerk, here are the oil viscosity recommendations from the 1973 factory service manual.

To paraphrase these recommendations: "Just use any oil you freakin' want to."

1973 Oil Viscosity Recommendations.jpeg


:-)

– Eric
 
Pennzoil, Quaker State, Castrol, Valvoline, Texaco/Havoline, Shell, Mobil, Union 76, Philips 66, Sinclair, Chevron,Petro-Canada, Sunoco, Conoco…

…plus a bunch of usually-more-expensive foreign brands like Liqui-moly, Motul, and Idemitsu, and high-endy synth brands like Redline.
 
Back on topic:

Pulled the spring but cannot get the plunger out to save my life. It’s at the top and I cannot get my finger in there due to the engine mount. Not going to use a pick or anything sharp so I guess it stays in. Here is the spring, has shiny part near the 3/4” mark but still seems springy and not broken. Back in it goes.

IMG_2617.jpeg


RGAZ
 
Stuck piston means y'gotta try harder, not give up—if the piston's stuck, that's likely sapping your oil pressure.

Shoot some good penetrant (Kroil, such as) in there and rap on the backside of the valve with a hammer and pin punch or metal rod. Put the cap back on without the spring. Start the engine and rev it a little. Pull the cap again and see if you can get the piston out now.
 
Disconnect the oil gauge so it doesn't keep bothering you and run it until it kicks a rod out the side. You can stick an oil pump on it but that is sticking a bandaid on it. A good slant has good oil pressure, a worn out one has low oil pressure. Never heard that stuff about the oil viscosity and as you can see above, it's nonsense. You can try every oil there is and it won't make a difference. Been there, done that.
 
Update. Finally got the plunger out, it was stuck hard. Had to crank engine for a sec with no spring to get it to push down enough to get. Hit it with 1500 crocus and 3000 crocus to a mirror finish. Before and after below. Now she holds no less than 18 psi, even hot at 700 idle.

IMG_2633.jpeg
IMG_2635.jpeg


She is shinier than my 12 gauge modified choke tube!

RGAZ
 
Last edited:
I really appreciate the constructive help I received. I and many others need the experts on this forum to keep these classics on the road and performing. I weep for the future when experts like slantsixdan give up wading through the muck to provide a bright spark of expertise and dare I say genius even. I pray that day may never come.

Thanks slantsixdan just doesn’t say enough how much I appreciate your input.

Randy aka RGAZ
 

Disconnect the oil gauge so it doesn't keep bothering you and run it until it kicks a rod out the side. You can stick an oil pump on it but that is sticking a bandaid on it. A good slant has good oil pressure, a worn out one has low oil pressure. Never heard that stuff about the oil viscosity and as you can see above, it's nonsense. You can try every oil there is and it won't make a difference. Been there, done that.
Just stunning..................
 
I think I'll leave it just as it is. lol

Had a Muncie 4-speed once, if I was in too much of a hurry, I could shift it into 1st and 3rd at the same time.

Then I had to crawl under the car with a sledgehammer and knock the two tabs back into Neutral.

I vividly remember lying in a puddle of oily water in a tollbooth in a rainstorm, whacking away, with my girlfriend in the passenger seat rolling her eyes.

- Eric
 
-
Back
Top Bottom