Yeah, the spindle bearing usually takes the fall when an axle joint starts getting stiff. When that bearing goes bad, the hub can't lock/unlock like it should, because the axle doesn't stay centered in the spindle/hub.

 

Ok, what am I doing wrong? Changed oil & filter on the HO and tried to prime the oil system. My home-made tool made out of a 1/4" rod w/a socket attached to it via a roll pin sheared the pin - even though it worked great on my Explorer's 351W. Pulled the points-style dizzy apart and used just the shaft and the housing, but the drill chuck just spun on the shaft, and in doing so created a mound of filings. Taped a socket to a 1/4 to 3/8's adapter and extension, but the Chinese adapter broke. Traded it for a Craftsman one and determined that I cannot turn the oil pump. Neither direction.

So, I have the obvious question of how to unstick the pump. But, since I anticipate the answer being "pull the engine and...." I really need to remind all that I'm just trying to figure out if the engine is worth even pulling.

 

Will the crank turn? If not, it may not be worth pulling the engine. Heads maybe.....

As for a frozen oil pump, I don't know any tricks you haven't already tried, short of replacing the pump.....

 

RW - What a buddy! You say if the crank won't turn it'd be worth pulling? You don't have any magic bullet for the oil pump? What kind of a guru are you?

Ok, I'm gonna think about this before proceeding. Haven't tried to turn the crank. Maybe I'm afraid of what I'll find out? But, in the meanwhile I'm pulling the driver's fender for a buddy of Ray's - who has money! Amazing how fast those body fasteners come out w/that 18v impact. Those little 8 & 10MM heads spin fast. But, you should see the little 5/16's heads whirl!

The sad part is I have 6 qts of good oil in that engine! Probably upped its value significantly.

 

Sorry, I haven't yet mastered the art of laying my hands on an engine and healing it of all that ails it. I still hafta do stuff the old fashioned way......

I bet those bolts do spin rather quickly..... Nice tool to have around.

How'd the old oil look? A signs of metallic particle or chunks? 1.5 gallons of fresh oil, that's about $25-30 these days. Too bad the scrappers don't add that to the value of junk blocks.....

 

The old oil was BLACK, but I didn't see any particles. Maybe should've put a magnet in the drain, but didn't.

So, what would be the point of spinning the crank, even by hand? Wouldn't that just stand to damage the cam or lifters, or is there going to be enough lube left after years to protect them at slow speed?

Wouldn't I be better off to bite the bullet and pull the engine, put it on the stand, pull the pan and check the mains and rods? If all looks good then it is a coin toss whether to put in a new pump or pull the heads and look at the bores. I'm thinking pull the heads, but that may be just the desire to tear something up.

IOW, right now the thinking is to pull this engine out and down to see if it is a good base on which to build. The biggest issue is that I was hoping to run it first and then do testing, like a leak-down test to see how the rings and valves seal. Now there's not a good way to do that.

 

See if it will spin, slow by hand wont hurt it. If it's locked, leave it.

 

The good: The engine turns by hand fairly well

The bad: The oil pump is frozen

The UGLY: The dizzy gear has 3 teeth less than it should. I guess the PO was right, it is an electrical problem - no spark. Kinda like Waltrip saying "The engine problem was an oil pan failure - it failed to contain the rods."

The cam gear looks ok from the top, so obviously the pump seized on the last running of the engine. But, the question is what damage was done? The PO said it would quit after driving it for a while but would fire up later. So, was it the oil pump failing and the engine stopping due to lack of lube? That would be pretty grim.

Or, grasping at straws, what are the odds that there was an electrical problem and the pump seizing was coincidental? (Gee, even I can't go for that one, and I'm the one with the investment - even tho it isn't much.)

 

Did you fully rotate the crank or just enough to see if it moved? If you didn't spin it a full rotation, go and do it before you go any further.

 

Pretty sure it went a full turn. Why? Rods?

 

Pump could have locked up after it sat for a while, but the broke dist gear teeth kinda has me wondering. It wouln't have run with the pump locked, something would have given, be it dist teeth, cam teeth, or oil pump driveshaft.
You may not be able to start it, or do a compression test, but what is stopping you from trying the leak down test?
The engine isn't locked, so it should at least be a viable rebuilder.

 

Hadn't thought about doing the leak-down test. Was hoping to have run it to ensure the rings are seated, but if I don't hear anything in the exhaust or intake at least I'll know the valves are good. Gonna be a bit more difficult to figure out when #1 is at TDC w/o the dizzy pointing to the plug wire. But, I can do it. And, if the leakage is minimal then it must be pretty good.

Good idea - thanks.

 

Ya know, you *could* run a comp test as well. Of course, there would be no oil circulating, so the bearings would be dry. But that doesn't mean it can't be done. Granted, it would be better if the oil pump wasn't locked up and the engine could be started. During a comp test, the engine doesn't spin long enough to really circulate oil anyways, though a little does move.

 

i posted my pictures in the body repair thread i thought that the rust was due to the sealer i was informed that the rust had came from the inside out and was due to wide daily temp swings causing condensation between the metal layers. the person who answered my questions put up a bunch of pictures of the same type of thing on a nomad he was rebuilding. that is why i cut the corner out of the roof to see what was under there and glad i did. i dont think you could use a mig welder at least on mine because the metal is pitted so bad and has become vary thin, as soon as you strike an arc it would blow a huge whole. the jb weld thing seems to me like a band aid that i dont want to put under a good paint job. just my thoughts. i am going to either find another cab that is good or go the junk yard and cut off the roof of a good cab. just my opinion for what it is worth

 

Won't get to work on it until Friday, but my thinking now is to run the leak-down test where it sits. If it looks fairly solid with that, I'll pull it and put it on the stand, open up the bottom end and check the bearings. Might even pull the heads to check the bores. But, gotta sleep on this.......