Help Me PLEASE! The other day I was replacing my valve cover gaskets and an acorn fell in the oil return hole. I've tried everything, Vacuum - Needle - Even a drill bit. Which brings me to my problem, the acorn is completely stuck and it's a bit crushed up, would it be okay to run it? I'm very afraid of the acorn stopping the oil from getting through. PLEASE any advise would be appreciated.

 

I wouldn't. Blocked oil return is going to cause problems most likely. Almost certainly. Oil will likely fill the valve cover, possibly starving the engine, possibly blowing oil out of cover gaskets/seal, or get sucked up the pcv into the intake, and so on.

Might try running a drywall screw into the acorn and carefully pulling it out.

Ideally you will want to get it all out, but if you can get most of it out it will probably be ok.

Even if you can break it up so it goes down into the pan would be better than blocking the return. Not great, but better I think.

I would imagine the pieces would end up in the oil pickup screen/strainer. Older chevys had plastic/nylon on the timing gears and it used to break apart into pencil eraser sized chunks or so that would end up in the oil strainer.

Many people would just replace the timing gears with all steel ones and not clean out the pickup and get away with it - and that was a lot of plastic.
Better to drop the pan and clean out the pickup, or replace it, but not everybody did.

If you can't get it out and have to break it up to clear the return, you could run it for awhile and then pull the pan and find the pieces, but that's not an easy job on most trucks.
Would at least change the oil and filter - might get some of the pieces out that way.

 

Make a adapter for your vacuum with small & smaller pipe/tubing.

Since it's broke up, tried hemostats?

 

Water it for a few weeks, and eventually it will sprout and start growing out of the oil return hole and you'll be able to grab it then

If I were you, I'd use an air compressor to blow as much of it through the return hole as you can, then spray a can of carb cleaner down the hole to clean anything that might be left, maybe use a coat hanger too, and then drain the oil, put new oil in, run it for a half hour to an hour and change the oil again with a new filter. Then just keep an eye on things for a while.

 

Thanks for the quick responses, my brother-in-law tried getting it out yesterday and it broke into many pieces. I don't know if the helps but the engine is currently sitting on a tire with no fluids in it, I am rebuilding my trucks frame had to take everything out. I replaced the oil pan also, so should I crush it up and use an air compressor to push it through to the pan? I am unsure if it leads to the pan. It's on the driver side return hole. Oh and I haven't put the new oil or filter in yet.

 

I wouldn't push anything hard & organic into a machine.

YRMV.

 

Maybe you could blast it out by shooting compressed air into a different oil return hole? Or maybe put a gob of rubber cement on the end of a stick and see if the acorn bits will stick to that.

 

I think I'm gonna take the risk, I tried a few of the suggestions ending with the wood screw idea. I ended up crushing it up more trying with the wood screw. I suppose the bits could have gone into the pan, I will check tomorrow. But if all fails and the engine blows I got a 302 on standby, I was hoping to use the 351w as I just finished rebuilding. Appreciate the help!

 

 

I'm new to trucks and engines and such. I'm 16 bought my first truck and started working on it. I have to pull the head to replace a gasket anyway, so I'll see if I can get it out. Thank you very much!

 

pull the pan and use a screwdriver to drive it out the bottom and wash it all out with brake cleaner

 

A large drill bit spun slowly by hand will pull some of the bits up and out.

 

Does that drain hole on this type of head go down into the sump directly? Or does it drain into the lifter gallery? If the lifter gallery, wouldn't just removing the intake manifold get to it?
I'm guessing not, or you guys might have jumped on that already. But when I first started reading, I though just look in the gallery and clean it all out before it gets down into the cam and sump.

Sounds like it goes through the block.
Guess I can google an image, or go look at a head on the bench. But that would take me away from the keyboard and it's so much fun asking questions on the internet!

Good luck DTex!

Paul

 

FYI, it's lifter *galley*, not gallery.

 

Could you put the engine on a stand and turn it upside down?

Grab it with one of those claw thingies? You know, flexible shaft, button on one end, claw that opens on the other when you push the button?

Send a squirrel in after it?