obviously we are all married!!! or our trucks would be done

 

Hey I'm not married, where do I go again?

On the oil... Avoid the new SM stuff. They really cut down the ZDDP (zinc dialkyldithiophosphate) additive that protects flat tappet cams and other valvetrain components. Reason was it plates catalytic converters. Use diesel rated oil, with the CI-4 as well as the SL rating. This has extra ZDDP and other good things, like extra detergency.

Follow the camshaft manufacturers recommended break-in proceedure.

 

One little thing I do is drill a very small hole in the thermastat so air can excape when you fill the motor for the first time. Fill the rad slowly and you can hear air whistle out of the hole= no air pockets.

 

Now we all know why he has FI on his 390. The truth will set you free. LOL ....

What is a name brand oil. I was out at the local Wal-Mart and so many to choose from. Not much on the bottles other then better this and better that. Not what i want to read. I saw some Rotella (i guess that is how you spell it. That was like 15w 40 and i was thinking that is way to thick. I was not sure and figured icould get some more info from you guys

 

When I was a kid in the early '70's I saw a film at school of an old man talking about his life and his philosophy on life. While he was yabbering he was building a car engine. He wasen't talking about the engine, but just about his ride thru life . The camera was on every move of his hands.

I remember him using STP oil treatment on his connecting rod journal bearings, wrist pins and main crank bearings. Ever since then I have used the same thing. For the camshaft bearings, lobes and lifter rod ends, I use the cute little can of cam grease that comes with a re-ground cam. For hy. lifters I soak them in STP making sure their not "pumped-up." For solids I do the same thing. For the rocker arm shafts and rocker arms I use STP during assembly also. For the piston rings I use motor oil in the grooves. I also wipe a thin layer of motor oil around the inside of the bores, above and below the piston heads, then I rotate the crank slightly and then lube the bore walls again to eliminate any "dry spots." Any and ALL moving parts get coated in STP, cam lube or engine oil. I also pump oil into the galleries. I have been doing it this way for years and I've never had a problem yet with lubrication.

After I bolt everything together, I turn the engine over on it's side, fill the oil filter to the very top with engine oil ( I like 20-50 in my Y8's and FE's), let it soak for several minutes and then screw it onto the filter boss. Then I rotate the engine right-side up and the excess oil in the filter runs into the oil pan. At that point I finish filling the oil pan with oil. The reason I pre-load the filter is so the oil filter element gets impregnated with oil before start-up. This pre-loading speeds up the flow of oil through the engine at start-up. You don't need a dry element slowing your oil pressure when you need it the most! Make sure the oil pump turns freely and whatever you do, make double sure that the pressure valve in the oil pump is in the right way or you'll have enough pressure to blow gaskets out of the oil filter and boss. Been there done that on my 292 Y8!!

I always make a detailed list of everything I need to do from oiling the internal parts to engine start. Like the Captain of a 747 I want everything done properly and I read my check list off several times before firing the engine. There are a lot of things on my check list! Why spend hundreds of dollars building a nice engine only to burn it up because of some careless mistake? Think it thru and take your time. Take a day off and come back at it tomorrow. Don't ever rush it. Enjoy the journey.

After about an hour of run time I change the oil and filter. After puttzing around town, about 100 miles or so, I change it again. I change the oil and filter again after 500 miles and then at regular, normal intervals from then on. I keep a strong magnet on my oil pan near the drain hole. After the initial break-in period it's time for some cool driving .

Hope that help's someone.

-1bigsteve (o:

 

I like that thanks for the info. so far i have been taking my time and double and tripple checking everything.

Can you explain this statement more for me

......and whatever you do, make double sure that the pressure valve in the oil pump is in the right way or you'll have enough pressure to blow gaskets out of the oil filter and boss



Thanks
-Brandon-

 

Hi Brandan:

The oil pressure relief valve is a little do-hicky about an inch long that fits into the oil pump. It has a coil spring and the two control the oil pressure. It has been years since I took a good look at one in a FE but in a Y-block the valve is round, about an inch long and about 3/16" diameter at one end and about 3/8" at the other end.

When I was rebuilding my 292 20 years ago I put this valve in backward. Since the coil spring fit's perfectly "around" the narrow end and fit's perfectly "inside" the hollow larger end, I put it in backwards. I looked at the manuals I had but the exploded views were so lousy I couldn't make heads or tails out of it . So... I put the coil spring around the narrow end and slid the fat end into the oil pump. Major bummer! Quick... somebody kick my butt!!

There is a oil gallery inside the pump and this shallow tube that the relief valve fits into forms almost a "T". When they bored out the hole for the relief valve, the edge of the "square ended" drill bit cut a slight circular groove into the wall of the oil gallery itself and the outside edge of the fat end of the valve fits perfectly into this "groove" (look's like a crecent moon or a trimmed edge of toe nail) which actually looks like a natural "wear pattern" as if the outer edge of the fat end of the valve and the gallery wall had just been rubbing together all those years. They weren't. That is what fooled me.

So I put the fat end in first, which all but blocked the oil gallery, then I put the coil spring over the narrow end of the valve and screwed the end cap on. When I fired up the engine for the first time I saw the oil pressure needle slammed hard over the the right (I heard it hit the little post) and I heard a strange "pop" and then a sound like water coming out of a garden hose. I got out and looked under the truck and there was all my oil gushing out onto the ground ! I quickly shut off the engine.

The oil pressure had gone up so high in just a second or two that not only had the black round gasket, that seals-up the oil filter adapter plate with the side of the block, been blown out but the steel adapter plate itself was bent out of shape. I had to buy a new one. The tiny little rubber ring around the end of the oil filter had also been pushed out of it's groove. I couldn't believe it! What really suprised me was how quick it all happened. After buying and installing a new adapter and filter, I took the pump off, turned the valve around the right way and what do you know, my normal 60 psi .

To make a long story short, make sure the narrow end of that valve goes in first on the Y-block oil pump. The coil spring goes "into" the fat end. Ever since then I always draw a detailed picture of how those parts look when I take any oil pump, or anything else, apart. It's amazing how quickly a little piece of metal can ruin a perfectly good engine, not to mention your wallet.

By the way, if you have a choice, pick the Y-block oil pump with the "two gears" rather than the "rotor in a rotor" internal arangement. The two gear arangement, if I'm not mistaken, was in the '55 Y-blocks and the rotors came later. The gears produced more oil pressure. I didn't realize that untill I traded my "geared" pump for a "rotor" pump and notice a drop in oil pressure. It's not a big deal but it's worth thinking about. My geared pump was giving me 60psi and the rotor is putting out 40psi. I learned about this in the book: "The Ford Y-Block."

-1bigsteve (o:

 

I have a garage FULL of toys..............can anyone tell I'm NOT married...........

LOL!!

 

I have a house, garage, basement and yard full of toys and I am married. Of course several of the toys are the wife's, but then again I learned a long time ago to let her pick her own toys.

 

I learned that from about day one.. LOL

 

Well my first wife never grew up so it was impossible to learn anything meaningful from her. Been with number 2 for over 25 years now. Like the guy said in the movie "RoadHouse"; "You never know, she might be smart enough for both of you".