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My timing was 18 degrees advanced and all messed up and I went to set the timing and my boss decides to pull the distributor to move it over a few teeth so that we could re-adjust the timing. but, the oil pump octagon shaped rod has seemed to come out of the pump and is just sitting on the top of the pump at an angle, i can still get to it, is there a trick to seating this thing in? It was in before. I am 16 and just changed the engine and dont want to have to pull it out again just to get to the oil pump. Please Help.
1978 Ford F150 Ranger XLT
351M/400
c-6 3 spd auto tranny
original duraspark lower half of the distributor (rotor and cap and wires new)
If I am wrong here I am sure that I will be corrected, but if I remember right then that oil pump shaft should have some type of spring clip that sits in a groove near one end of it. That spring clip end is what goes into the distributor and holds it in place (inside the dist.) while you drop the whole thing into the engine so that way your oil pump shaft doesn't fall out. Sometimes you may have to slowly rotate, just a little, the engine by hand in order to get that shaft to line up right and drop in so that everything is lined up with the distributor, oil pump etc... Check to make sure that little clip is still on your oil pump shaft.
78, it sounds to me as if your engine is not assembled properly. That hexagon shaped rod that drives the oil pump is supposed to be installed with the clip up at the top, so the distributer can be removed without the drive coming up out of the pump. If your is not in there right, you may be able to reach inside with a piece of wire and wiggle it into place. But what you really should do, is to take it back apart and set the oil pump drive in with the clip in the correct spot. Then you won't have the possiblity of the same trouble in the future. DF
I lost the clip on my 460 so I have the same problem when pulling the dist. Heres what I do pull the shaft out with a magnet. Then put some grease in the end of the dist stick the shaft in it and put both peices in at the same time. Its a lil tricky but it beats pulling the engine apart to put the clip back on.
You don't have to pull the engine to install the oil pump shaft correctly. You can pull the pan, remove the oil pump and reinstall the shaft correctly. You do have to jack or lift the engine to get the oil pan off but it is easier than pulling the engine.:-)
I have the same problem right now. My shaft fell right out and down into the oil pan. So I pulled the engine and at the same time doing seals and changing a few things. When I put it back together I will be checking for this clip also.
Right now your shaft is visable and if you can use one of those magnetic rods to pull it out and get it reposition back into the the distributor, snuggly, you will have no problems putting it back in.
If you use grease to hold in place to put back in, use something that is very sticky to keep it from sliding out.
I know from what has happened to me I'm making sure I get several things done now before I put the motor back in so I can avoid future problems.
I don't know about you but I would prefer not to have any loose steel objects just riding around in the oil pan.
The shaft in my 460 doesn't even have a groove for the c-clip. It is some sort of hardened aftermarket rod that is round except about a half-inch on both ends.
[updated:LAST EDITED ON 15-Aug-02 AT 12:43 PM (EST)]If its in the pan I think I would leave it there and get a new one. Maybe stick a big old speaker magnet on the bottom of the pan. Remove it just before each oil change.
Crank it over by hand a few time before starting to make sure it's off the crank and in the pan.