Please tell me I don't need to pull the pan I just spent forever sealing up just to pour a little oil in the new oil pump.

Will it eventually pickup dry or not?

Thanks,
CHAZ

 

You usually prime the pump with a shaft that is placed through the distributor hole. You can make your own primer shaft (I know people who have) or buy one for a 351C/M/400. This shaft is chucked up in a drill and that will prime your pump. Rotate the engine while priming your pump and it will lube up your whole engine. I usually just use a big ratchet with a socket on the damper bolt to rotate the engine. This is a good thing to do before an initial, new engine break-in.

 

I thought I had to fill the pump itself with oil before installing it? This is a used motor, I just replaced the pump while I had it apart. I replaced everything I could get to without pulling the heads and the cam.

Is there anyway to "backfill" the oil pump from outside the motor? Would the pressure sending unit hole drain into the pump? I am assuming the fitting directly behind the intake and lifter valley is the oil pressure sensor.

Sorry for the dumb questions, I am new to this!

Thanks,
CHAZ

 

Just spin the pump with a drill motor.

 

Take the oil filter off and put oil down the out side hole, it goes right to the pump.

 

It is not necessary to prime the pump, it will be just fine with the assy lube used at the factory. You will introduce more harmful grit and debris into the system trying to prime it. It is however advantageous to prime the entire oil system with oil prior to starting for the first time by driving the pump with a drill motor. Just make sure you turn it the right direction.

 

Yep... priming isn't necessary... it will pump within a few seconds of running. By right direction, you actually mean left (counterclockwise), Eric.

 

Same situation...spent hours replacing oil pan gasket, 1993 full size Bronco, and didn't prime pump. Also, how do I know the intermediate shaft is connected properly? I couldn't see anything and couldn't feel anything for it to go into. So I just bolted the pump back on with the intermediate shaft already connected to the pump. I had problems with the oil pressure gauge prior to this, so I haven't been counting on the gauge. So is this thing gonna pump oil?

 

I got a oil pressure gauge from Harbor Freight for some ridiculous amount (10 bucks?) and I am going to use that at motor start up to insure I have oil. I really don't want to stab the distributor again, so i am not going to pull it to spin the pump. What other options do I have for "jumpstarting" the oiling process?

CHAZ

 

there's no easier way than turning 1 bolt, lifting out the dizzy and turning the oil pump driveshaft with a 5/16" socket on a speedwrench.

if dropping the dizzy is what's keeping you from doing it, there's a very easy way to get it to drop in once you have the sarter connected. you just tap the key and it drops in. then turn the engine through to #1 TDC again and verify that it's in the right place.

i don't connect the coil until i have oil to every rocker arm. turn the crank 90* after spinning the oil pump for a bit, and spin it some more. i do this until i have oil flowing from each rocker arm. no dry starts.

 

So this oil pump intermediate shaft/drive shaft...what rotates it? I'm gonna get an oil pressure gauge, since mine doesn't work, but how do I know I installed the oil pump back on the block correctly? I couldn't feel the oil pump shaft go into any hole or anything.

 

the oil pump drive shaft connects from the bottom of the distributor to the top of the oil pump. it is drivin by the distributor.
there is only one way to install the oil pump to the block, if you tried to put it on backwards you could clearly see that it was wrong also you would not be able to install the oil pan.

 

Thank you!

 

...I probably ruined the motor. The motor has ran about 3 minutes now without the oil pump feeding it. Started knocking. I pulled the distributor. Yep, there is a hole to feed through. I missed. The oil pump shaft isn't going into the hole to the distributor. Maybe too much play? I'll be dropping the oil pan and repositioning the oil pump shaft. Accidentally rotated the distributor while cleaning off some dirt. I have no idea how to position it where it needs to be or how to determine where TDC is or which piston is at the top of travel. I think I'm in for a very educational experience...even at 162,000 miles I still don't want to replace the motor.

 

When I installed my oil pump, I filled a clean butter dish with oil, and stuck the pickup screen into the dish, and spun the driveshaft by hand until oil got near the outlet opening, then I carefully bolted the pump to the motor after engaging the driveshaft. After I got the pan sealed and everything back together, I cranked the starter for about 10 seconds with the coil disconnected. After I hooked the coil back up I started the engine and had oil pressure pretty quickly. My way was very messy and not the best, but it let me avoid un-sticking the distributor.

What do you mean that you missed the hole? Do you mean the pump driveshaft didn't engage? When you install the oil pump, you have to make sure the driveshaft locks into the bottom of the distributor before you bolt the pump on. With the pump on and the driveshaft engaged properly, you shouldn't be able to rotate the driveshaft. You will be able to move it up and down a bit though, but not too much.

I'm sure you know this now, but you shouldn't run the engine for that long without pressure. It might not be worth fixing now.