Rebuilt engine start up

[Deleted User]
[Deleted User]
edited November -1 in HUDSON
The recent thread on oil pressure gave me concern. I am almost ready to start my rebuilt 1950 Pacemaker 232 engine. I have put a lot of new parts in it and would hate to mess things up. The comments like prime the oil pump and fill it with vasiline got my attention. What should I be doing to insure I do not damage the engine when she cranks for the first time?

Comments

  • russmaas
    russmaas Senior Contributor
    We always prime the engine first. Couple differnt ways to do this but we pefer to take the oil pressure gauge off and get a fitting that screws into the bar extentsion and has a male opening on it so you can slide a plastic tube over it. Buy a siphon (many people used to fill there rear ends) and draw motor oil into it, then push the oil through the block via your fitting. This will fill the oil passages as well as the bearings. You can actually hear the passages and bearings fill and oil falling into the pan. Then fill the engine with the appropriate oil level and fire up.
  • vmike
    vmike Member
    I usually prime the oil system manually by turning the oil pump. I have an old distributer shaft I chuck into a reversable drill just for this purpose.



    mike
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    Just like I have with other rebuilds, I am priming my entire engine with a oil primer (a tank filled with fresh motor oil and compressed air). I bought one for $50 on ebay sometime ago, or you can rent them. They pretty much eliminate the oil pressure lag time that occurs when starting a new engine. You dont have to worry about all the cranking and the time it is going to take for the pump to get the oil moving. I do that, but I also hook up a cheapo oil pressure guage that I bought sometime ago at the Autozone. I rigged a connection to where the factory oil pressure sensor goes so I can see if I have good pressure as soon as it motor gets going. By the way, I would not pack the oil pump with vasoline, but use a good engine rebuild grease or something like ultra slick, from Permatex. Not that the other way wont work, just that the modern lubes offer much more protection.
  • hudsonguy
    hudsonguy Senior Contributor
    vmike,



    I'm not so sure a Hudson engine can be primed that way. Since the cam has to turn in order to turn the oil pump, I don't think the way you describe would work. I've done it many times myself on Brand X engines, but that was B.H. (before Hudson) in my life.



    I like Russ' advice of adding oil through the sending unit port. Should a person also turn the crankshaft once (or more) while doing this in order to expose all of the journal holes?



    I was thinking about making my own oil tank. Seems like a cheap garden sprayer (Hudson brand, of course) would also work to be a pressure tank you use to introduce the oil into the engine.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    I don't believe this would work unless you remove the gear on the oil pump. (At least on 6 cylinder hudson engines from stepdowns) Then you'd have to remove the pump and reinstall with the gear.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    Yeah, you can't turn the oil pump if the cam is in, and the chain is on, kind of would be counter productive.... at least on a hudson 6 engine...



    I guess you got a pretty strong drill...



    Probably want to use the ultra slick permatex stuff, when assembling the engine, the green sticky stuff is great!
  • bobbydamit
    bobbydamit Expert Adviser
    All rebuilds should be assembled with a film of STP or some similiar Improved viscosity index lube. It is also a great idea to place a small amount of Oil, One good squirt of 10W30, in each cylinder before putting in the spark plugs, and then turn over the engine with the coil wire removed and the carb untouched, until you get some oil pressure, a pound or more. Then install the plugs and replace the coil wire and start the engine. It may smoke for a moment or two, but at least you know you have upper cylinder lube and the oil delivery system is full before the engine fires.
  • vmike
    vmike Member
    Oops, sorry about that. I was thinking brand X, since I've not yet pulled my 308 apart I just assumed the distributor, gear and pump rod came out as a unit.



    mike
  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User]
    Dennis in NY wrote:
    Just like I have with other rebuilds, I am priming my entire engine with a oil primer (a tank filled with fresh motor oil and compressed air). I bought one for $50 on ebay sometime ago, or you can rent them. They pretty much eliminate the oil pressure lag time that occurs when starting a new engine. You dont have to worry about all the cranking and the time it is going to take for the pump to get the oil moving. I do that, but I also hook up a cheapo oil pressure guage that I bought sometime ago at the Autozone. I rigged a connection to where the factory oil pressure sensor goes so I can see if I have good pressure as soon as it motor gets going. By the way, I would not pack the oil pump with vasoline, but use a good engine rebuild grease or something like ultra slick, from Permatex. Not that the other way wont work, just that the modern lubes offer much more protection.





    Where do you hook up the pressure tank?
  • super651
    super651 Senior Contributor
    alexa wrote:
    The recent thread on oil pressure gave me concern. I am almost ready to start my rebuilt 1950 Pacemaker 232 engine. I have put a lot of new parts in it and would hate to mess things up. The comments like prime the oil pump and fill it with vasiline got my attention. What should I be doing to insure I do not damage the engine when she cranks for the first time?

    I have an oil pump that has no drive gear on it. I install it in the block and put a loooong flat-blade screw driver in where the dist. hole is and it only takes a few turns by hand to get the oil to all parts . The handle will get very hard to turn when all ports are full of oil. ( it works )

    Hudsonly Rudy.
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