Doug there is another possibility too. Have you looked real close at the oil pick up tube and assembly for signs of sucking air???? I always seal the gaskets on these with some permatex 300, not to the excess but enough to ensure a good air tight seal. You have got to build another engine for that car it is too nice to let go.
I saw no signs of sucking air. Everything was sealed tight. The only parts left that I need to find is a set of connecting rods. Luckily nothing happened to the block because it's numbers matching.
I've gone over everything and I have an idea. The main bearings were turned .020. The oil groove was never cut an equal amount. Thus it was .010 shallower than a standard main journal. This doesn't sound like much but it results in a 21% reduction in area. Does anyone know if the oil groove gets cut down when a crank is turned or have any other insight into this? Thanks
All 8 of the rod bearings were burnt from a lack of oil and I could find wrong was that the mains were turned .020 but the oil groove wasn't cut an equal amount. So I got I took replacement crank (thanks Ted), chucked it in a big lathe and cut an 1/8" radius in the mains oil groove. I enlarged the oiling feed hole through the upper bearing shell .050 to further increase the oiling to the rods. Finally I bought a TA oil pump and an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge. The crank/rods/pistons are at Performance Engineering in Ross, Ohio being turned .010/.010 and balanced. The only part left to deal with is the balancer. I want to install a neoprene seal but the seal surface will need turned and a speedi sleeve installed. Needing a set of rods in a hurry I had to buy a 401 someone dropped off at a shop to be rebuilt about 10 years ago and never picked up. It's a 61. I have two cranks, one block, complete gasket set, std main bearings, std rod bearings if anyone needs this stuff. I'm still hoping to have it together for August 4/5 in Columbus.
damn, if i only would have read this earlier, i have a complete set of 8 new unused rods for a 401/425. got them along with my engine, but the original ones are in good shape.
RB, we have not done a transaction on the rods yet, I need to call Doug and find out whats happening. May still be interested, because the rods I have are still in a junk car! T
One thing I never measured was the main bearing bore because I couldn't find a spec on it. After getting my crank and rods back I checked the main bearing clearance and it came out over spec. It took a few phone calls but I finally found the main bearing bore spec and sure enough it was slightly over. I'm pretty sure the excessive main clearance caused my rods to spin.
I finally got it all back together. I put an 1/8" radius oil groove in the crank to improve the oiling to the rods and slightly enlarged the main bearing shell oil hole to improve the oil flow to the groove. Once the oil is warm I have about 20 psi at idle and 40 psi going down the highway. Doing 85 mph on the highway on a 95 degree day I had 37 psi and when I stopped at the exit it had 10 psi. Once the oil cools off a little it goes up to 15 psi at idle. Does all this sound right? My only disappointment is that TA's oil pump is advertised as "much improved volume and pressure". Since the pump is relieving at 40 psi it's obvious that the improved pressure part is misleading and it's probably not worth the extra money just to have them take it apart and radius some of the oil passages with a Dremel.
in my humble non expert opinion, you are fine. that is almost my exact numbers on a 66 401 with over 100,000 miles. don't worry unless your idle gets to around 6 or below in hot temps. as long as it runs up quick as you give it gas.
10 lb. psi for every 1000 rpm. Did you put in new cam bearings???? If not that would be where the oil pressure went.
I didn't do new cam bearings because the old ones only had 400 miles and looked and measured fine. I didn't have a pressure gauge in the car before so I have no idea what the net difference is (better or worse). My background is with BB Chrysler were you drill out the oil feed to the mains, put on a high volume pump, set the pressure relief to 65 psi and forget about it. When I started the engine I was a little disappointed the max pressure was 40 psi. This is apparently what the stock pumps are set and I'm in no mood to drop the pan to shim the relief spring with a washer.
You would be hard pressed to get 50PSI out of these pumps. The oiling system is fine the way they are. Plenty of oil for 7K+.
Yep, The factory manual gives 40 psi as the setting for the relief valve. i have had higher readings but I think it was due to the fact that I was using thicker oil. i agree with Tom, the oil system is just fine the way it is. The statement that i made about the psi and the cam bearings was based on years of experience with a lot of different engines and is just a rule of thumb that I believe in.
Doug-at 2 1/2" the nail main crank journal dia is more like a SBC than the 3 1/4" on the 400/430/455 that gets so much oiling discussion on this site. The oiling design coupled with the large bearing surface area of the later engines give problems that the nail doesn't see-as the guys said, you're fine
Thanks for the responses. I was good to get big Riv cruising down the highway again. The best part is all the leaks are gone. I sleeved the balancer and torque converter and put neoprene seals in the engine/transmission. Not a single drip anywhere. I don't think I've ever accomplished that before.
Doug I am hoping on going this year. I will not know for a few more weeks. I will bring the new long car if we go. Not to sure what class to put it in yet though. Most likely bracket 1? I will try to bring the 2 Wildcat GS cars next year. I will be putting some info together to bring back the Nailhead race class for 09 Nationals. If anyone is interested please let me know by email/PM or the new thread comming soon. Thanks
John: We don't know each other but I have always admired that red convertible. It has been forever since I have seen a post by you and I always wondered if you sold the car and moved onto something else. Is the second Wildcat GS new? Rick
I've got a bloody wedding to go to this year -same day as the 'nats car show and in ENGLAND :spank: I'm So behind in fixing the Black car too. Time to take time off work!
