Priming 350 oil system after oil pan removed for a few days?

Okay, this may be a very 'newbie' question but hopefully should be an easy one for someone knowledgeable to answer. I pulled the oil pan on the Buick 350 in my '69 Jeep just to check it out and see if there was anything concerning in there like a lot of sludge or metal (neither found luckily). I also pulled the oil filter adapter / pump cover to just visually inspect it and the oil pump gears. It's been a few days now that the engine has been sitting with no oil. Is packing the oil pump with Vaseline and cranking the engine over w/ the coil unplugged until the gauge shows some pressure an acceptable (safe) way to prime the oil system before firing the engine?

I'm aware of oil pump priming tools like one would use when priming a freshly rebuilt engine, but I'd rather not have to pull the distributor to get oil through the engine if it's not really necessary (for one thing, I didn't think to put it at TDC before draining the oil, so I'd either have to spin it dry a few times anyway or have the timing be thrown off... and then I'd probably have to ask you all for help with that too... doh).

 

Yes, if the pump is packed with petroleum jelly and properly put together, cranking it should create suction and oil pressure...

Good idea not to start it until you verify pressure.

 

If you have a good filter with anti-drainback feature, and you did not pull the filter, you should not loose the prime, but it happens. (stated for others who only pull a pan, but leave full filter on), since you pulled the filter, I would prime.

The orientation of the crank does not matter if you do a prime as long as you do not move the rotating assembly.


If you put the pan on and refill, it really is not that much trouble to pull the distributor and spin the pump.

Mark the distributor housing and the block, single line (I use a sharpie).

Pull the cap and mark the rotor to the distributor base so that you can re-clock correctly.

Pull the distributor and and notice where the rotor moves to, and keep the shaft straight with the first mark.
Also, make note of where the groove in the oil pump shaft is.

Prime until you get 40 or better and the drill bogs.

Check the oil pump shaft groove and orient it as it was before the prime.

Put the distributor back in and set it as it came out with the rotor where it ended up when you pulled it, and it should drop right back in and then "rotate" as it engages the cam drive and end up where it was when you started.

As long as you did not rotate the crank, you should be where you at the beginning and can start the car.

If all is well, then check the timing, and you should be good.

(for those that left full filter on)
You can try putting the pan, and oil back in, and starting making sure you have oil pressure within 5 seconds, but I would do a prime, because, stuff is more expensive than my time these days.

 

Did you verify gear end clearance in the oil pump?

 

Not that it matters for your question, but Wagoneer or Gladiator? Pics? 1st vehicle when I was 16 was a '70 Wagoneer w/a Buick 350.

 

Speaking of filters, what brand of filters do you guys prefer to run on a stock engine? Is there a part # I should be aware of? The only filter I could find locally was a Fram and I've been hearing about how awful those are for about 2o years now. I usually run Napa branded Wix on my other vehicles. I'm sure there's one that fits a SBB that just isn't entered into in the part's store's system.

Not yet but, but I should be able to before I put it back together today. I was just going to slap it all back together with a new stock gasket, but checking the clearances looks simple enough to do as long as I can locate my feeler gauges...

I was getting some weird oil pressure readings on an ancient, off brand aftermarket gauge, almost nothing at idle but it would climb up pretty well with a little RPM.... the previous owner had installed a "T" fitting to run both an aftermarket gauge and the stock oil warning light, and there was a mess of a few different fittings and about 1' more copper oil pressure line than was needed, which was just coiled into a few loops to take up space... seemed to me like that very convoluted routing might prevent the gauge from getting an accurate reading of what the pump is actually doing at idle, so I yanked it all and installed a new Auto Meter gauge, new appropriate length copper line and deleted the T fitting, which I found was all full of a thick goo.... it appears that over time the T fitting was gradually catching tiny aluminum shavings from the pump where they mixed with oil and got stuck in there like a heavy grease. It was not fully blocked up but definitely seemed like it may have been preventing any oil from getting to the gauge at idle pressure. I'm very interested to see if the new gauge reads any different at idle.

I know low oil pressure is an issue on these Buicks so I'm trying to make sure I have a healthy engine first and foremost. It's history is totally unknown to me although I suspect it's been rebuilt at some point. The Jeep has a a five digit odometer with 16k showing, which I'm certain is 116k based on it's overall condition. Someone painted the longblock Chevy orange years back (doh) and it looks like they did it with the engine out, so that's my main clue. The engine seems to run really smooth although I've only gone around the block so far. I wasn't around back then, but I've often heard that the quality of oil and gas back in the day was such that people usually had to rebuild engines before 100k. If that's true then I assume this thing couldn't run so smooth with 116k original miles on, it but who knows?

It's a Wagoneer, Empire Blue / Rust, matching blue base interior (vinyl floor & bench seats). All stock so far, 2bbl B350, trans is a TH400, weird thing is it's a Nailhead pattern with a Jeep specific adapter to mate it to the B350. Dana 20 transfer case, Dana 27 closed knuckled front axle, Dana 44 two-piece rear, 5 lug wheels. My plan is to get it running well, clean it up and just drive it. The body is straight and it has a nice patina on it which I know some don't like, but it suits my current budget much better than shiny paint haha. Eventually I'd like to have the seats and door panels refreshed and install about a 3-4" lift with some slightly bigger tires. Going to modernize a few things for safety and reliability such as swapping to '74-'80ish Dana 44 axles which are stronger, easier to source parts for and have front disc brakes. Maybe install an HEI, maybe even an OD trans swap eventually, I have a factory 4bbl intake for it and am looking for a QJet. But definitely no LS swap or anything like that, I love the unique Buick powerplant under the hood. It's main issue right now is that I'm replacing the entire floorpan, although it never saw salt, it sat for many years with water leaking inside and rusted the floors from the inside out, which is the usual deal with most old cars from the Pacific Northwest...

I posted a couple pics in my other thread as well, https://www.v8buick.com/index.php?threads/high-amp-alternator-cs144-upgrade-for-buick-350.369401/

 

Awesome! I forgot the alternator thread was yours too. Mine had the deluxe interior w/buckets/console. Unfortunately, even by '85 when I got it it'd been beat on pretty hard I think. Would love to find another w/the same interior someday & in good original condition. I had a couple M715's as well. Jeep would've been wise to have used Buick engines in them as well.

 

Wix 51258 Napa Gold 1258 (both made by Wix)
Fill the filter about 3/4 full before installing. Just get it close to the nipple, while holding like a glass of water and flip it up and spin it on, You will spill about an ounce at most.

 

Thanks for the tip!

Sounds like it might just be worth priming the engine with the dist. out, that process doesn't sound too bad. As far as an oil pump priming tool, is there one you guys prefer for Buick engines? It looks like there's a lot of generic ones available via Amazon Prime... I like the idea of having it by tomorrow but they all seem to have mixed reviews, some saying they work great and some saying they don't work at all... always hard to tell with Amazon reviews if some of the negative ones may just be user error though. Napa also sells an Evercraft one I could pick up locally. Would either of those work well enough or am I gonna want to just spend the $50+ for a name brand priming tool through Summit/Jegs and wait a week for it? That would be a slight bummer but I'm not really in a huge hurry as this is 100% a project car.

Wow, that's a sweet looking Wagoneer! That interior is quite rare... I think it only came on the Super Wagoneers so it sounds like someone swapped it into yours before you got it. I love the look of the buckets and console although the big bench seat is kind of fun too, definitely gives the feel of driving an old car. And I have nothing against AMC but I agree, the smooth running and torquey Buick engines just seem like the perfect match for a Jeep... if only they'd had a Buick 455 option for the heavy chassis J-trucks and top trim level Wagoneers, now that would make for a sweet ride.

 

I think the Evercraft tool will work. If it is not to much trouble, buy it and compare it to the measured distance before you use it, and if it is not correct, you can return it.
Or take the distributor with you.

 

If you wanted, you could use a straight blade screwdriver without the handle chucked in a drill, I did it that way for years, plus it was free

 

I could never keep the blade in place, and I wasn't drunk. Maybe it's the thumbs thing...

 

It looks like people that are having issues with some of the no-name priming tools generally have Chevy engines, if they mentioned what engine at all... apparently on Chev's there is a drainback hole inside the distributor cavity that needs to be blocked by the priming tool in order for the pump to send oil everywhere it needs to go. If using an old screwdriver handle is an option, it sounds like the Buick 350 has no such concern and I can use anything that will work to turn the oil pump driveshaft. Correct?

I'll probably just buy the Evercraft tool at Napa since I don't have an extra old screwdriver that I can donate to the cause, and the Amazon tools seem a little shoddy, although it sounds like they'd work on a SBB. From what I'm seeing it sounds like the best oil pump priming tool is one made from an old OE distributor that came off the same type of engine... I don't have one of those handy either right now, but good to know.

 

It was a neat truck. I've never seen another w/that interior - Just a few pics. Console had lights to indicate what mode the transfer case was in. I was noticing how much more stainless trim my old one had than yours plus the woodgrain, power tailgate window, etc. Maybe it was a "Super Wagoneer?" I never knew a whole lot about them but I'd be shocked if that interior had been swapped. I'd parted one that was a bench seat/lower trim model back in the mid 80's as well.

I always assumed is was a Chevy bolt pattern on the TH400 with an adapter plate to a BOP pattern - Figured it had something to do w/Chevy already having the TH400's set up to accept the transfer case but I could be wrong about all that. I think by '89 or so I'd probably sold the truck. Mine also had a 3.73 posi which I think was an optional gear. It grenaded & I wound swapping in the rears from my parts truck which IIRC were 3.23 ot 3.42.

As fat as a priming tool, an old/stripped distributor w/o the gear and just the shaft sticking out to attach a drill to the top is tough to beat. 350 distributor cores should be cheap & plentiful.

 

HAHAHA, that IS an issue

 

Here’s my new and improved priming tool

I welded my screwdriver to the slot on the distributor shaft, and attached a piece of vinyl tube to keep the tang in the pump slot

 

A couple items - the NAPA1258 oil filter is $19 cdn. I dismantled an old buick distributor and use it to prime the oil pump & engine. Welded a 1/4" headless bolt onto the shaft & use a battery powered drill to spin the shaft.

 

I did what Mark said, just busted the handle off of a straight edge screwdriver. A wooden handled screwdriver is the easiest to break. To keep it in place I shoved a fuel line onto it which also fits the oil pump. Keeps everything in place and cheap cheap cheap

 

I cobbled one together from a piece of lawn irrigation PVC, two oil caps and a landscape lumber nail.
Worked on my nailhead and my 430 after rebuilding them.

(did not think any part store would have anything local and never went looking)

Side cutaway to facilitate the distributor drive on the cam.

 

Did you remove oil filter? If not it should be fine. Should still be enough oil to prime