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dtaylor73
06-03-2006, 11:08 AM
As the title says, I can't get my oil pump to prime. The oil pan is full of oil. The pick up is 3/8" off the bottom of the pan and screwed in tight. The pickup and tube was checked for obstructions before being installed. I installed a new timing cover, adaptor, and gears. I put vaseline around the gears to help in the prime and spun it over like a muther with a 1/2" drill on hi speed trying to get that thing to prime. Nothing. Pulled out the relief spring and plunger, cleaned and re-installed. Still nothing. Any ideas before I pull the motor out again? :(:

Thanx.

tarior
06-03-2006, 11:36 AM
Fill your oil filter with oil.

dtaylor73
06-03-2006, 11:45 AM
OK. I tired it. Filled the filter with oil and spun the drive shat it for about a minute. I still can't get it to prime. Any other ideas out there?

tufcj
06-03-2006, 02:36 PM
Are you spinning it the right direction? Try reversing the drill?


Bob
tufcj

dtaylor73
06-03-2006, 03:02 PM
Yep. I'm spinning the right direction. Clockwise as you look down at the drive shaft. Any other ideas guys? This thing is inches from getting yanked out again.

tarior
06-03-2006, 09:58 PM
Does the motor have oil in it? I know that sounds kinda smart ass, but there was two page thread awhile back wherein one of the listers here couldn't get his rig to start, tried everything, getting frustrated as hell. Turns out there was no gas in it. :oops:
Aside from something dumb, it sounds like it's sucking air somewhere.

dtaylor73
06-04-2006, 08:04 AM
Ya, the pan was full of oil. It's back on the engine stand with the timing cover off and the cam and oil plugs out of it now. None of the passages are blocked. Pickup is clear. Oil pump and timing cover gaskets were sealed well. Where else should I look where it could be sucking air?

tarior
06-04-2006, 08:26 AM
The only thing I can think of is a cracked pickup tube, or blocked inlet.

Lifted79CJ7
06-04-2006, 12:03 PM
Have ya tried blowing out the oil passages with compressed air to see if it is clogged?

dtaylor73
06-04-2006, 02:19 PM
OK, here's what I checked on oil passages and more info.

Pickup I can easily blow thru. Plug the big end of pickup and blow thru threaded end and nothing comes out and I don't see any cracks so I think the pickup is good. The screen is clean. Pick up to pan clearance was 3/8" plus the thickness of the pan gasket.

Block passage from pickup to timing cover I can clearly see all the way thru it and it's clear. The two oil passages by the lifters I can easily see they are clear. The "Y" at the front of the lifter valley I can see thru both legs and they are clear.

All the passages in the timing cover are clear as are the filter adaptor passages.

The new gears in the new timing cover stuck out past the cover .006" used with a .009 thick gasket. Gear to side of housing clearance less than .0015" using a feeler gauge. The fit between the oil pump drive shaft and housing is excellent.

I had a Fram oil filter on which I had mostly filled with oil on a members suggestion. There was a little over four quarts of 10W40 in the stock pan when I drained it.

I used a Bosch 1/2" drill set on both low and hi speed (3000 rpm max) and let it run trying to get the pump to prime. I had packed the gears with vaseline, so I then pulled the pressure relief plunger out, cleaned and reinstalled it. It appears to be seated. Tried again and zippo.

Is there some trick to priming these things? Maybe I didn't stick enough PB in there. When I tore it apart both holes in the gear cavity were open (not plugged up with PB) so I don't think that could be the problem. In fact, as far as I can tell, the oiling system is good as new. My distributor rotates clockwise looking down at the rotor so that is the direction I spun the priming tool.

I'm out of ideas. :-| When I get another set of gaskets it's goin back together and I'll try again.

tarior
06-04-2006, 03:47 PM
Sounds like it otta work. Oil pan + filter should be ~6qts.

jeepsr4ever
06-05-2006, 03:41 PM
hmmm I wonder if you bought a new filter that had collapsed already

tarior
06-05-2006, 04:35 PM
'never seen that before. :-|

dtaylor73
06-06-2006, 12:08 PM
The oil filter looks ok from looking thru the hole in it. The new gaskets should be here tomorrow. I'll try it again after it's back together. Any tips on the petrolium jelly? Just fill the cavity with PB and insert the gears?

Thanks

donwag
06-06-2006, 01:36 PM
I know the TSM says to use the petroleum jelly. I didn't. Used a squirt can while the engine was on the stand to fill the pump cavity a little, then put oil in the filter and installed it. Rolled the engine back to normal postion. Fired up the drill and 60 psi in a nano second.

By the way the AMC priming tool MC sold me is a quality item. The sliding collar really makes the tool a cut above others I have used.

dtaylor73
06-13-2006, 03:33 PM
:? After inspecting everything and finding nothing wrong, I was a little worried about tryin again. Put her back together and voila! Oil pressure!

donwag
06-13-2006, 03:35 PM
Good job. Persistance pays off!

dtaylor73
09-19-2006, 09:22 AM
Since my last post I've had the oil pump lose it's prime after a few days of the car just sitting. This has happened at least five times now. To this point I got the priming tool out and reprimed the pump each time. I finally changed the oil filter adapter back to the original one and the problem is gone. Do you guys have any idea what was going on there? I had the new adapter on and off three times with the same results each time. Now the old adaptor is on and no problems whatsoever.

cobra5laddict
09-25-2006, 08:44 AM
having the same porblem here.. i bought a new oil filter adapter from bulltear the one with the bipass eliminated... i dont get it..

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