Oil to top of head (1 Viewer)

[Canfj40]

Hi I'm having an issue with oil getting to rocker shaft. Engine manufacture date is April 1974. 3.9 liter. It has 2F oiling system.
I'm getting oil pressure at the oil sender and also at the oil filter which is mounted on passenger side of the engine.
I've been using a drill and old distributor shaft to prime the engine.
I've removed the head bolt where the oil passage to the top of the engine is located. Oil gallery is clear as I can blow compressed air thru it. I'm wondering if I have the wrong head gasket installed or maybe I haven't run the engine long enough to get oil to the rocker shaft. Picture shows top of the head with rocker shaft and head bolt removed. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Regards Barry

 

[igotta40]

That sure is clean!

 

[charliemeyer007]

It should not take long to get oil to the head with an electric drill. It hurts nothing to spin it longer and see what happens. I think the cam needs to be in the correct position to let the oil flow. Have someone run the drill while you pull the engine slowly threw a complete revolution or two.

 

[igotta40]

You must rotate the crank twice to get one turn on the camshaft. Then you should see flow.

 

[charliemeyer007]

I think the oils flow threw the cam in 2 holes, so 1 revolution will do it.

Myself - I pull the spark plugs, and give each jug a shot of Marvel's. Then I whirl it over with the starter until I get oil pressure on my direct read gauge. Put the plugs back in, take the valve cover off and start it up. Watch for dripping oil off the rockers. I did have to drag a points file threw the breaker points to get spark, and put new gas in the tank. This was after sitting about 15 years outside. Oh and I gave the jugs a shot of MMO every few years and used the starter to distribute it.

 

[Mark Jennings]

The oil to the head goes through the cam center journal. If the cam is in the wrong position, no oil when the engine is static. I squirts to the head like once every cam rotation….

 

[steffan]

I was having the same symptom with a newly built engine, was majorly stressed because I couldn’t get oil to the top side. I had tried all the for-mentioned recommendations with no luck
What I finely ended up doing was this: with the valve cover off, I ran a drill on the oil pump which was very apparently building pressure. At the same time, I had my son very slowly turn the engine over (spark plugs removed) degree by degree, with a wrench on the crank bolt. Eventually we got to the point where oiled started flowing on the valve train.

 

[Canfj40]

Thanks for the replies. I'll follow the outlined steps and keep my fingers crossed. lol