small block 360 oiling problems- please help!!!!!

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alaskamax

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ok im at my wits end and im hoping someone will know the answer to my problem.
i built a 360 for my bomber class circle track. it is a 1977 block. the pistons are stock size, i installed new rings.
i installed a remaned crack with matching bearings.. a high volume oil pump. my mechanic friend installed new cam bearings. i installed new cam ,and lifters.
we put the motor in the car started it up . it had 30 psi at idle. went to the race track made 5 laps-lost all oil pressure. shut it down. i pulled the sending unit and had pressure. just not enough to really effect the guage.
took the car home pulled the motor put it on a stand, pulled the pan looked at every bearing-rod and main. looked awsome. replaced the pump. put the pan back on. filled with oil and spun the pump with my drill. it didnt bog the drill very much, but produced 30 psi at 750rpm(estimate). reinstalled motor. i spun the oil pump one last time before i dropped the distributor-30 psi same rpms.
i started the car up and had real low oil pressure. didnt shoot up with rpms. shut it down. reinstalled priming shaft got 30 psi at approx 750 rpm.
so i had my buddy run the drill. i made sure i had pressure, the at the same time he was spinning the drill i turned the motor over with the starter. oil pressure dropped to 0. i stopped turning the motor over and turned the pump with the drill-- nothing. cant even get the 30 psi i had before. ive tried turning the motor over by hand to see if there is a spot in the revolution that will get me oil pressure-cant. can someone pleased help????? oh ya btw the small freeze plug that goes in the oil galley is there and its solid.
any and all help is needed. thanks
 
There is an oil gallery plug inside the engine near where the distributor drops in but faces towards the rear. If you have the engine on the stand out of the car, or if the tranny is out, you can access that plug through the exterior plug. With the manifold off, spin the pump and look for oil gushing out of that plug inside.
 
I think there is also a galley plug facing down to, my 340 has one. Make sure, sounds like that could be the issue. Pretty common after a hot tank or block cleaning. Seen a lot left out too.

Man that is a bummer!
 
At 2500 rpm i've got 70 psi hot w/20W-50 Valvoline VR1. You must be missing an oil gallery plug or the pickup is way to close to the pan.
 
Theres the hidden one that divides the oil passage to and from the oil filter. Was this removed and set back in? It installs under the rear main.
 
also take a look at where the filter mounts....should be one plug there also
 
You can check to see if the one Rumblefish mentioned is there easily by inserting a 1/4" piece of round rod down the oil pressure sender hole. It should only go down about 7-3/4". If it goes much more than that the plug isn't there.

The one Deadly Dart mentioned can be seen with just the dist. removed. Like he said put the drill in and spin it and look down through the dist. hole and if you see oil gushing out there's your problem. This plug were talking about is screwed into the drivers side rear of the lifter galley.
 
I'm not to sure that oil passage runs right up to where you mean Fishy.
 
rumblefish360 said:
I'm not to sure that oil passage runs right up to where you mean Fishy.
Click to expand...

Yeah it does. If you have a block handy look on the back and you'll see it runs right up there. It's one of those things that is easily overlooked. I never noticed it until I stripped my last block and found I could run a 1/4" rod down through the oil sender port and drive out the plug.

Here's a pic in a book of the back of the block that you can kinda see the galley is drilled up to the lifter galley then on up to the sending unit. Sorry it's not a great example picture but that's all I could come up with.
 
But if that plug fishy is talking about is missing it will cause the oil to by pass the oil filter. It won't cause low oil pressure. There is also an oil gallery plug behind the oil filter plate.
 
Fishy, that's the one. Thanks. I actually didn't know that went all the way up.

340's, It's been a long while since I did an engine. I'm forgetting stuff these days. Would you have a picture of this plug? (Please don't make me go out to the garage! LOL!)

I was missing that plug Fishy is talking about on my first engine, a 318. Oil pressure was allways low. And would pump up marginally at best.

Hummmmmmmmmmmm, the mystery thickens.
 
340sFastback said:
But if that plug fishy is talking about is missing it will cause the oil to by pass the oil filter. It won't cause low oil pressure. There is also an oil gallery plug behind the oil filter plate.
Click to expand...

That's what I thought by looking at it too but I have seen a few knowledgeable guys said it did cause low oil pressure and in the book "How to build big inch Mopars" by Jim Szilagyi he states it will cause low oil pressure.

rumblefish360 said:
Fishy, that's the one. Thanks. I actually didn't know that went all the way up.

340's, It's been a long while since I did an engine. I'm forgetting stuff these days. Would you have a picture of this plug? (Please don't make me go out to the garage! LOL!)

I was missing that plug Fishy is talking about on my first engine, a 318. Oil pressure was allways low. And would pump up marginally at best.

Hummmmmmmmmmmm, the mystery thickens.
Click to expand...

Your welcome Rumble. Until I tore this last block apart I didn't know it and also didn't know the hydraulic makeup of the block i.e. the path oil takes in the engine after it leaves the oil filter. It too quite awhile for me to figure out which way it actually goes because it has so many paths it branches off too. I looked in the factory serv. manual and the hyd. schematic looks like a mess and is nearly impossible to tell what their saying goes where.
 
ok guys i got it figured out. the cam retaining plate was loose and i lost one of the galley plugs next to the front of the cam. it makes total sense. that is why i was getting oil pressure when motor wasnt running(sometimes). the cam was walking out pushing the plate out, and in turn dumping all of my oil.
the missing galley plug is in a million pieces at the bottom of my pan.
thanks for all the help
 
WOW! Thats one I never heard of. Hows the cam looking?
Thank the stars you found it before the oil pump sucked it up!
 
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