318 POLY No Oil to Rockers While Priming

[VFilms]

I'm looking for Poly specific help.
My '66 Poly is a fresh build. Never started. Upon priming I am getting no oil to the rockers.
I've read specific post here and on other MOPAR sites and studied my FSM.
I have gone through all the common check lists so I'm looking for something I may have missed.

•Rocker shafts are installed and positioned correctly with oil galley holes in the proper position on the heads.
•Cam bearings are installed properly.
•All oil galley plugs are installed.
•Oil filter full.
•Engine is being rotated while priming.
•New oil pump with the rebuild

On initial priming I had 50 lbs of pressure after which the pressure is now 25 lbs.
There was a very small amount of oil that dripped from the right rocker shaft but only briefly.
I checked the left bank oil galley plug near the intermediate shaft and it's installed.
I've run the drill in a clockwise direction for countless minutes. Still no oil. Can anyone think of what I may be missing?

 

[Centerline]

You need to rotate the crankshaft while priming the oil system. As memory serves the rockers are fed by oil galleys that are supplied by the camshaft bearings. You need to rotate the crank to line up the holes in the cam with the oil galleys to supply oil to the rockers just like the early hemis.

 

[493 Mike]

Do you have ALL the pipe plugs installed? I missed the one at the rear of the left oil galley under the external plug. I had the machine shop remove the plugs as I broke my tool trying.
Mike

 

[VFilms]

You need to rotate the crankshaft while priming the oil system. As memory serves the rockers are fed by oil galleys that are supplied by the camshaft bearings. You need to rotate the crank to line up the holes in the cam with the oil galleys to supply oil to the rockers just like the early hemis.

You're correct regarding the cam bearing oil holes. And yes, the crank is being rotated while priming. A quarter turn at a time for 2 revolutions.

 

[VFilms]

Do you have ALL the pipe plugs installed? I missed the one at the rear of the left oil galley under the external plug. I had the machine shop remove the plugs as I broke my tool trying.
Mike

Thanks Mike. Can you be more specific regarding that plug's position. I'm not familiar with that plug. Thanks

 

[69Bee]

Were the rocker shafts thoroughly cleaned out? Were the freeze plugs in the ends of the shafts removed and a brush run thru them? Older engines with older oil got really built up a grey pasty sludge and they get plugged up.

 

[69Bee]

Thanks Mike. Can you be more specific regarding that plug's position. I'm not familiar with that plug. Thanks

On the back driver side, there is a 1/2" pipe plug, and once it is removed, you can get to the 1/4" pipe plug that seals the rear of the lifter galley. An easy way to check is to remove the distributor, and just in front of the intermediate shaft gear, you can see if there is or is not a pipe plug in the rear of the driver side lifter galley.

 

[VFilms]

Were the rocker shafts thoroughly cleaned out? Were the freeze plugs in the ends of the shafts removed and a brush run thru them? Older engines with older oil got really built up a grey pasty sludge and they get plugged up.

This is an excellent point and one I have not addressed. I was going to look into that but was looking for a possibly less invasive solution first. I could remove the plugs and check with the heads in place but to do it properly I would need to remove the heads to remove and properly clean the shafts. I plan to slide a rocker out of the way near the oil galley in the head and see if oil seeps out of the groves in the shaft first. Thanks

 

[VFilms]

On the back driver side, there is a 1/2" pipe plug, and once it is removed, you can get to the 1/4" pipe plug that seals the rear of the lifter galley. An easy way to check is to remove the distributor, and just in front of the intermediate shaft gear, you can see if there is or is not a pipe plug in the rear of the driver side lifter galley.

If this is the plug you're speaking of, then yes it is there.

 

[69Bee]

A little hard to see, you can just make out the plug in front of the gear.

 

[69Bee]

If this is the plug you're speaking of, then yes it is there.

View attachment 1172861

Then I would work on removing the shafts, and check them. Trying to move a rocker to see won't really tell you much. You really need to completely inspect the shafts. Another place I have had issues with is the passage in the block from the cam up to the head can be plugged. I am serious, old oil sucks and the grey paste is gross!!

 

[TopBanana72]

Try SLOWLY doing your crank rotation while priming. If you go to fast you could speed past the hole lineups. When I rebuilot my 318, it too me about 15 minutes of this slow, incremental crank rotate until oil finally poured out the top. First one side, then 5 minutes later, the other side.

 

[VFilms]

Then I would work on removing the shafts, and check them. Trying to move a rocker to see won't really tell you much. You really need to completely inspect the shafts. Another place I have had issues with is the passage in the block from the cam up to the head can be plugged. I am serious, old oil sucks and the grey paste is gross!!

The block was hot tanked during the rebuild but I don’t recall if the shafts were cleaned. I’m not keen on removing the heads, I’ll keep that as a last resort. But thanks for your thoughts. They’re much appreciated.

 

[VFilms]

Try SLOWLY doing your crank rotation while priming. If you go to fast you could speed past the hole lineups. When I rebuilot my 318, it too me about 15 minutes of this slow, incremental crank rotate until oil finally poured out the top. First one side, then 5 minutes later, the other side.

I’ve been turning a 1/4 turn at a time. I plan to make that 1/8 of a turn in case the holes aren’t lining up. 15 minutes, huh?

 

[TopBanana72]

I’ve been turning a 1/4 turn at a time. I plan to make that 1/8 of a turn in case the holes aren’t lining up. 15 minutes, huh?

ya, it really took some time. As I recall, it really only worked for me moving the crank about an inch at a time until the gusher happened. The good news is once you see each bank flood... your done!

 

[69Bee]

The block was hot tanked during the rebuild but I don’t recall if the shafts were cleaned. I’m not keen on removing the heads, I’ll keep that as a last resort. But thanks for your thoughts. They’re much appreciated.

Trust me, even though the block was cleaned, it takes a lot of work to clean out the sludge in the passages sometimes. I haven't seen a "Hot Tank" in many years because most of us have gone to a "Jetwash" due to the proliferation of aluminum heads and blocks. They clean well, and faster, but not necessarily was well as a hot tank. I wash, scrape, poke screwdrivers and rods into holes, and use air to blow out passages. Then I finish up with a complete glassbead job and magnaflux to check for cracks.

 

[toolmanmike]

Pull one of the rocker shafts off and prime away. If no oil to the top you know you need to look elsewhere.

 

[VFilms]

Pull one of the rocker shafts off and prime away. If no oil to the top you know you need to look elsewhere.

Thanks but unlike the LA 318 the poly heads have the shafts going through sleeves in the heads and the heads have to be removed to remove the shafts

 

[VFilms]

Trust me, even though the block was cleaned, it takes a lot of work to clean out the sludge in the passages sometimes. I haven't seen a "Hot Tank" in many years because most of us have gone to a "Jetwash" due to the proliferation of aluminum heads and blocks. They clean well, and faster, but not necessarily was well as a hot tank. I wash, scrape, poke screwdrivers and rods into holes, and use air to blow out passages. Then I finish up with a complete glassbead job and magnaflux to check for cracks.

My big mistake was in not priming the engine when it was out of the car. Last time I’ll do that.

 

[toolmanmike]

Thanks but unlike the LA 318 the poly heads have the shafts going through sleeves in the heads and the heads have to be removed to remove the shafts

View attachment 1172879

Thanks, learned something new today.