Jim,
My caveat is that I won't have all the answers. That said, I truly doubt
that you did something to the oil galley plugs. These are allen head
screwbolts and aluminum plugs in the block and head. The only place that
you could have done something with the oil galley, in my opinion of what you
said you did, is when you replaced the timing cover screws. Were the
replacement bolts exactly the same length? I know that one or two timing
cover bolts go into the coolant galleys, and perhaps one or two go into the
oil galleys as well.
How did the crank journals look when you pulled the caps for the mains and
for the rods? Was there any scoring that you could feel with your
fingernail? You said you replaced stds with stds. Are you sure?
When you tightened the main caps and rod bearing caps: Are you sure you put
them all back on in the correct orientation to how they came off? They must
be put back exactly in the same direction. Did you torque the bolts to
spec? Were they all torqued at the same value? Are you sure that your
thrust washers remained in the rear bearing cap after running the engine?
If they fell out, some loss of oil pressure might occur, and block damage /
crank damage will soon occur. Check for crank shaft endplay via the Bentley
Workshop manual. Also, are you sure that the bearings "fit" into their
respective slots? If not, they could spin, causing scoring and I guess that
a loss of oil pressure would result.
As for what could have happened to the oil pressure relief valve. My guess
is that if that is the problem, either your metal plunger broke, or the
spring broke. Either one could allow a small amount of metal to flow
through your bearings. If this is the problem, check that all pieces fit
together exactly, for an errant piece of metal spells trouble for the
bearings.
Lastly, I'm assuming that you were meticulously clean while reassembling
your engine. Bearings and oil pressure require very clean surfaces.
Yours is every engine builder's worst fears. I wish you the best.
Eric Conrad
-----Original Message-----
From: Sloan, Jim [mailto:JSloan@talisman-energy.com]
Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2003 4:22 PM
To: 'Eric Conrad'
Subject: RE: Help! Lost Oil Pressure After Replacing Bearings, Thrust Washer
s- 74 TR6
Eric - Thanks for the thoughts and the sympathy. This one really has me
worried as it is parked in my remote garage a couple hours from town. This
has been the furthest inside an engine I've been so forgive a naive
question. Where are the oil galley plugs? I know where the pressure relief
is and I think I know how it works. All I did was to remove sump, replace
filter, replace thrust washers remove connecting and main caps, replace
standards with standards, remove the front sealing plate to get at the front
main, replace the two timing cover screws holding the plate with bolts for
ease of future access. Some of the top mains were difficult to get out and
replace but managed with a thin screwdriver and then turning the crank,
being careful not to scratch. All parts taken out were repatriated. Could
galley plugs be affected by this process? How can I check? Also re: the
pressure relief valve - are you thinking it might be stuck full open? Thanks
again Jim.
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