7.3 first start after new engine gasket kit

[Twostacks]

Well after what seemed forever I finally got my engine back together and in the truck after replacing all gaskets. Got to tell you it scared the crap out of me when I cranked it over and it fired up, man did it make some noise I thoght the thing was going to blow up with all the noise it was making, then it settled down and ran real smooth. The question I have is how long does it take for oil to get up to the rockers after the first start???

Thanks
V

 

[icanfixall]

Probably around 20 seconds give or take a few....

 

[RLDSL]

If you had slathered all your connecting parts down with lubriplate it wouldn't have made all that noise. Proper break in lubricant is very important and most of what gets sold as break in lubricants is too darn runny to stay put long enough to get an engine started. Lubriplate is about the only thing out there that really works. Been using it since I first started rebuilding engines and interestingly that's what the IH dealer carries here.. It'll still make a little racket till the oil gets up but usually the oil gets circulating by the time you get the injection system bled out and rarely is the oil not up to the top end by then.

 

[Twostacks]

If you had slathered all your connecting parts down with lubriplate it wouldn't have made all that noise. Proper break in lubricant is very important and most of what gets sold as break in lubricants is too darn runny to stay put long enough to get an engine started. Lubriplate is about the only thing out there that really works. Been using it since I first started rebuilding engines and interestingly that's what the IH dealer carries here.. It'll still make a little racket till the oil gets up but usually the oil gets circulating by the time you get the injection system bled out and rarely is the oil not up to the top end by then.

Yeah the lube I used wasn't too thick and it sat for awhile after I had it back together.

 

[RLDSL]

Yeah the lube I used wasn't too thick and it sat for awhile after I had it back together.

Yup. you can bet it was all sitting down in the bottom of the pan and everything was bone dry. I have no idea what this trend in lightweight breakin lubes came from, but if you aren't putting the blamed thing together and firing it up all in the same day, the things are totally worthless. I bought one of those break in lubes in a jam one time and was shocked in how fast it was running off. I pitched it and grabbed some synthetic gear oil instead. At least I knew that was going to stay put for a while and leave a nice film that would actually protect something.

 

[Twostacks]

I didn't sleep much last night thinking about the oil not coming up to the rockers, I'd hate like hell to have to pull that engine again. I'm going to run it again for about 30 seconds today to see if the oil comes up. Last night I ran for about 30 and didn't get any to the top. Before putting it back together I checked the pump for wear and made sure the pickup screen was clean. I guess the oil pump would be the culprit here but before I go into the engine is there anything else I should check that can prevent the oil from reaching the rockers? Thanks for all the post

 

[Agnem]

You didn't leave a pipe plug out somewhere did you? Do you have an oil presure gauge?

 

[Dieselcrawler]

one i played with a few months agot took almost 3-5 mins before oil made it out of the rockers with good flow. we just kept dribbling oil onto them as it ran.

 

[6.9poweredscout]

That's funny, the IH scout service manuals (from the early 70s) list to lubricate internal transmission and engine parts with lubriplate when rebuilding or replacing internal parts! I used some white paste stuff at work called lubriplate, is the assembly lube the same stuff??

-Jon

 

[HammerDown]

On a fresh rebuild it's going to take longer than 30 seconds to get oil out the pushrods.
Heck even when I de-winterize my BBC Jet Boat and prime the engine with a drill it'll take some time before ALL the pushrods are squirting oil. The same thing when the engine sits for two weeks not started.

As long as no oil galley plugs were left out and the cam/rod/main bearings have a good coating of assembly lube > I'd run it till you see oil out the top.
NOTE...assuming you have oil pressure verified with a mechanical gauge

 

[RLDSL]

That's funny, the IH scout service manuals (from the early 70s) list to lubricate internal transmission and engine parts with lubriplate when rebuilding or replacing internal parts! I used some white paste stuff at work called lubriplate, is the assembly lube the same stuff??

-Jon

Yeppers, that's the critter. It's been around forever. You simply can't beat that stuff.

 

[RLDSL]

You didn't somehow squash the oilpan up against the pickup screen?

 

[87crewdually]

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When considering all the passages the oil travels it can take a while. I always pack the oil pump full of assembly lube during assembly to ensure a quick prime. I'd hook a mechanical gauge and see if your getting oil pressure. Make sure the filter is full of fresh oil too.
I don't know what you have for tools but in a pinch you could use an injector cleaner canister filled with motor oil, and hooked up to the pressure sender port and inject oil throughout the system to get the pump primed and everything lubed.

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[bike-maker]

Those canisters work awesome. Used to use them on engines with a dry sump oiling system. Just remember to spin the motor over while it's pressurized; otherwise the oil won't get everywhere it needs to.

 

[OLDBULL8]

Years and years ago, I designed the hydraulic and electrical circuit to inject all the lube oil into the engines as they went down the assembly line's just before hot test. This method assured that all moveing parts were lubed. Five quarts were injected in ~20 seconds on the 6-cylinder line and 6-quarts on the V/8 460/427/429 line. As far as I know that method is still used in all Ford Motor engine assembly plants.