383 with no oil pressure

[remist17]

recently built a 383 stroker. Broke the engine in and had good pressure. Took it for exhaust and on the way home 0 psi on the gauge. The line is still on no oil in the tube. how do i check out the pump and motor.

Oil pump is a standard volumn and has a moroso pickup. Gauge is a summit special cluster. I am thinking the gauge crapped out.

I drove the truck about 3-4 miles with 0 psi. I figured if it was the pump I would either get the truck home or blow the engine. No nocks and no noises.
I would assume driving for 4 miles would have been nocking good.

[JMac11]

Not necessarily, try another gauge. Quick Check is to pull a valve cover and look for oiling at the rocker arms. If it is a vynil line, the kink easily.

[Pop's C-10]

Get a hand held gauge & test it

[remist17]

Question ..... Take the valve cover off and actually run the engine right? Not just crank it over.

[lindstromjd]

Originally Posted by remist17

Question ..... Take the valve cover off and actually run the engine right? Not just crank it over.

Yeah. Start it up. If oil isn't obviously being pumped up on the rockers, then you have a pump problem. If it is being pumped up, then you have a gauge problem.

[sumran]

If you lose oil pressure you will get lifter noise very quickly and serious engine damage soon after. If everything is smooth and quiet, it is probably the gauge. If you hear tapping, shut it down quickly. The tests others suggested work well and one of them should be done. I would rather use a different gauge because it is cleaner and it quantifies the pressure.

[mooseknuckles]

x2 on pulling the valve cover and run it!....grab some rags, and fire it up!

[remist17]

I have a slight tick but the headers I have are cheap and I contributed it to the head tick on thin wall headers.
No major noise which I would think would be there after 4 miles of driving.

[sumran]

Originally Posted by remist17

I have a slight tick but the headers I have are cheap and I contributed it to the head tick on thin wall headers.
No major noise which I would think would be there after 4 miles of driving.

It would probably take more than 4 miles to get major noise. By the time you get to major noise or temperature rise you have major damage. If it is not fast and easy to test it with another gauge, you should do the valve cover test as others have suggested. Then you know what you are dealing with.

I just went through a similar situation with my Dodge truck (which I am selling). It had a fiber filter element on the bottom of the oil pickup. When that clogged up it sucked the filter in to the pick tube and the oil stopped flowing. I was sure I had a bad sender or gauge, but that was not the case. I shut it down, replaced the pickup and oil pump and all is well.

[85Bowtie]

What does "no oil in the tube" mean? There is no oil in your oil line? Check for kinks like a previous poster mentioned.

Before you go through the trouble of pulling a valve cover and making a mess, you can check your dipstick, wipe it clean and re-check the level. Then run the truck a minute, shut it off and re-check the dipstick. Oil should have found it's way farther up, much farther. Just pulling a valve cover and seeing oil squirt out isn't a very good indication of the amount of pressure present, neither is checking the dipstick, you will need to check your gauge and wiring before you go further than just looking for oil flow. But at least you know it is flowing somewhat.

[remist17]

Originally Posted by 85Bowtie

What does "no oil in the tube" mean? There is no oil in your oil line? Check for kinks like a previous poster mentioned.

Before you go through the trouble of pulling a valve cover and making a mess, you can check your dipstick, wipe it clean and re-check the level. Then run the truck a minute, shut it off and re-check the dipstick. Oil should have found it's way farther up, much farther. Just pulling a valve cover and seeing oil squirt out isn't a very good indication of the amount of pressure present, neither is checking the dipstick, you will need to check your gauge and wiring before you go further than just looking for oil flow. But at least you know it is flowing somewhat.

The tube is the little plasci tube from the sending unit to the gauge. There are only small pockets of oil not a steady stream of oil in the tube.

[BigBlocksRule]

Get that line bled out - the air pockets will compress and make the gauge read low.

[rayfinseats]

I drove one with a cracked crankshaFT and it ran for 15 miles before I lost oil pressure and then still made it a few more blocks.

If I lose oil pressure I shut em down right away until I figure out the problem. If a plastic oil gauge line breaks it will pump you dry in munutes.

[85Bowtie]

Originally Posted by remist17

The tube is the little plasci tube from the sending unit to the gauge. There are only small pockets of oil not a steady stream of oil in the tube.

Ok....then trace the line back to the sending unit, not really a big deal. If you don't find anything, then you may have other problems.

[junkyardjohn]

HERES WHAT I DO... I'M NO EXPERT.. BUT HAVE BUILT 4 OR 5 DOZEN SMALLYS. GET A DIFFERENT GAGE. JUST PUT ABOUT TWO FEET OF LINE ON IT. SCREW IT INTO YOUR PRESSURE GAGE HOLE JUST TO THE LEFT OF YOUR DIST. TAKE A PRIMING TOOL (THERE EASY TO MAKE OUT OF AN OLD POINTS TYPE DIST. JUST CUT THE TOP OFF & REMOVE THE CAM DRIVEN GEAR) , PUT IT IN THE DIST. HOLE, & TURN IT AT LEAST 500 RPMs WITH AN AIR DRILL FOR A COUPLE OF MINUTES. THIS WAY YOU REMOVE ALL DOUBT & YOU DON'T HAVE TO START YOUR MOTOR. YA GOTTA HAVE OIL TO KEEP ALL THOSE LITTLE PARTS SLIDING OFF OF EACH OTHER. THINK OF IT LIKE A HUMAN BODY WITH NO BLOOD FLOWING....... WON'T LAST VERY LONG. JOHN

[remist17]

well it ended up being a gloged FRAM filter. I m glad I did not run the truck long. I changed the oil and filter, started the truck and 50 psi.

I ran a magnet over the oil and filter and no major metal. Just a few little hairs not bad.

[lindstromjd]

FRAM = crap. WIX is much better.