aftermarket oil pressure gauge leaking?

[smallblock kid]

I bought me a set of gauges the other day and i put em on and my oil gauge is leaking out the back and i cant get the nut to tighten any farther up with out me being afraid of breaking it off any of you guys run into this problem?

[markeb01]

Assuming you’re talking about a mechanical gauge with either copper or nylon tubing, it sounds like the Ferrell is either missing or damaged. It slips over the tubing end after the compression nut, and crimps around the tubing causing the seal. Here’s a photo showing a pair in the center of the tubing coil.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/ATM-3222/?rtype=10

[blackedoutharley]

A bit of teflon tape never hurts either.

if it has the plastic tubing ditch it for the copper at the very least or braided is preferred.

[willyp]

this happen to me while driving down the road, hot oil squirting on my right leg. turns out the PO over torqued the nut and ruined the threads, had to replace the gauge.

[turbostar]

All the newer gages I am aware of use the nylon tubing and a ferrel that conforms and seals the first time it is tightened. IMO these work very good but are not foolproof. The ferrel is directional and can be installed on the tubing incorrectly. If the ferrel is installed backwards it will not seal correctly.Assuming it is pionting in the right direction,undo the line from the gage and look at the ferrel.You will see evidence of distortion where the ferrel is sealing against the gage.That distortion should be uniform around the ferrel. If any portion of that crimping is not correct,simply cut off the bad portion and redo with a new ferrel.

[SCOTI]

I 2nd the suugestion of removing plastic line if that's what it has. Use one of the copper line kits that are available through many/most local auto parts places.

[markeb01]

Originally Posted by blackedoutharley

A bit of teflon tape never hurts either.

if it has the plastic tubing ditch it for the copper at the very least or braided is preferred.

I had forgotten about the braided hose. I ran nylon for a number of years, but after reading some horror stories I decided to upgrade. The hose is somewhat expensive, but I like the mechanical gauge so it seemed like cheap insurance. As I was removing the old nylon line it actually fractured at the engine fitting, so the timing couldn’t have been better. Upgrading to braided is worth considering if you don’t like the idea of being unexpectedly sprayed by hot engine oil while driving.

I used one of these two, I don’t remember which:

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/ATM-3234/?rtype=10

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/ATM-3229/?rtype=10

[smallblock kid]

ya im prob gonna upgrade here after awhile but right now im about out of money and just need it on the road i start my new job tomorrow and wont get paid for for 2 weeks =/ long time to stretch my last bit of money

[blackedoutharley]

Go to your local parts house and spend a couple of bucks getting a new ferrel fitting to stop the leak. You can upgrade later when funds are available.

I can't see the copper tubing with fittings costing more than about $10 bucks and it is far better than the plastic capillary tubing.

[smallblock kid]

i got it to stop leaking i put the ferral on the correct way turns out i was trying to just slide the tube in ive got it correctly installed now

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by blackedoutharley

Go to your local parts house and spend a couple of bucks getting a new ferrel fitting to stop the leak. You can upgrade later when funds are available.

I can't see the copper tubing with fittings costing more than about $10 bucks and it is far better than the plastic capillary tubing.

Agreed. They're ususally less than $15 & worth the investment.