robertbartsch

Did anyone see the Dream Car Garage TV special; they were assembling a Chevy cast iron 427 big block.

The engine builder said he packed the oil pump with white lithium grease... the build-up did not seem too professional, however, since they did not even use a engine stand or standard engine tools (degree wheel, mics, dial indicators, etc)....

I assume the grease packing of the pump would be a very bad move for essembling our Gen 3 oil pumps.... and that you should only poor some motor oil into the pump before installation....on the other hand, it might be a good idea???

Any thoughts on this one?

BergerMan

Packing it with grease? Absolutely not! Its a good way to clog things up and you want to get oil flowing ASAP. Now if you port and clean up the pump, then putting a small amount of assembly lube or white lithium grease on the parts is OK, just don't overdo it. Those guys on Dream Car Garage are a bunch of has-beens.

robertbartsch

I thought it was a little strange when the guy said, "we do everything right so the owner can hammer it right off..."

..common sence would tell you not to hammer a newly installed engine; right?

Tin Indian

They pack the pump with grease so it does [not] cavitate on initial startup. Many oil pumps will never begin to make oil pressure once cavitated.

Filling it with engine oil may sound like a better approach, however, engine oil runs out of the pump as fast as you are installing it.

BTW: "Cavitate" > to fill with air

robertbartsch

...OK great, so it is a valid procedure on a Gen 2 engine; I assume they would be priming the pump with a electric drill on the old iron 427 Gen 1 BEFORE they started it...


...So what about our motors....I don;t believe there is a valid way to prime our pumps without rotating the motor....but since these pumps don't typically have priming problems, I assume this argument does not apply to GEN 3s?

what about our motors?

robertbartsch

...OK great, so it is a valid procedure on a Gen 2 engine; I assume they would be priming the pump with a electric drill on the old iron 427 Gen 1 BEFORE they started it...


...So what about our motors....I don;t believe there is a valid way to prime our pumps without rotating the motor....but since these pumps don't typically have priming problems, I assume this argument does not apply to GEN 3s?

Smoke_Ford

"Steps for making a GREAT motor!"

Step 1: Pack you oil pump with white lithium grease
Step 2: Empty nearest brake lathe into motor.
Step 3: Start , turn radio up loud enough to not hear knocking

robertbartsch

They also assembled the cam, crank, and rod bearings of the iron block 427 Chevy using white lithium grease - not assembly lube...

So what about this step; a bad move or an acceptible assembly method?

66ImpalaLT1

Packing an oil pump with grease is a common, and often recommended procedure. With a gerotor pump, which is used in Gen-3 motors and many ford engines, it is not needed. It is also not normally needed on small block and big block chevys because the pump is submerged in oil, it is better to use a drill to prime the pump before installing the distributor. On the engines I've built in the past I would also hand prime it in a coffee can filled with oil. You can never be too safe.

Some other GM engines must have their oil pump packed with grease. Buick 400, 430 and 455's are this way because the oil pump is not submerged in oil pan, it is high up off the front timing cover. I believe some of the Buick, Pontiac and Cadillac engines were also this way.

Eric

robertbartsch

Hey 66:
Great information; thanks.

Can you please comment on the lithium grease being used on the cam, crank, and rod bearings upon assembly?

2xLS1

iTrader: (25)

White lithium grease has been the preferred assembly lube for years. It pretty much just disolves when heated. It is fine for use on bearings when assembling an engine. You only used high pressure molly lube on cam lobes, lifter bottoms (flat tappet) and rocker arm *****.

robertbartsch

yeh; years ago i assembled auto trannies for bread.

...back then we used to use petroluem jelley for assembly - it kept the parts, especially rubber seals, lubricated until the unit was installed and it disolved in tranny fluid immediately....not sure if they use it today, however... ...same concept; right?

Hitman#1

iTrader: (1)

The grease many, many engine builders use is called Lubriplate. It comes in a white tube with a blue cap. The stuff works awesome, and it cleans up easy.

66ImpalaLT1

Lithium grease is so light that I cant see it being a problem using it everywhere, but normally I use Lubriplate or Redline assembly lube.

In reality, the lithium grease is in the oil pan and filter within the first minute after startup, before it even gets warm. In the past I've changed the oil on a new engine with under 1 hour of run time. The oil filter gets clogged pretty quickly.

I've use petroleum jelly with an auto tranny before, now they sell an automatic transmission assembly lube thats a little thicker.

Eric

oldschool68

i'm still assembling engines and trannies for bread. we still use petroleum jelly for trannies and lubriplate for engines (except new cams of course). packing the old style oil pumps with white lithium grease is not a bad practice at all. i have seen engines have to come back apart because their builder did not pack nor prime the pump and it cavitated like someone else said. they never would prime on their own. most will but it's best to pack.

robertbartsch

Thanks Old School:
Glad to some are still assembling stuff for bread.

A neighbor who is a Snap-On salesman told me that not many trannies are being rebuilt today. He says it is now better to replace the whole unit with a factory fresh tranny....


This blows me away!

66ImpalaLT1

I'd guess that most are factory rebuilt, not new.

Eric

robertbartsch

Hey 66:
...when you say "factory rebuilt" that means GM takes a used core tranny and rebuilds it right?

The Snap-On guy says today's trannies are packed with electronics, electronic survos, line pressure regulators, etc. and thats why rebuilding by non-factory personnel is often impraticle and unsuccesful...

...this kinda blows....

MrYenko

Gasoline-powered UPS trucks use GM 4.3 V6s and old Chevy Stovebolt sixes. The mechanics constantly bitch nowadays because they get to do very little repairing. If something goes wrong, the motor/trans/rear gets pulled and swapped, and the old one goes off to get rebuilt. Its common in fleets.