Oil pump primer tool recommendation?

[James B.]

In preparation to get my 1972 454 engine fired up (after 22 years of storage), I'm searching for a high quality (preferably USA made) oil pump primer tool (with the oil galley collar). I see that there are many oil pump primer tools on the market and prices are all over the board. Any suggestions?

Jim

[Stephen L.]

Re: Oil pump primer tool recommendation?

An old distributor housing and shaft with the points etc removed and the drive gear removed makes a great primer tool. Drive it with a drill motor.....

[Jim D.]

Re: Oil pump primer tool recommendation?

I use KD Tools #41770. Good quality and it allows me to prime GM and Ford engines.

[Mark E.]

Re: Oil pump primer tool recommendation?

James,

You and I are living parallel Corvette lives. Last year, I successfully started my '70 LS5 after 11 years of sealed storage, and other than a leaking rear main seal the engine came back to life just fine.

The highest quality, USA made oil pump primer available is also the least expensive. I bought a junk Chevy (non-tach drive) distributor on eBay for $11 and used its housing and main shaft to make the tool. After removing the shaft, saw the housing just above the collar where the hold-down clamp goes. Then saw the main shaft just below the points cam. Bevel and polish the cut end of the housing a bit so it doesn't damage the main shaft as it's inserted.

When ready to use, install and clamp down the bare housing to the intake, insert the main shaft in the chuck of a stout drill (I used a 1/2" drive drill motor), then insert the shaft down into the housing so it engages with the oil pump shaft.

I viewed a few YouTube videos about engine priming and learned a lot. For example-

- A few days before, change the oil and filter, remove the carb (if not already removed after all these years) and spark plugs. Then squirt low viscosity engine oil into each cylinder. This should help reduce friction as the rings slide along the cylinder walls. For this initial prime, I decided to fill the crankcase with low viscosity oil (I used 0W-30 Mobil 1) to achieve pressure quickly.

- Remove the valve covers so you can observe the rockers push up with oil pressure and squirt while you're priming (next step).

- Run the oil primer, making sure it's going clockwise (same direction the distributor normally turns), until you see all 16 rockers pump up and squirt. In my case this took about five minutes. The oil pressure gauge should show normal oil pressure.

- While continuously running the primer to maintain oil pressure and with the tranny in neutral (ask me how easy that step is to forget ), turn the crank 90 degrees in its normal running direction using a breaker bar on the harmonic's bolt. Let the primer run for a few more minutes while watching to make sure all rockers continue squirting and the gauge shows pressure. Repeat for two revolutions of the crank (one rev of the cam). Turning the engine by hand (and not with the starter) gives you a feel for how easy the engine is rotating. You may use this opportunity to measure the torque required to do this and compare it to spec.

That's it! I took the additional step of installing the "regular" distributor then cranking the engine using the starter but with the spark plugs still removed. A steady and decent crank speed with normal oil pressure is a good sign.

When I fired up the engine, it had almost instantaneous oil pressure with no unnerving valve clatter. While running it up to normal temperature (about 30 minutes), I carefully watched for leaks, oil pressure and coolant temperature. After everything checked out, I shut it down, checked that the cooling system held normal pressure with no leaks, then changed the oil and filter using a normal viscosity.

Of course, after 22 years there's a lot of other preparation before starting the engine- things like replacing the belts, hoses, rubber fuel lines, water pump and all filters, flushing and replacing all fluids (coolant, steering, brake), rebuilding the carb, replacing all the seals in the PS system, flushing the fuel system, ...

Good luck. I hope this helps.

[John H.]

Re: Oil pump primer tool recommendation?

I use a prime tool made by Tavia - got it years ago from Summit.


PrimeTool800.JPG

[Tom L.]

Re: Oil pump primer tool recommendation?

Jim, OUTSTANDING news!!! I'd love to walk over and loan you the tool I've borrowed. A bit too long of a walk : ) It's an old distributor with the female end of a socket welded to the shaft. An air or electric impact gun spins it well. Hope it works out!!! Keep in touch.

Tom

[James B.]

Re: Oil pump primer tool recommendation?

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

When I was still turning wrenches for a living 30+ years ago, I had a quality engine oil primer tool which I had used many times. Don't recall the brand (Mac? Snap-On?). Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find it. Perhaps I had loaned it out at some point. With all of the poor quality off-shore tools we see, I want to avoid them. I've even heard of quality issues with some of the oil priming tools. As I haven't purchased automotive tools for some time, I knew the TDB would be a good source for suggestions.

Yes Tom, I'm slowly making preparations to get the '72 fired up after so long. Can you believe it? I also need to purchase an "appropriate" battery and a float charger. The plan is to make it all happen during the holiday break when I have a short time to dedicate to it. Wish me luck!

Jim