Could be caused by stopped up oil returns at the ends of the heads. Is there sludge present? If so, then simply clear the oil drain/return holes and then start changing the oil much more frequently.

Lorena, Texas (South of Waco)

If you are getting TOO much oil flow you can tap the passage in the bottom of the rocker stand and install a small pipe plug with a hole drilled in it to cut down the oil flow.There is a post somewhere on the site explaining the pipe plug size and the size of the hole drilled in it.Anyone know where that post is?Another point not mentioned yet on this post.The oil groove in stock cams and replacement ones also is too shallow in most cases..019-.021.It should be machined deeper to about .032-.034.When I did mine I had the groove cut deeper.Then I had too much flow and installed the restrictors and now the oil flow is about perfect.I can run it with covers off and oil does not overflow the head and drains at the correct rate.Its easier to restrict too much flow than it is to fix not enough oil flow.

  

I seem to have the opposite problem! Removed the l/h valve cover to check clearances and oil went everywhere - have not removed the right one yet...

What is the cause of that??

ps. have just picked up two truck 292's, both have oiling mods to the right rocker shafts, one with the hollow stud,

the other has a hole drilled in the head for a fitting and a pipe from the l/h oil gallery to the rocker shaft. My Dad did

this mod to a 272 we had in a speedboat about 1968.


South Australia

In response to Mr. Green-Beret, I'm assuming that the engine had been overhauled, if that's the case, someone probably didn't install the center cam bearing correctly. They didn't check all the passages for alignment in other words. I got involved in one of these situations several years ago, a friend restored a '57 'Bird and had a local scrub engine builder over haul the 312. He hired me to help him get it running. On firing the engine up, one bank, no oil! I explained to fix it right, the engine would have to be torn down. He was disappointed, but we went ahead. I told him about external oilers, but he wanted it right. Besides the cam bearing problem, the engine had obviously been worked on by someone who didn't give a sh--!! Rod bushings; worn out, huge amount of junk in the cooling jackets, knurled valve guides, pistons too tight, on and on. I pretty much "re-over-hauled" it for him. Y-blocks aren't "tricky", you just have to pay attention to the details. (Which really applies to ALL engines.)

In the latest issue of Y-Block Magazine (Issue #116), Jerry Christenson outlines a different method of‘external oiling’ for the Y rocker arms which eliminates using the valve cover stud as the entry for the new oil supply.

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I’ll add that the right side (passenger side here in the U.S.) oiling is the side that quits first when there is a cam bearing ‘wear’ issue and when using the grooved journal camshafts.

Lorena, Texas (South of Waco)

I might have posted on the wrong subject but the problem remains the same. My older brother spend a small forune rehabing a 1957 T-Bird. Great paint upholstery and everything but the engine. I know I need to get an external oliler ut have been unsuccessful finding one up to this point. Does anyone have a few photos of what it looks like. I have access to a lot of machine shops. I just need to get himmrunning enough to get it another 200 miles to put on a bardge to Hawaii. He is dumber than a post. He drove it all the way from Idaho with no oil going to the right bank of rocker arms. When we pulled the vavle covers the fron two pushrids were down in the hole and the rocker arms were destroyed. I don'y know what else. He just lef tit here and asked me to help. I've got chemtool soaking the oil tube and hope to make one of those tools with a grease zert and try to push the crud out but it would save me a lot of time if I just had an external oiler. If anyone has one for sale that would be cool too. Any help?

One last note, I stand to be corrected, but I believe the replacement rocker shaft plugs are the same as those used on F.E. engines (352-390 etc)

Paul

Thanks for your comments! I will disassemble, clean and reassemble and see what happens!

AR

I had the same problem with my 292. I removed the rocker assemblies, cleaned the passage through the head and block and ran the oil pump with a drill. I was able to get a fair amount of oil to the left head but very little to the right head. My rocker shafts and arms were severely galled so I bought some good used ones from the Classifieds. I cleaned, lubed and installed the rockers, started it up and no oil to the right side. What little oil I was able to get up through the right head did not have enough pressure to make it through the rocker shafts. I removed the assemblies and installed plugs in the bottom of the 2 stands that mate with the oil holes in the heads to block any oil that tried to make it up to the rockers.

I found a NOS external oil kit on Fleabay and installed it. The tube connects to a hollow stud that replaces the AFT rocker cover stud on the left and the FORWARD rocker cover stud on the right. The kit included a needle valve to regulate the amount of oil supplied through the tubes. I found that I just barely need to open the valve to get plenty of oil to the rockers. My rockers are now delighted with their oil bath.

Hi SurfMerc,  Welcome to the forum.  To elaborate a little about the external oilers, they tend to take oil away from the main bearings and thus the cam bearings also.  Not a good situation.  It's best to clean out the shafts and the individual rocker arm holes as the guys recommended.  Be sure when re-installing the rocker shafts that the oiling holes (one aluminum rocker stand on each bank) are aligned with the proper hole in the rocker shaft, so that oil can flow to the shafts and rockers.  Hope this makes sense, have fun!  Nick Brann - K.C., MO