# 400 ci/350 HP engine rebuild questions



## funbooker (Apr 18, 2012)

I"m posting two pics with two questions.

Pic 1, shows oil pickup slightly above the oil pump enclosure. The pickup is pressed into the pump housing and I think it may have been twisted upward in transit. I'm wondering what's the correct placement, does the bottom of the pickup have to be at the same height as the housing? It's probably 3/8" higher right now and I'm not sure whether I should twist it back down or leave as is.

Pic 2, There's a hole bored out of the front of the block you can see in this picture. It's almost under the oil pan. I stick my finger in it and it only goes about 3/4". Is something supposed to be in there or is it bored out for balance or something?

Thanks


----------



## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

The bottom of the pump pickup screen is supposed to be parallel with the bottom of the pan. I think I'm seeing in the photo that the pump pickup isn't fully seated in the oil pump. The last thing you want to have happen is for the pickup tube to come out of the pump housing.

That hole is a locating hole used during the block manufacturing/machining process. No parts go there, it just gets covered up by the oil pan + gasket.

Bear


----------



## geeteeohguy (Feb 2, 2008)

I second that. The pickup is not all the way in, and is off-kilter. You want it parallel. A lot of guys also tack weld the tube in place. An oil pump pickup that falls off is a big-time bummer.


----------



## funbooker (Apr 18, 2012)

*Thanks*

The first reply said it needs to be parallel with the bottom of the pan. I assume you meant parallel with the bottom of the pump. Yes?

Also, I don't have a welder available so I'm going to assume that pressing it into the opening in the pump housing the way it comes from the factory doesn't create any risks if it's well seated. What do you think?


----------



## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

Nope, parallel with the bottom of the oil pan. Orientation to the pump body is un-important. What matters is that the pickup is flat to the bottom of the pan. Otherwise, one 'end' or the other of the pickup will be higher than the other, relative to the pan bottom, and that's an opportunity for it to 'suck air' under hard acceleration or hard cornering, and you really don't want that.


Having it pressed in and fully seated is indeed the way the factory did it. However, the factory also used a special tool to do that job such that it applied constant, even pressure all the way around the pump pickup tube so as to ensure that it was not deformed even in the slightest and thus had a very tight fit in the housing. Most of us don't have such a tool and have to resort to using a hammer and some sort of tool alternating on the 'sides' of the pickup to walk it in to the pump. Doing this almost assuredly will deform the tube a little bit, perhaps enough to make it loose enough so that it will eventually work its way out of the pump - with disasterous results if it happens while you're winding out second gear at wide open throttle. It might happen, it might not --- it's one of those "do ya feel lucky?" propositions. Another positive solution is to weld a metal tab the the pickup tube such that it can have a hole drilled in it and secured under the nearest oil pump backing plate bolts. The pickups that Milodon sells for use with their replacement 'kickout' pan come that way.

Bear


----------

