Oil Pressure problems on the Short Engine published September 1994
By Peter Nicholls, with input from Richard Floyd, Bob Groves,
Ray Waters, Peter Bowler, Tony Meade, and the late Andrew Macqueen.
This should perhaps be subtitled 'A
problem solved and a problem
gained'. Correspondence in this issue
of 'Front Wheels' shows that I am not
alone in worrying about low oil
pressure, and some interesting points
are raised. Richard Floyd discovered
that the oil pressure loss which caused
big end failure in his Scout was due
to wear in the rear camshaft journal.
Bob Groves has yet to find the
culprit, but suspects that the rear
camshaft journal may be a prime
suspect.
It is at this stage that, in this humble
reader's opinion, a red herring enters
the scene. Bob, no doubt in common
with many other BSA owners, has a
copy of the 'Book of the BSA Scout
and Three Wheeler', which according
to my copy is based on the Pitman
publication of a similar name dated
1935, with later additions using details
supplied by BSA Ltd. The section on
lubrication of the four cylinder engine
is reproduced below, together with
the relevant diagram.
'As on the air cooled models, the engine
is automatically lubricated by a rotary
gear pump A, Fig.48, at the lower end
of vertical shaft B which is driven
through spiral gears from the camshaft
at C. An extension on the pump body
projects into the engine sump, the
capacity of which is one gallon. In
operation, the pump draws oil through
filter D in the sump and
delivers it under pressure through a
channel drilled in the cylinder block to
the timing case, where a portion of it is
diverted through a specialy calibrated
orifice (our highlights) to the tappet
chest at E. At this point a well is
formed which fills up with oil and from
which the oil drains through holes in
the tappet guides and then passes to the
camshaft. Any excess of oil in the well
returns to the sump through two drain
holes placed at the correct level, one at
each end of the tappet chest.
The main oil supply, part of which is
diverted to the tappets and cams as
described above, passes through a
passage in the timing cover to a special
union F,
through which it is forced to
the hollow crankshaft, emerging through
a hole drilled in each of the crankshaft
journals and thus lubricating the big
end bearings. The pistons, cylinders,
and small end hearings are lubricated
by splash.
An oil pressure gauge is mounted in the
instrument panel. Under normal
conditions when the engine is warm the
pressure gauge should read about 60lb
per square inch. At low speeds the
pressure reading may fall somewhat,
but so long as there is an adequate
supply of oil in the engine sump the
pressure should be maintained when
the engine is running.
At G, Fig.49, a spring loaded relief
valve is fitted to the pump. If the oil
pressure gauge does not show a normal
pressure it is either due to shortage of
oil in the sump or the valve not seating
properly. Pull out the dipstick on the
nearside of the engine and examine the
oil level. If this is in order, replace the
dipstick and check the relief valve.
This valve has been designed in such a
way that it can be cleaned of dirt and
other obstructions.
To clean the valve,
leave the engine ticking over, take hold
of the small projection and pull it
outwards, releasing it after a second or
two. In addition to this, if necessary,
rotate the valve slowly in order to assist
the removal of the obstruction.
There is no adjustable control in the
BSA lubrication system, and the only
points requiring attention are a periodic
examination of the oil level in the sump
and a careful check on the oil pressure
reading in the gauge.
After many thousands of miles the oil
pressure may fall on account of wear
developing at the connecting rod big
end bearings.'
The point in question is, what or
where is this 'calibrated orifice'
mentioned in the text? Since reading
this, I have taken a close look at
several of the derelict engines in my
possession and cannot find a single
calibrated orifice between them. In
reality the lubrication of camshaft
bearing and tappets agrees with the
description given in my Series 4 and 5
Handbook which reads:-
In operation the pump draws oil
through filter D in the sump and
delivers it under pressure through a
channel drilled in the cylinder block to
the timing case; thence through a
special union
enabling it to pass along
the drilled crankshaft to the holes in the
crankshaft journals, thus lubricating the
big end bearings. An oil feed under
pressure is also taken to the camshaft
rear bearing from which it is fed to the
timing chain and the tappet gallery,
ensuring adequate lubrication for the
tappets and the camshaft front bearing.'
It is interesting to note that this
description is accompanied by an
identical diagram to the one featured
in the Pitman publication, but, guess
what?, no calibrated orifice marked
E! It would be interesting to hear
from anyone who can perhaps shed
any light on this apparent discrepancy.
Following my comments last month, I
waded through my back issues of
'Front Wheels' and was fortunate to
turn up the article by PSB to which I
made reference. It contains lots of
sound advice concerning our problem,
so here it is again.
'Every five years or so brings us a new
generation of BSA enthusiasts, a few
stay with us for longer, but there must
be a high proportion of our members
who haven't been enlightened about the
various dodges and mods that us
dichards have taken for granted and
perhaps half forgotten over the years.
The first hoary old chestnut that I can
think of to pull out of the fire is that
problem that used to dog us short
engined trike and Scout drivers years
ago, largely diminished perhaps now
that better quality oils are available, but
I'm sure that sagging oil pressure must
be worrying someone...
I used to get over the problem by
adopting the following procedure.
The
first item for attention is the oil pump
itself. when removed and dismantled
it will often be found that there is end
float in the gears due to wear on the
end plate. First, grind the end plate
back smooth and flat using plate glass
or similar and grinding paste. When
the plate is finished, check both gears
for end float, if this exists grind the
longest back to match the other, then
the pump body to match them both.
Having done this you should have a
pump that provides the maximum
pressure within the limits of design and
the wear factors of spindles and gears.
The other major culprit for the loss of
oil pressure is the oil transfer device on
the rear end of the crankshaft. this
consists of two bronze parts that are
spring loaded, forcing one end against
the concavity within the rear timing
chest cover, and the other against a
similarly shaped face within the rear
end of the crankshaft. Now this is a
hit or miss device if ever I saw one, and
it leaves itself wide open for some sort
of improvement.
I had two annular
rings machined in the inner part of this
device and fitted rubber 'O' rings, and
reassembled using a stronger spring.
The next point for attention is the oil
pipe leading to the camshaft rear
hearing. This oilway provides a really
low resistance path for oil pressure, and
results in a flow of quite unnecessarily
high rate. A good mod here, and one
that had quite remarkable results when
I carried it out, is to remove the pipe at
the lower end where it is screwed to the
union on the inner rear cover, tap it
2BA and fit a brass 2BA screw shank
which has been drilled to 1/16". This
provides a restriction in oil flow and a
consequently higher oil pressure where
you want it, in the big end bearings!!
Another factor worth mentioning whilst
on the subject is piston blow-by.
This
raises oil temperature to quite alarming
levels, especially when the engine is
being driven hard, and is the cause of
many a big end failure. Whilst on the
subject of oil temperature, various
methods have been used to overcome
this, including a double sump (Jack
Rowe), oil coolers (myself), and
aluminium deflector plates of various
shapes and sizes (Bob Neal).
Of course, all the foregoing work is a
complete waste of time if the condition
of the big end bearings is poor. In the
BSA engine the oil is unfiltered and
therefore it does tend to carry with it a
great deal of carbon and metal debris
in suspension. This becomes imbedded
in the soft white metal, but there comes
a time when serious wear takes place.
I consider that on an unfiltered system
25000 miles and it is time to inspect
and renew if the condition is bad, and
it usually is at that mileage! I used to
measure up one weekend and get a
spare set of rods remetalled to swap
over the following weekend, thus
keeping the car on the road. Make
sure that big end end float is not
excessive when fitting, and don't run
them too tight as this can cause early
failure.' (Universal Torque - January
1978).
What I find most interesting is that if
we limit the oil flow to the camshaft
rear journal then the fate of the big
ends is no longer at the mercy of the
degree of wear in this journal. It
seems to me that this must be highly
recommended and I shall endeavour
to carry out this modification in my
rebuild.
I apologise if we appear to have
flogged this topic to death, but as con-
rod remetalling is such a costly
enterprise these days that alone must
justify giving it an airing. Next month
I promise not to take up so much
space with my ramblings, in the
meantime I look forward to seeing as
many of you as possible at the AGM.
Peter Nicholls
Letters to the Editor
Dear Peter,
Your doubts on the lubrication of the BSA engine expressed in the Editorial of
August 'Front Wheels' prompts me to write as I too am in big trouble with that
very problem.
However, firstly a little background. In January 1991 I purchased a dismantled i
trike, four cylinder 1935 Special Sports BKT175, engine number 1822, chassis
number 7018, previously the property of a Mr King, who I believe was a Club
member. Mr King dismantled the vehicle with the intention of a full and thorough
rebuild, but unfortunately was never to achieve this. His son Jason kept the trike
for some time with the intention of carrying on the rebuild, but change of
circumstances led him to sell it to me.
I collected BKT from somewhere near Ipswich and the enclosed photos indicate
the state of play once the items were unloaded and sorted. It was well and truly
dismantled as can be seen, the chassis was down to a bare 'A' frame, the engine
block, gearbox and differential were empty castings; but as it turned out hardly a
nut and bolt were missing, and the real big advantage was that the cylinder block
had been rebored, new pistons, gudgeons and rings still boxed. New valves,
springs, guides were there, the crankshaft reground, big ends remetalled, and all
new ball and roller bearings for both engine mains, gearbox and differential were
included, also a reconditioned radiator.
As I have rebuilt a number of both cars and motorcycles over the years, the work
was approached with great confidence, and it took around two years before the
vehicle was complete. An enclosed photo shows the final result, though I must
admit the modern film in my Box Brownie does rather enhance the paintwork,
which is brush finish.
The engine started without trouble and sounded good. With an oil pressure of
60psi all seemed well, so May '93 saw it with MOT and tax, ready for use. A few
odd problems were found and sorted in local 'round the houses' trips before a
more serious run was tackled. Here the real trouble showed itself, the car went
well enough but once fully warmed up the oil pressure dropped, and continued to
drop. Stop and let the oil cool, then oil pressure would be fully restored, only to
drop away again as the thing warmed up.
On the good advice of many people a number of attempts were made to overcome
the problem. The oil pressure relief valve was dismantled, cleaned and reseated
more than once, the crankshaft feed device inspected, reseated and new spring
fitted, oil pump dismantled and inspected by professional engineers, three oil
changes trying different makes and grades, even the oil gauge itself was changed,
none of which gave any improvement. On the last run earlier this year, with the
pressure down to 15psi and still falling, I tried to coax it home the last few miles
and finished with a 'rattle' that said it all.
With hindsight, I now feel the root of the cause is the flow restrictor, as mentioned
by yourself, (also see enclosed photocopy from the 'Book of the BSA Scout and
Three Wheeler) not preventing the hot thin oil from bypassing the big ends. It
would seem reasonable that some method is a must, and I suspect that two
different ways were tried; the calibrated orifice, or the fit of the camshaft rear
bearing.
Questions I feel need answers are :-
1) Was in fact more than one method of oil control tried.
2) If an orifice, exactly what size should it be.
3) If bush controls flow, what is the maximum bush clearance
permitted.
4) What should be the correct oil pressure when hot.
5) Who can be recommended for the remetalling of the con rods.
6) Is it possible to convert the rods to accept modern type shell
bearings.
Over the coming winter it is my intention to dismantle and rebuild the unit, and
needless to say any advice from yourself or any other member would be greatly
appreciated.
Yours sincerely,
Bob Groves
And another---
Dear Peter,
I read with interest your problem with low oil pressure and big end failure
happening to your engine (August Editorial).
My Series 2 engine suffered the same fate many years ago, this was after I had
rebuilt the engine with new pistons, big ends, etc. The big end failure that
occurred demolished the end cap and let the piston and rod flail about which
damaged the bottom of the bore and punched a hole through the side of the block.
So that welding could be done, the engine had to be completely stripped (never
been done before) and the reason for the lack of oil pressure became apparent.
The camshaft bearing was about 30 thou. oval, caused, I am sure, by the pressure
of the valve springs being downwards and the timing chain pull being upwards.
This makes for a hammering effect on the bearing, and in time the oval wear will
take place. This wear cannot be found with the engine in the car, and even with
the timing cover removed I doubt whether, with the pressure of the valve springs,
any vertical movement could be detected.
I had a new phosphor bronze bush machined from solid for £40 and I now run the
engine with 20/40 oil and a respectable 40psi. when hot. It was lOpsi. with 50
grade gear oil and an oil cooler! If anyone has an engine which, when going
through various rev ranges, (mine was about 30 and 55mph) makes a sound similar
to a machine gun, then I can guarantee that the source is this bush.
Yours sincerely,
Richard Floyd.
Footnote
A close examination of the BSA parts list and diagram reveals the fact that the item E
on the drawing points to a timing cover fixing stud!!(35-1617)
whilst the item referred to as "Timing case oil feed pipe adaptor"(35-1652) cannot be found on either drawing!
In my opinion the "calibrated orifice" only existed on the very early four
cylinder engines, to be replaced by that pipe that we all like to put a restrictor in!
which, according to the 1935 three-wheeler parts list is "cam-shaft rear bearing, complete with oil-feed pipe"
(part number 35-1297)
Nowadays of course in-line oil filters are available, which must go a long way to
improve matters
It's worth noting that the RWD version
of these engines has white metalled main bearings, and oil is fed in
the conventional way, to both ends of the crank, via (I think) an
external oil pipe from one end to the other.
psb
Further Thoughts on Oil Pressure, by Ray Waters
Last time I tried to offer a few constructive comments about the material which
appeared in the September 1994 edition of 'Front Wheels' concerning oil pressure
on the four cylinder threewheeler and Scout Series 1 to 5 engines. The following
are a few additional thoughts on the matter.
Further study of the Pitman publication (figure 31) and of BSA's threewheeler
manual (page 17) shows a picture of the specially calibrated orifice nut I
mentioned last time. It can be seen about an inch north-east of the figure '8'. This
picture does not appear in the Scout manuals, it is obviously of a very early engine
as I ain't never seen a fuel pump like that. Certainly the engine oil filler is also
early. Can anyone tell me if it is early Scout or T9? All the books do, however,
show a view of the timing chain driving the dynamo and camshaft. Here the oil
feed to the tappet chamber, rather than the rear camshaft bearing, can clearly be
seen.
With reference to the oil pressure relief valve, (Figure 1), my own personal 'bodge'
was to unsolder the end so that I could remove the ball bearing and spring to clean
it (remember to note the position of the setscrew which compresses the spring by
counting the turns of the setscrew before it falls out). I did replace the ball
bearing on one occasion when I simply could not get it to seat properly. In this
case I seated the new ball bearing by dropping it into place and using a drift to
give it a smart tap with a hammer. I have also heard the suggestion that it could
be ground in using grinding paste. All I can say is that you would have to be very
careful to get all the paste out!
Having rebuilt the pressure relief valve by reassembling the ball bearing, spring and
setscrew, it is necessary to reposition the setscrew to give the required cold oil
pressure. Be careful, if you screw the setscrew up too far to start with you can
bend the oil gauge needle! Obviously a good starting point is to put the setscrew
back in the same position as it came from. Personally I would set for maximum
cold pressure (say 60 to 80psi), this should produce, I believe, the maximum hot
pressure, which with this type of engine is what life's all about. I always found the
original ignition key to be the ideal tool to adjust said setscrew. In my experience
very little oil leaks past the setscrew so I did not resolder the whole thing up again.
If you are concerned about it, try locking and sealing the setscrew threads with a
drop of Red Hermetite.
The description of big end failure in Richard Floyd's letter in the September
magazine which caused 'a demolished end cap, and let the piston and rod flail
about' etc., is a bit extreme. Usually big end failure gives you this awful death
rattle and lost oil pressure. In days gone by I struggled home on three cylinders
with the appropriate spark plug removed to minimise damage to the crankshaft
journal of the failed bearing, but without other major catastrophe. Pete Bowler
always described Richard's machine gun noise as like 'a stick being drawn along a
wooden slatted fence'.
I often wondered why the occurrence of this noise could
be altered (but not got rid of) by changing the timing chain tension. Now I know
from where the noise emanated I understand.
While I accept that Richard has cured his problem by replacing the rear camshaft
bearing, 50 grade gear oil would, I should think, give low oil pressure even if the
entire engine was perfect. Gear oil simply is not designed to run at the
temperatures engine oil reaches, and would be much thinner than 50 grade engine
oil at the normal working temperature found in an engine. Incidentally, does
anyone agree with me that 20/50 (as opposed to 20/40) grade engine oil would
provide better lubrication for an engine which runs as hot as ours do?
With reference to Bob Groves' letter in the same magazine, I believe that Peter
Nicholls, Pete Bowler (PSB), and Richard Floyd in the September magazine, plus
my own effort 'Oil Pressure - The Next Generation' have answered the first two
questions he listed at the end of his letter. I would agree with Richard Floyd that
40psi is very respectable and personally found that 20psi hot (at 30mph in top
gear) was THE ABSOLUTE MINIMUM. Regarding Bob's other questions, could
Richard tell us what dimension he had the bore of his new rear camshaft bearing
made to, or can Tony Meade come up with a drawing for publication in the
magazine of said rear camshaft bearing? Finally, can other members recommend
conrod remetallers and comment on the use of modern shells?
One last piece of advice to anyone who does not already know, and is having their
conrods remetalled. If you look carefully at where the straight section of the
conrod changes to the semi-circular section which forms the big end, you will see
a small hole. This is supposed to continue through the white metal. It provides
an oil jet which is fired at the bore/little end every time this little hole lines up with
the hole in the crankshaft journal which brings the oil supply to the big end
bearing. So remember to drill your new white metal bearings to give this supply
to the little end and bore.
Finally one 'last last' question. Is the scene now set for an ardent V-twin enthusiast
to write an article entitled: 'Oil Pressure...Who Cares? A Treatise on the Dangers
of High Oil Pressure in the BSA Threewheeler V-twin Engine'.
Ray Waters
Read oil about it!, Andrew Macqueen
In the September editorial, Peter apologises for flogging the oil pressure topic to
death. I'm not so sure that we should put the big stick away yet since this problem
keeps cropping up sixty years on.
So, for what it is worth, the following
observations on the oil supply to the rear camshaft bearing on the 'short' engine
may be relevant still. It so happens that I have one engine (block cast in 1932) on
the 1932 T9 which has the elusive 'E' orifice, and one engine on the 1933 trike
which has not. I know not whether the trike block is original (and we all know
that the engine number is stamped on the alloy clutch flange and could be
transferred from block to block).
The fact that the rear camshaft bearing wear can be a problem is clearly stated by
Richard Floyd, and his 'machine gun hammer' theory is intriguing (I hadn't thought
of that), and the fact that BSA changed from the comparatively simple 'E' squirt
to a more sophisticated direct supply to the rear bearing would seem to indicate
that this was known to the makers sixty-odd years ago.
As mentioned in the editorial, that doyen of sound hands-on practical advice, Peter
Bowler, wrote way back in January '78 of using a 1/8" restrictor in the oil line to the
camshaft bearing, so let's look at how much oil this orifice can supply. The trouble
with oil is that the viscosity can vary so much (even with multigrades) depending
on temperature, and this affects the flow rate, velocity and friction loss through
pipework and fittings, and the rate at which flow (and pressure) can escape
through worn bearings etc.
Going back to PSB again, he sagely stated that other
work was a waste of time if some bearing etc. condition is poor. Nevertheless, I
think that the 1/8" restrictor recommended is too large. How can we add some
theoretical bones to such a statement? We calculate it first with WATER, that's
what. Water does not have much of a viscosity problem - unless you let it freeze!
Then you look for a conversion factor to make your calculation roughly
appropriate to oil. This cannot be a highly sophisticated exercise unless you have
access to much more detailed monitoring than any of us are likely to have, but we
do have a way which I reckon is generally acceptable enough to make an educated
assessment - good enough for our purposes.
So where do I go from here? I go back to PSB again! This time way, way back
to August 1964 (yes, thirty years ago) where 'Universal Torque' reports on a
by-pass oil filter system Peter was fitting to his trike. He had fitted a 1/16" restrictor
in the oil supply line to the filter, and found that the return line (to the sump) was
passing the equivalent of one gallon in four minutes. Again we can only guess at
the pressure, temperature, etc., but I have taken 30psi for this purpose. Now
comes the really theoretical bit. The most appropriate water flow formula for
orifice throughput is probably the following simplified one.
25d² x §P = UK gallons per minute
(note § should be sq root sign, I don't have it on my editor!!!,psb)
I'm showing my age here as this is strictly Imperial stuff, ie.
d = diameter in inches
P = pressure in pounds per square inch
From this you can calculate for yourself that at 30psi:-
a 1/32" restrictor will pass 0.13igpm water
a 1/16" restrictor will pass 0.53igpm water
a 1/8" restrictor will pass 2.13igpm water
Now Peter's 1/16" restrictor was passing 0.25igpm OIL, so oil gives about 50 of the
water throughput. I have included a 1/32" reading for interest, but even that would
pass a good half pint (a fair sized oil can's worth) every minute of oil. But, would
you be happy with such a small orifice in an unfiltered oil system? I would have
reservations. Having said that, I've just checked on a spare set of con rods in the
garage to ascertain the size of the drilling which squirts the oil up into the bores
at each revolution. It's 1/32"!
But what if the pressure drops to lOpsi, which we all know is rather more than
possible? The following would be the theoretical throughput:-
1/32" = 0.076 water / 0.038 oil igpm
1/16" = 0.308 water / 0.154 oil igpm
1/8" = 1.23 water / 0.615 oil igpm
Remember that by the time the oil pressure is down at l0psi the oil will be fairly
hot and viscosity low, and consequently the flow will be somewhere between the
oil and water figures given above.
What we really need is someone out there to make up a jury rig to measure the
actual flow of oil at different pressures and temperatures through various sizes of
restrictor orifice. That would put an end to all this theorising nonsense! Liquid
pressure is a bit like that new car you drive out of the showroom - as soon as you
move it it depreciates.
Andrew Macqueen
Once More into the Breech Tony Meade, June 1995
Having noted with interest the various points that have been raised on the subject
of the four cylinder engine lubrication system, I thought that a delve into the
drawings archive might provide a few answers.
In the February '95 magazine Ray Waters mentioned the Pitman Book of the
Threewheeler which does in fact show the V9 van set-up.
The parts lists
clearly indicate that the early type of camshaft oil feed was used up to engine No.
F1048, with the oil pipe attached to the camshaft bush from engine No. F1049.
The drawing for the oil feed nozzle shows the 'calibrated orifice' to be
1/32" on the drawing dated 9.5.31, changed to .040" on 13.11.31.
What is definitely worth checking is the condition of the oil pump gears
themselves. Up to engine No. F209 the gears had 11 teeth, length 1.000" - 0.999",
diameter 0.929" - 0.928". On and after engine F210 there were 9 teeth, with the
same length and diameter (June 1932). The tolerances were changed on 12.3.35
to 1.0005" - 0.9995" and 0.930" - 0.9295" respectively, which would have increased
the oil pressure. The oil pump used on Series 2 Scouts had gears of the same
diameter, but length 1.3755" - 1.3745", at which time the oil pressure release valve
was changed from 55psi to 45psi blow-off pressure. The bore of the oil pump body
is shown as 0.931" - 0.930", with depth 1.001" - l.000".
In one letter there is mention of the oil feed to the camshaft being of 1/4" diameter
on the later engines, but this is incorrect. Certainly the bore from the camshaft
bush to the tappet chest is that size, but it must be remembered that the oil has to
squeeze around the camshaft bush oil grooves before it reaches that hole. The
camshaft itself also had an oil groove machined on the rear journal which is shaped
so that it lines up with the oil pipe hole and the hole in the tappet chest only once
per revolution of the camshaft to meter a squirt of oil to the tappet chest. I would
be very surprised, looking at the size of this groove, if the amount of oil was as
great as in the earlier engines, and its position on the journal is strictly controlled
in relation to the cam lobes. The clearance in the rear camshaft bush should only
be 0.0015" - 0.0035", so the amount of wear is important. I have still got the
original shaft and bush in APH 775 which, although well worn, still gives 45psi
running pressure when hot.
With regard to the oil transfer device feeding the crankshaft, PSB noted the
importance of the clearance between its components, which should only be 0.0001"
- 0.0011" on the diameter. When I checked this on my original car, MJ 2033, I
could get a 10 thou feeler in the gap, and only 20psi running pressure when hot!
In APH 775, the clearance is about 2½ thou.
The final item which other scribes have mentioned is the pressure release valve.
I have, on several occasions, had almost zero oil pressure on the gauge, which has
been miraculously restored when I've cleaned the valve, even though i couldn't see
any dirt. There were at least four different models according to the parts lists in
my possession, with the part number and pressure stamped on the solder sealing
plug in the end. Trikes should have 36-431, set at 55psi; RWD and Series 1 should
have 36-432, set at 45psi; Series 2 to Series 5 should have 38-155, set at 55psi
(22.7.35), but changed to 45psi (20.6.36). The components of the latter two types
are identical, 38-155 being marked with RED paint, 36-432 with GREEN. Having
looked at the drawings of the valve bodies and the housing in the timing cover, it
is obvious that for the valve to work it must be screwed down tight on to the
timing cover before the locknut is tightened, otherwise oil can leak round the end
of the body into the timing cover, thus reducing the pressure. It is worth checking
the seat in the cover casting for blow holes or corrosion because this will have the
same effect.
In Jeff Calver's letter in the January '95 magazine, he suggests cutting off the oil
supply to the rear camshaft bearing altogether (if I interpreted his article
correctly). The crankshaft does NOT splash oil into the tappet chest - it can only
enter via the oil feed pipe. The oil in the tappet chest lubricates the tappets, the
front camshaft bush, and the oil pump drive skew gears via the various drillings and
the camshaft worm oil feed nozzle, which is the hexagon headed device with a9/^'
diameter bore in the floor of the tappet chest. It is this device which sets the level
of oil in the tappet chest - any surplus flows through its bore on to the camshaft
worm below and thence back into the sump. There are also three angled holes 3/8"
diameter at the back of the tappet chest to drain surplus oil into the sump. I
discovered while researching this article that in August 1936 there was a
modification made to increase the oil level in the tappet chest by blocking off the
rear two angled holes and using a longer headed oil feed nozzle. The purpose of
this was to increase the oil supply to the front camshaft bush (which must have
suffered with the Scout engine tilting backwards). It would, therefore, seem worth
using this modification on any Scout if it isn't already fitted. I am sending copies
of the relevant drawings to Peter Nicholls with this article but if he is unable to
print them the numbers are: D.M.693 modification to cylinder block 'to increase oil supply to camshaft bush 38-57 Oil hole plug'.
38-58 Camshaft worm oil feed nozzle.
This would not, of course, be necessary for the trike engine.
Tony Meade
hits on this page since March 2004
last modified: December 29 2005 17:10:13