I've had a significant oil leak and have pulled the engine out. As usual, it only leaks when running.
I pulled the cover off the oil pump and found signs of the gears have been grinding on the cover plate. We did insert a high pressure/high flow pump with the rebuild and I remember that there is a modification needed to accomidate this. Do I need to grind the gears more flat or insert a larger gasket/seal between the gears and coverplate? DO the gears normaly run on the surface of the cover plate?
Thanks,Click to view attachment

uh, if the gears ground into the cover plate, you obviously didnt trim the drive tang on the pump...

the part that goes into the cam, needs to be ground/filed down a few .001" to stop that from happeneing......

Also... if you are having a leak.. true up the surface with a piece of glass AND some fine sandpaper. use a sharpie to mark the mounting area, and it will show you the high spots

I hope its not a steel melling pump...

if it is buy a HD 28mm or 30mm aluminum pump from Jake

Aaron and Geoff, take another look. I figured out how to add a picture of the cover plate.
Larry

cant tell what cover plate it is....

i dont think that the pump gears should be digging into the end cover....

sounds like something needs to be trimmed just a tad (drive tang?) and a new cover plate installed....

-thinking aloud here-
and if there was tooo much space between the gears and the cover, you would have oil pressure problems no?

thats not good but what is the body of the pump?? steel or aluminum? some of the aluminum pumps have steel covers as they stay rigid vs aluminum. Flat sand the cover back smooth like Aaron said.

If its a steel body (Melling) you have to grind off a 1/16th of a inch off the tang.
Even some of the aluminum ones need to have some of the tang ground off .

i had to trim the drivetang on my AL 38mm pump.....

Yeah, some come without being ground off. So how much is ground off???

When I assemble a motor I install the pump after the cam and crank are in. I pull out a straight edge and check the gears to pump body as they should be nearly flush, maybe a slightly recessed into the body. Can't remember the measurement....

that is exactly how i did mine...

i had to trim a little under 1/16"

Thanks Guys,
I think that is exactly what the problem is.
I spoke with the company which built the motor, Autocraft. He let me know that they are closing. So much for warranty work. The upper gear is grinding in more than the lower gear, but both are grinding. They look and feel like steel gears/shaft.
I can grind the tang, that sloted piece which fits into the camshaft head, and that will take care of the upper grind. But what do I do about the lower gear grind. DO I placer a thicker gasket between the cover and the gear? Or should I just grind the head of the gear down a little?
Aaron, what effect does space between the gear head and the cover plate have on developing oil pressure. My oil pressure is between 2.0-3.0 bars.
Larry

here is a aluminum pump. the gears should be flush nearly with the body but check to see if you can move the lower gear a "Hair" into the body by tapping it lightly.
sometimes that aren't on all the way or check to see why its hanging up. (dirt or crap behind it?)

Most likely if you grind the tang slightly the upper gear will correct the problem.

Sand the cover with the paper mounted onto a piece of glass so its dead flat.

If this is the guy that recommended a Web 73 grind to rev to *K RPM I can certainly see why..

These guys have given you excellent advice, adhere to it. I can only add that the pump cover should be replaced or decked to remove all the scars. I sell the new pumps already modified as well as the pump covers for them.

When non TIV specialists assemble engines these types of results and worse can be expected, luckily you had a small issue and caught it before it splattered all over the floor. Most guys are not that lucky.

Thanks All.
We ground down the tand 0.010 inch and it seems to be flush with the case now. When he saw the cover plate, he said that there really was not a problem and would expect that. I've had enough less than perfect outcomes myself that I try not to be disrespectful or otherwise. I still know these guys are good. They were the go to guy for the midget and circuit racers. I just think they did not have the detailed knowledge and experience that you have Jake. Even in my field, some who have an occasional problem are still good, but if I have even one problem, it is not what I strive for.
Well, I have to sand the cover plate and the case to assure the levelness. Hopefully, this will be the fix for my oil leak.
Thanks again everyone.
Larry

I would with 100k miles maybe....engine assembly is a careful process and this detail looks like it was skipped but caught in time.

.010 is a mile in the oil pump.

I would not doubt that it either makes a small sound or drops oil pressure a bit or both.

have fun at truing the case boss...

it is easier to true if you remove the studs. and KEEP THE PARTICULATE OUT OF THE MOTOR!

Overall a small f*ck up but still a pain to fix right.

Thanks Guys,
The case was true. Painted with black marker. 220 grit sand paper wrapped arround a mirror of appropriate size. all sides came off together. Worked on the cover plate. That was not true. So I sanded the cover, 220 grit to smooth and level. 90% of the scratches out.. The plate was bowed in the center. The engine shop trimmed 0.01 off the tang. Hole clean. I reinserted the gears and placed a right angle edge along the face whith each gear inserted. just touches the right angle edge. Placed a gasket and smeared with gasket sealer and torqued to 15 ft#. Also re connected the stock oil cooler, block off plate and external oil plumbing. Crossed my fingers and hope it will work.
A little of a pain, but as often happens, I replaced the engine mounts with new ones during the oil leak repair. varoom varrooomm.

Tomorrow, install the innovate a/f sensor and wires.
Any thoughts as to running the wires over the engine or under? I guess I'll knock another hole in the central tunnel to run the wires up to the dash. I always worry that the loose wire will catch on the shifter.
Larry