• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

No oil through passenger rocker arms

Rocker shaft orientation has always been a problem with Mopar....gotta know how they go.
The shaft oil hole will be towards the valve in relation the shaft hold down bolts. If there are notches on the end of the shaft, the driver side shaft will be to the front of the engine, and to the rear of the passenger side.

IMG_3847.jpg IMG_3848.jpg
 
Like miller says, straighten a coat hanger; lay it between the pushrods and pedestals. That'll keep the pushrods halfway lined up when you put rockers/shaft back on.
 
If its bone dry it could be the cam bearing. Either installed wrong or it spun!
 
a BTW
rotating the engine while priming will also load up the lifters if they were dry or bleed them down if they were loaded with oil (which can bend things)
 
Like miller says, straighten a coat hanger; lay it between the pushrods and pedestals. That'll keep the pushrods halfway lined up when you put rockers/shaft back on.
Trick I learned and it might have been in the service manual, use the oil dipstick.
 
Oh, make sure the plug at each end is in the shaft.

Plugs are indeed on each end of the shaft

Easy stuff first, did you turn the crankshaft when you were priming the engine? If not, the cam is not aligned with the hole on the side that would not oil...

Yes, and only driver side head would Oil once per revolution
 
I got a chance to quickly look the car after work but the sun is down and I got rained out so limited

I started by just double checking I didn’t miss the hole while priming, so I slowly turned the crankshaft while priming. 3 full revolutions for the camshaft, driver side oiled every time and nothing on the passenger. I then removed the shaft assembly and did it again and still nothing out the passenger side.

I didn’t have a pipe brush small enough to fit down the oil gallery so will have to try tomorrow or use a small wire to see if there’s debris etc in the way. I’m hoping it’s that and not a cam bearing.

F771B48E-2E5B-46AB-A448-6815ABAFB2D8.jpeg
 
When you poke the wire down through have someone turn the engine over. If the filler rod never finds the hole in the cam you’ll know what the problem is. If you find the hole on the cam then it’s a head scratcher.
 
1) Head gasket is symmetrical, so can not be an issue
2) Crap in the passage is possible.
3) Spun or misaligned cam bearing is also a possibility.

One thing to think about is the heads are drilled on both ends so that the heads can go on either bank, as well as the gasket. A head that was together for many years can build up a gross grey sludge from years of the OLD oil. The sludge forms because the head gasket blocks the hole at the head level, and oil yurns to sludge over time in this blind hole. When I clean these heads, and blow out the rocker bolt holes, the grey sludge comes out thick as tar. Push a rid in the passage, and if it is covered in a grey sludge, that might be your issue. Carb cleaner and an air gun can clean it up. The carb cleaner straw does a good job of conforming to a shaft the is not straight. Wear eye protection, trust me and don't ask how I know.
 
Sounds like you've found your problem. A good thing, since running it like that would have gotten bad.
Okay, find out why?
When the cam bearings are installed, there's two holes in #4 bearing. IF the bearing is right, the bearing holes will be lined up with the two block ports. Yeah, run a stiff length of wire through that hole, to see if any junk comes back out with it. A little harder, push the wire in 'til it bottoms...turn the engine by hand, to see if you can feel the wire end, moving along the cam journal.

Bottom line...if the cam bearing is NOT right, cam needs to be pulled, and cam bearings re-done.
Toss a handful of common sense at it all, and go from there. Good find, before things went south!
 
There is supposed to be a shaft that the oil passes through correct? So in other words this specific hole on the second to last bolt hole should be deeper than the other 4?


Feeding a wire through feels as if its not even protruding down and that it’s hitting something solid. Intuitively it doesn’t feel deep enough to be the cam or bearings. Maybe halfway down the cylinder head. I measured and it has the same depth as the other holes. Am I missing something?

A5DC38CA-7F54-4DA8-AE7C-627B3B51FC9D.jpeg
 
There is supposed to be a shaft that the oil passes through correct? So in other words this specific hole on the second to last bolt hole should be deeper than the other 4?


Feeding a wire through feels as if its not even protruding down and that it’s hitting something solid. Intuitively it doesn’t feel deep enough to be the cam or bearings. Maybe halfway down the cylinder head. I measured and it has the same depth as the other holes. Am I missing something?

View attachment 894671

Can you look in that bolt hole with a good flashlight? A stiff straight wire should go down to the cam bearing.
 
Haven't done wedges but does the oil hole enter the at an slight angle not straight down, just asking.
 
Last edited:
Greer buddy! Welcome to the madness that is FBBO!

I hope you get yer oiling situation all figured out.
 
Rocker bolt goes straight down, and the oil passage angles towards the intake side of the hole.

IMG_3855.jpg
 
old fuzzy here but the oil passage is off the bolt hole not straight down
borescope?
you pulled the bolt from the back of the engine or the front
that pic on the previous page looks wrong- maybe BBM
//sbm pump is at the rear
 
Think intake ports facing down in picture. So hole is hard to with heads on in engine compartment.
 
@MoparMitch had a good one the oil passage in the on one side of the cam was blocked same issue. Look at how the oil goes through the cam, it will make sense just something to check.
 
@MoparMitch had a good one the oil passage in the on one side of the cam was blocked same issue.

I thought I had read that on another website.

If the cam bearing had spun, you wouldn't think that one side was still getting oil. It should block off both sides unless you were lucky enough for one of the two holes to stop just right.

Upon my initial oil priming with a drill (fresh rebuild) I couldn't get oil on the passenger side. So I pulled that rocker shaft bolt and tried again, same result. So I used a stiff wire and sent it down the passage. (I don't remember going at an angle, thought it went straight, but I'm old too!) When I pulled it out I had break in lube on it. Turned the priming drill again and had oil. So I'm guessing it doesn't take much to block the small cam bearing hole.
 
Auto Transport Service
Back
Top