Bobby Joe Pendleton II
MVPA# 17657
TENN
XM211
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From: Alan Bowes <alan_bowes@phast.com>
To: 'Scott Strance' <Strance@msn.com>; mil-veh@skylee.com
Subject: RE: [MV] M38A1 - Fuel Pump Question...(dry starts)
Date: Wednesday, August 13, 1997 2:02 PM
Just an additional note to my previous posting about filling the engine
block with oil...
Depending on your engine and how such things like crankcase breathing...and
your distributor...are set up, there's a good chance you may end up getting
some oil in a few unwanted places. Remove the distributor cap before
filling the block with oil. If some oil does seep into your distributor,
you will need to clean out this excess oil before starting the engine. Some
oil may also make its way into the manifolds, so expect some smoking when
you first start the engine. If you get oil in the intake manifold, you
might want to wick most of it out before starting the engine.
You might also consider letting the full block soak for a shorter period of
time to reduce the amount of oil that makes its way into the distributor
(or other places).
I'm SURE I'll get some e-mail about how this approach is unnecessary, but
again, I think this is the only method that will coat ALL internal surfaces
with oil prior to starting the engine, even though it can be messy. I'd
rather clean up some excess oil than damage the engine. After you're done,
just spray some 'Gunk' on the engine and hose it off.
Remember, the engine in this discussion has been sitting for YEARS. All of
the interior surfaces will be EXTREMELY dry. Metal-to-metal contact can not
only score surfaces, but can even melt low-temperature alloys, such as
bearing material. Even if you only score the metal, it may run fine for a
while, but those score marks are the nuclei for future failures.
I have one anecdote that I think supports my approach. A friend's
aircraft...a Piper Cherokee with a Lycoming O-320...had been in storage for
several years. He was advised by an aircraft mechanic to squirt some oil in
each cylinder to free up any possibly stuck rings. He also hand cranked the
engine over several times to make sure it was clear...so far, so good. Then
he cranked over the engine with the starter with no spark plugs in place,
until the oil pressure finally came up. However, with the dry gears in the
oil pump and the relatively slow cranking speed, it took quite some time
for the pressure to come up. Meanwhile, he was cranking the engine with
VERY dry main and con-rod bearings. Anyway, after replacing the plugs and
starting the engine, it ran for about half an hour before it started making
nasty clanking noises. Turns out that TWO con rod bearings were wiped out,
and ALL of the bearings showed serious scuffing. If he had filled the
crankcase with oil...even for a few minutes...it may have saved a premature
and expensive overhaul. At 6,000 dollars plus for a four-cylinder aircraft
engine overhaul, who wants to take chances? So you may have to clean out a
bit of oil here and there...so what?
That said, y'all do what you want with your own engines.
Alan Bowes
(Salt Lake City, Utah)
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