Projects oil sender on flathead

I have a question for you flathead guys.
I just put a set of Auto-meter gauges in my 47 Ford. I went to install the sender for the new oil pressure gauge, and I can just barely see the old sender, much less remove it.
The original owner gave me a whole trunk full of parts, one of which is another oil filter canister with a tee that has a sending unit off one of the lines back to the canister. Could I add a tee to the canister that's already on my engine and install the sender up on top where I can get to it?
I could just leave the old sender in the back to plug the hole.
What do you guys think? I know, I'm lazy, I admit it....Thanks, Mike

 

Idk about inline oil pressure sender... Oil pressure isn't something to mess with. I would just try and get a sender in the correct location.

 

As long as the sender is on the inward side of the canister, it should be the same as at the bellhousing of the block. The pressure won't change if the sender's on the beginning of that line or the end.


You may find you could reach the sender at the bellhousing if you remove the floor toeboard. Or ask a contortionist to crawl in there for you.

 

Where the stock sender lives there are 2 ports, one vertical, the other facing the driver's side. Both are nightmares to reach in the car...for reference, there is a special wrench which can be duplicated by severely abusing a 9/16 combination wrench.
Popping the floorboard is a way but lots of work.
For your situation, you have found the easy solution with the other tee...it is from a later flathead application. Just inspect and make sure it has a severe restriction, a hole about .060, in the filter feed or you will likely blow the lid gasket right out of your filter!
It is pretty certainly an original tee, but do inspect to be sure.

 

would that be a "byp***" type filter? If so, I think there may be a restriction orifice somewhere between filter and engine, and if the fitting is on the filter side of the orifice the pressure will be lower than one plumbed into an oil gallery.

 

Mike,you dont have anything better to do,,Remove the toe boards and do it right.

 

If memory serves me you can use threaded pipe parts to bring/modify the oil pressure sending unit to a more managable location. Since I'm only 5'2" tall, I have done this inthe past to "raise" the location so I can get at it easier...

 

But Bob! You know how lazy I am! Right now I have the gauge hooked up to the original Ford sender, and I'm idling at 75# and running at 100. It's kind of like an idiot light, If my pressure drops off I know I'm in trouble...

"For your situation, you have found the easy solution with the other tee...it is from a later flathead application."
Bruce, I'll check the tee that's on the canister in the parts basket. It needs to look like an injector pill inside. .060. It looks like it maybe 65 years old....Thanks!

 

My God Mike....75# at idle???? way too much....maybe something else is wrong..like the gauge or the sender.

 

I just changed my sender on the 52 F1, and its a *****, but was much easier after removing the center floor cover. Even after the sender is installed, you have to start the small screw on top of the sender to connect the sender wire. Its much easier with one of those locking screw holder tools. Starting it by hand is almost impossible. My oil pressure is in the 20-30 PSI range, a bit lower at hot idle. 75 PSI at idle sure seems high for a flathead V8. While you're playing with changing the sender you may want to put a direct reading gauge on there to verify actual oil pressure.

 

The original sender will not work with an aftermarket gauge...there is no resistance hence the very high reading.

As Bruce mentioned, use a "T", but be certain you're prior to the restriction which was built into the removable fitting on the canister on mine...I screwed into it between the block and fitting for a backup manual gauge.

 

I'm pretty sure he was describing a stock tee from a circa '52, which moved the sender up to oil filter...but gotta check to be sure!

 

Woah guys! The 75# at idle comes from the Auto-Meter gauge being hooked up to the stock Ford 6V sender. Y'all woulda really freaked if I'd told you the the temp gauge was pegged all the way hot!
This is all piddling stuff I'll sort out in the near future. Right now, I'm fighting with a no charging generator system. Going to Decatur tomorrow looking for a one wire alternator.
Thanks for the concern though...I'm flattered.

 

Put it on the inlet line at the oil filter, like alchemy said; It'll work just fine. My stock 51 Merc had it that way from the factory.

4TTRUK

 

I used an inverted flare steel line to remote mount my sender, I built a support bracket off of the rear intake manifold bolt, with a grommet to absorb any vibrations.

 

OK - I must've misunderstood - I thought he was referring to his '47...it's all good - he can T off somewhere in there and get a reading one way or another!

 

Flat Ernie,I too,think Mike is refering to his 47...That is the car he is working on at present..

 

He is referring to his '47 and to a spare filter in the trunk that has sender hole on the Tee at filter...which makes it a post-1947 filter, likely '52-3.

 

Yeah, my bad fellas. I guess I didn't communicate this too well.
I'm working on my stock 47, but when I bought the car, it came with spare parts. One of those spare parts was another canister that has a sending unit mounted on it, that according to Bruce Lancaster was how it was done after 48.
I intend to copy the practice of mounting the sender near the oil canister to make servicing and replacing the oil pressure sender much easier.

 

Dragging up a way old thread.
Mr. Lancaster you were right, there is an obstruction in the tee I pulled off the spare canister. I'll have to go to Ace hardware and get an adapter from the tee to the old style canister, the tee is too big. But all else is good. Won't be a problem bending the return line just a bit to make up for the adapter.
I tried again to find a way to remove the old sender today. It's no wonder that Ford decided to move it upstairs. I'll bet they heard a lot of *****ing from the mechanics.
The old sender will make a spiffy plug for the block.
One other question, will it be OK to mount the sender horizontally? If not I'll have to fab up a new return line. I'd be afraid to bend a U in a 67 year old piece of copper.
Thanks all. Mike

 

It'll be fine horizontal...

 

OK, I wussed out and I'm going to do it the recommended way. The toe board comes out and the factory sender gets replaced with the Auto Meter sender.
After all this B.S. I caused. My friends are right, I overthink everything......

 

Pulling the toe board is a roaring pain, especially if you have a heater in there. See if the job can be handled by the special tool...
Square at bottom of sender is 9/16, get a 9/16 combination wrench and bend it 90 degrees twice so that the hex end is directly above the open end...make the upper drivable by welding on an old socket. That will be very similar to the original manufactured tool. I'd lend you one, but I don't like to mail tools I can't replace.

 

^^^ I got it. Buy a cheap HF wrench, and make a U out of it.
Great idea! I'll have to make another for the Auto Meter sender,It's a different size, but that's still easier than removing the toe board. Thanks, Mr. Lancaster.
One of the few things I've learned in 66 years....never loan tools! You'll never see them again. Mike

 

Several companies made those back when, including Snap-on...looks just like my home-made suggestion except the upper end is forged with a square drive hole.
I'm sure the demand started the first time a mechanic spent 3 hours and a quart of blood on a job he had promised the customer in 10 minutes...

 

@Bruce Lancaster
Hey Bruce - are the two ports interchangeable? I am facing this same issue (Autometer sending unit won’t fit) ... but with an 8BA in a Model A. I have good access to the ports, see photo. I think it will solve my problem if I can swap the oil filter line to the vertical port and move the pressure switch to the horizontal port.


Thanks, Walt


Sent from my iPad using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

I changed one on a 52 F3 last winter and it was pretty tough to get at, didn't remove the floor cover. Now that the job is done I'm glad I did it right. I may have uttered a curse word or 2 while doing it but that was short lived. I've never had to do one on a 47, it might be closer quarters there.

Edit: didn't realize this was an old thread brought back to life.

 

Perhaps this is incorrect to you guys but I have used some galvanized pipe to extend the vertical location of the pressure switch making it easier to get at to remove it. I have used straight up, a 45 to redirect it, etc. Did this on flatties, sbcs, etc, with great results.

I apologize if I have ****ed in where I should not have ....

 

Take the fittings off and stick a piece of wire in one hole and see if you can see it from the other hole. If so they are the same. From the outside they look like they go to the same place.

 

On my merc there is a tee right before the oil filter seems to be good.