the #1 cyl (front right as from position of sitting in car). there's a limited amount of oil reaching that last rockershaft oil hole and so grooves are gouged into the rockershaft. I've heard rumors of an old aftermarket external oiler due to these engine's reputation for poor lubrication in this area. As a counter to this problem(if no solution found), it's been suggested that I use the thinner 5W-30 so it'll flow easier. Any ideas?
Napa & everybody else used to sell those external oilers. Starting with good stuff and keeping clean oil is he real answer.
In the past I have taken the rocker shafts of, soaked and cleaned with gas and cleaned the holes in the head and block with a pipe cleaner. If I bought a car with the ext. oilers used to throw them away after a good cleaning. It was a bandaid IMO. good luck
The Lincoln doesn't really have that rep...it's the Ford/Mercury Y block that does, rightly or wrongly. Do you feel that there is truly a limited amount of oil getting there, & why? Keep in mind that there actually isn't a whole bunch of oil SUPPOSED to be there, & it doesn't take much to make everything OK. I have seen some guys hunt down the external oilers, or make one, just because "It doesn't look right". The external oilers are nothing more or less than a controlled leak from the bottom end oiling...it may work fine...& then again.... By the very nature of the shaft system, they do wear & are something of a consumable....& are very prone to damage from dirty oil, especially with the oils of the '50s-early '70s. My preference would be to have the rockers/shaft/supports reworked by Rocker Arm Specialties to correct the damage, IF the rest of the engine seems OK, use 10W30 oil & change it reasonably often. Now, if the oiling truly is a real problem (& it may be-I'm not trying to slam ya ), there are a couple of fixes for this, depending on the condition of the engine & how far you want to dig into it. If only one cylinder has the problem, it's not the oil passages in the block.
thanks for the ideas. the reason I think it's not getting enough oil is because as the engine runs, I see the #1 cyl oil dripping onto the valve spring oil baffle at half the rate of the # 2,3,4,5,6,7 & 8. Also, rocker shaft had wear grooves @ #1 cyl area; also fine grindings of push rod top as well as an acompanying squeek. I replaced shaft and all rods/lifters as well as #1 valve adjusting screw. thanks for the reference to the rocker arm specialties guys.
I think that one of the bolts holding the rockers down has a "higher" shoulder to allow oil to get up there.Check them & see if its on yours.If it is clean everything thouroughly & grind that one bolt alittle higher, sometimes grinding a flat in it helps( above the threads, below the head).Just make sure you use it in the "oil feed" hole Its been 40 yrs since i worked at Linc-merc but i think that was a problem with them. JimV
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