I remember reading somewhere (though I can't find it now) that the distributor oil should be 20W non-detergent oil. Is that "non-detergent" part strictly necessary? I can't find any "plain old oil"... everything is at least API SF.

 

What's "distributor oil?"

 

They got it at autozone next to the muffler bearings

 

Distributor oil, huh i think thats been discontinued along with distributors. Now u will need to upgrade to a distributorless ignition once your distributors oil reservoir runs dry. So don't take that dist apart and empty the dist oil reservoir.

But as far as the timing weights go i only use a dry-lubricant - preferribly telfon spray. Most hardware store here in the states sell it but never been to NZ so your on your own there.

cardo0

 

You know. It's the oil that's pumped up through a worn out engine, and distributes itself all over the engine compartment.

 

All right!! Some early distributers(Mallory,Lucas), had oil cups on the side for oiling the upper bushing. 3 in 1 oil has a viscosity of about 15, and would be close enough. Why do you have an antique distibuter in your Vette?

 

You may want to put some grease in it but I never heard of distributer oil.

BigBlockk

Later.....

 

1969 Service manual says, Engine Electrical, Distributor (breaker point type) service operation, page 6Y-26, V-8 Assembly (Fig 13i) 1. Fill housing lubricating cavity with proper compound, press in new plastic seal and install felt washer.

I haven't disassembled the distributor yet, and I just wanted to make sure I had everything I needed beforehand, because the car will be undrivable while it's disassembled.

I was expecting some sort of oil soaked sawdust stuff that would need to be resoaked with fresh oil. Based on all these comments, I'm no longer expecting that. I dunno where I got that. Neither to I remember where I got the 20W non-detergent oil spec from.

I'm happily schooled, so just lemme know what I need.
I have lots of oils and greases (chassis, teflon, silicone, lithium, etc). I have shims, mounting gasket, felt washer, roll pin, and plastic housing seal...
... oh oh! I have a little tube of "distributor shaft and gear lubricant"... I didn't know I had that! GM #1960954. COOL.

Thanks.

 

Since I didn't hear back from you for clarificaton on what you're doing with the oil, let me make a few comments about the different lubes to use on the distributor.

The very old units (1962 and earlier), used a distributor system very much like the Mallory units - similar to a Ford. These distributors had the weights and springs under the breaker plate, and they had an oil tube for the upper bushing that stuck up alongside the distributor cap side. If yoou have one of these antique units, you may want to upgrade to a distributor a little more modern and correct for your C3. But you can put a few drops of any type of engine oil down the tube.

If you have a correct distributor for your C3, there is no oiling required. The upper bushing is lubricated through a grease well located under the breaker plate. This well should be packed with wheel bearing grease, and the plastic retaining seal should be pushed down on the well so that the grease oozes out the bearing oiling hole. The grease will continue to "weep" out the hole over the life of the distributor and this is enough lube for the upper bushing. The lower bushing is lubricated through the engine oil system. The upper grease well seal cannot be accessed without removing the distributor and completely disassembling it.

There are also 2 lube grooves in the distributor mainshaft, under the area where the breaker cam rides. If you disassemble the distributor, you should clean out these grooves and fill them with a good lithium grease (such as LubriPlate). I like to spray a little WD40 on the LubriPlate just to soften it up a little and to make the advance mechanism very smooth and responsive.

The contact areas for the distributor weights can be given a very small, conservative coating of lube as well. You don't want to get very much in this area, as any excess lube will get thrown into the inside of the rotor and possibly into the cap. A very thin film is all that's needed at the contact areas.

There are no other lube points on the distributor, and no areas that require 20W engine oil.

Contact me if you need assistance.
Lars

 

Thanks Lars. Wheel bearing grease. Not oil . Got it.

 

distributor oil......

some distributors have a little filler on the side w/ a flip top lid and a wick inside..guess what goes in there?? Not grease!

 

distributor oiling port:

 

Thats a little bitty pri coil on the side of your dist. You sure it will fire 8 plugs.

 

it's just the condensor, no room inside..it's an ancient mallory dual point distr.

 

i'll go way out on a limb here, and may create some hard feelings, but

sarcastic answers don't help.

they will probably only intimidate novice mechanics from asking questions that they need answered. after all, isn't what this forum is all about? nobody knows it all-if you think you do, step on up!

 

 

Twin -
I stated that in my answer above:
"The very old units (1962 and earlier), used a distributor system very much like the Mallory units - similar to a Ford. These distributors had the weights and springs under the breaker plate, and they had an oil tube for the upper bushing that stuck up alongside the distributor cap side. If you have one of these antique units, you may want to upgrade to a distributor a little more modern and correct for your C3. But you can put a few drops of any type of engine oil down the tube."

The area he was asking about is the upper grease well under the breaker plate. When the distributor gets old, the factory grease turns to a hard, black substance that comes out in chunks - it's hard to tell what it used to be. If you put engine oil in this well, it will flow right out the upper bushing oiling hole, and the well will be dry within hours of operation. By packing it with bearing grease, the grease will outgass and ooze for years, providing just a tiny bit of lube to the upper bushing, which is all it needs to stay healthy.

 

I believe the correct lube is GM #1960954 Gear & Shaft Lubricant which comes in a little plastic can which states it's for starter gears & shafts & distrubutor shafts. It looks like a black moly-lube but costs about $41 as I recall for a 12.5 oz can. At least this is what's listed for the HEI distributor.

 

So, all of you Scrooges out there, I can only say "bah humbug". The guy asks a legitimate question and is swamped with wise a$$ comments? Where's your holiday spirit? Still under the tree?

By the way, if my memory serves me right, in addition to Lars good advice, isn't there information in the GM Service Manual for the year in question? In addition, this is one of those areas where a lot of grease is not better than a little. I overgreased my distributor when I rebuilt a few years ago. I put a not-so-tiny dab of grease on the wick and it started slinging it every where. Eventually I figured out why the rpms were breaking up over 2000. The points were trashed with grease. I wound up cleaning them with solvent and solved my problem.

Gary

 

That's probably true for most. I personally found the replies pretty funny. I expect Lars wanted me to be more specific and after that, well all I can say is... where the hell are those muffler bearings? I've been looking everywhere!

I may be an exception. I know that I don't know, and I'm not trying to hide that fact. I'm a computer geek, not a mechanic. Others very well might be offended, so it probably is a good policy to keep the sarcasm down a tad. Unless you see "metheglin", then please, let it rip.