Oil Pump Removal

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Nov 24, 2004 | 07:01 PM

vettenuts

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From: At the beach in little Rhody

Oil Pump Removal

Looking at the ls1howto.com removal of the oil pump and the disconnection of the pickup tube, and I am a little concerned about the warning "Don't drop the bolt into the pan". My question is, for those who are familiar, if you drop it is it retrievable? Or, can you stuff a clean rag in the pan so if you drop it you can retrieve it.

I always get a little nervous with this type of stuff, and being butterfingers to start with, I like to have a backup plan :o

Nov 24, 2004 | 07:05 PM

Jeffvette

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From: No more yankee my wankee, the Donger is tired!

You can't really get a rag in there well enough to keep it from falling in. If it does fall in, you should be able to get it with a magnent. Just make sure the car is level when removing the bolt to keep it from rolling away.

Nov 24, 2004 | 09:20 PM

88sk

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From: phila. pa .usa

its not a problem to remove the bolt the real pain is the o-ring ,if not put in correctly youll have no or low oil press. then have to redo the whole job over because of a little o-ring.

Nov 24, 2004 | 11:00 PM

Torched Z

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On some earlier LS1's I think the pickup tube bolt was on the right side of the tube and much harder to get to (earned a reputation of being difficult). My bolt was on the left side of the tube and wasn't bad at all. It's easy to get a rag in there to keep it from falling in. The first time I took it off it fell into the pan, but it was easily fished out with a pen magnet. Your pan has baffles so it won't roll back very far so there's no need for the car to be level. Each time after that I put a rag between the block and pan and that prevented it from falling.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vettenuts

Nov 24, 2004 | 11:13 PM

Torched Z

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Quote:

Originally Posted by 88sk

its not a problem to remove the bolt the real pain is the o-ring ,if not put in correctly youll have no or low oil press. then have to redo the whole job over because of a little o-ring.

I couldn't agree more. After putting my car back together the first time after my cam install I fired it up and saw 15 psi on the oil pressure gauge....very dissapointing as I had to completely start over again.

A few tips on the oil pump install:

Use silicone grease to lube up the o-ring so it doesn't "roll" when you tighten the bolt. Also, take your oil pump apart and remove the two gears (very easy). Bolt the back part of your pump onto the pickup tube. This allows you to look at the o-ring to see if it's pinched. If it looks okay, install the gears and the oil pump cover then bolt it to the block. This is an idiot proof way to make sure that o-ring doesn't pinch. I've talked to jmX about this and he's going to add it into the how-to instructions.

Nov 25, 2004 | 04:20 AM

smith123

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Nov 25, 2004 | 08:06 AM

vettenuts

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From: At the beach in little Rhody

Great, thanks for the replies. The service manual tell you not to install the bolt until the o-ring and tube are fully seated. If I do the cam, I may install the blueprinted oil pump as well as I definitely want a new chain.

Nov 25, 2004 | 10:19 AM

Patches

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From: Lake Elsinore, CA

To keep the bolt from falling into the pan, loosen it a bit first, then tie a piece of baling wire or equivalent around the base of the head around the threads. If you drop it on extraction, you can just retrieve it using the wire that's still tied to it.