Did a compression test on my stroked Olds 215, not good. #4 cylinder at 50 lbs.

[Gswest236]

Here's the welded up oil passage. They drilled it out so it should be good.

[Gswest236]

That's what I expected. I'll grab it with a visegrip and hope it pops out. Funny, the bottom has 2 dowels and it's the side that came out. The top doesn't even have the dowels and its in there tight???

[mgb260]

Scott, take a wood dowel and tap on one end and it should slide right out.

[Gswest236]

Got it! Thanks! I used your tip, its out! Thanks!

[Gswest236]

Oil pump vane shaft shows damage (we have a new one) but it did not want to come out of the shaft. Once out I see a gouge in the shaft. I can clean it up with a drill bit I guess. This might be one of those things where a veteran would have known you have to tighten up the slotted end before pulling it out.
Every step is a huge learning curve.

[BlownMGB-V8]

Usually that problem is the result of deposits built up on the shaft itself. Sometimes you have to wire brush the shaft to clean it up before removing it. I have to admit that so far I have never seen the forked end of the shaft spread out so that it makes the shaft hard to remove. That would lead one to inspect the rest of the pump more carefully as there shouldn't ever be enough resistance to do that. Look for foreign object damage. Maybe the pickup screen has a hole. Things like that. You will be using the V6 pickup, right? TA has a real nice embedded o-ring gasket for that.

Jim

[Gswest236]

The metal shown on the vane forked end is from the inside area where the shaft rides. I had to work it back and forth to pull it out. The forked end is distorted and by forcing it out it damaged the inside area. Question is can I clean it up and use it or do i need a new timing cover? I did get the larger pick up tube. I have to check which one it is.

[BlownMGB-V8]

Your pictures don't really show the damage to the shaft bearing surface and of course new pump gears take care of the damage to the shaft itself. As for the scoring in the shaft bearing bore it would only possibly be a concern if it is very deep. Normally you will set your pump gear's end clearance as tight as you can possibly get it with the gears dragging in the housing just very slightly when assembled dry. Another .0005" on the shims should let the gears turn freely. This slight drag will wear in as soon as the engine is run and the housing itself expands more than the gears on warm-up making more clearance. TA sells a shim pack that will let you do a great job here and it is crucial to get this right. It's one of the major keys to good oil pressure. Incidentally, the oil pump cover is a source of many leaks so sealing it well is a prime concern. I like to use a thin sealant of some type on the shims at final assembly for this reason. One or more of the cover bolts will almost always extend into the filter cavity, meaning you must seal the bolt itself. Gasket Maker works on clean threads (both parts) and Phil found some copper washers from McMaster Carr that work under the bolt heads at my suggestion. He got good results. I have yet to order the copper washers but that's on the list.

So with that done correctly, the space for oil to get to the shaft bushing is less than .001" and will limit how much oil can flow past to a very reasonable amount. A groove or two in the bore won't cause any loss of oil pressure and so as long as the shaft is a good fit in the bore it wouldn't be a cause for concern.

However, the existence of that damage does give cause to closely inspect the pump assembly itself as I mentioned. Under normal use a burr in that slot that will groove the bore should not happen and if it does then something caused it. It's a real good idea to understand what that something was before reassembly to prevent a recurrence or other and possibly worse damage. Possibly it could come from mating parts that were not properly deburred to begin with, leaving a sharp enough edge to generate a slight burr later. That's a best case scenario. I'd be looking at the surfaces of the old gear teeth to find any signs of damage such as an embedded object or an indentation caused by the same.

Jim

[Gswest236]

The forked end of the vane is damaged and what caused that is a question but the shaft moved freely until the forked end entered the opening. If you look in the shaft the gouges are very noticeable. I'm thinking that replacing the cover might be worth the money? The vane itself has damage inside the fork area as if it had enough resistance to get forced out of round.

[mgb260]

Scott, We used this universal cover. Also used the gears and front seal that came with it. Had to do a little Dremel work on the top where the boss sticking up interfered with the manifold clamp. Also drilled out dowel holes from 1/4" to 5/16" Used a newer timing pointer too.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/276574734884?_skw=buick+300+v8+timing+cover&itmmeta=01KCHYGMZG9A9Q0D9DS1VNJJ8W&hash=item4065238a24:g:LssAAOSwBIVmqkip&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAAA4FkggFvd1GGDu0w3yXCmi1cSlLqKEiv0QOejsMI9A8DTVrL8PKy%2BFy8I%2FwqGAyb6Y6Oux3DA7WecOoIV%2F785UqOcSSxlHeaH%2B1CzO4qb2fsi7AWaSx1Jb17yUukf8uSl%2FBMwO2ftZH3D%2FWa4wFfOh9ju9erUuLggtpQC0nOGe7ElRBnSR9TBtUUCNdEqbr4OnKze7Qv5psqvvi6k1Qs51BFalkKFerQZ%2B94AU4xTPH3mP3wzN7K2m8YYB6Yb43XtFQ%2BMYmLHAFF3bizHiSYBcBYkz082n4z%2FitV7FucjXYVV%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR_bPwr7kZg

https://www.ebay.com/itm/375522463050?fits=Make%3ABuick&_skw=buick+300+v8+timing+indicator&epid=81242389&itmmeta=01KCHZ2CNJ4A42GW9JQZP59WAW&hash=item576ee20d4a:g:pmMAAOSwEJhoTjp~&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAAA4FkggFvd1GGDu0w3yXCmi1fHea09dcGg0%2FL7hM59EObP5STMrs4%2FMZM3xtXH%2BwJwp2Jc5je5O88xjBUmKSKgraL0ZATPYQuuu%2FsoypiCxtjiYn33ndNk1B6OtIxVjHqaydCR%2FwEbFgvfovYJClVQLGDKST5A02f80mL4%2FCyhbpszoSdxe3PY%2BgrlBZSoxYQSSk7K%2BnBZJXaAxaWtvPtAB04xFh1HpPZNIDfv8ootPsY5PVXdSWQOzQ%2F0c8%2Fu5oGElnj46g%2Fi4%2BPY%2Bwfd8YMzWQhlfV13vt1xt%2BHmsjei5RHq%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR_bKib_kZg

[Gswest236]

Thanks, I just ordered the Silver Seal V6 timing cover and pump kit (Before I saw this post). Directed there by a post from the moderator. The timing mark and distributer hold down is different so I need to take care of that also. And thanks for the EBay link, I ordered the timing mark piece. Next I'm ordering the TA shim pack! Does the V6 timing cover have larger oil galleys? I hope so.
Next issue is finishing the oil mods. The main oil journal in the block is done after a mishap $$$, I thought I down drilled from the oil pick up flange, but looking at it today it looks less than 1/2". I watched several videos but still need more prep. Once bitten twice shy!! But once the new timing cover and pump show up and the shims; we'll get after it.

[mgb260]

Scott, the timing cover should have a 1/2" hole. The booster plate needs a gasket trim on one side and chamfered on the other side. We chamfered with a 9/16" and 5/8" bit where the oil pickup bolts up.