Re: priming oil pump prior to starting

Posted by Owen_Dyneto On 2012/8/8 10:58:36

The oil pump is camshaft-driven, not distributor-driven so you have to turn the engine over to prime. There are several ways, but the simplist is to just very lightly pack the oil pump with a bit of thin grease or gear oil to facilitate suction from the intake screen, and with the spark plugs out crank the engine over on the starter for a couple of turns, or sufficient for oil pressure to register on the gauge or for the "idiot light" to go out. You can do this with the distributor installed, or out. If out, then of course you're going to have to reestablish the relationship of one to the other.