How do i know if my oil pump is locked up?

[jakelandry]

I just got done doing a bse and timing job last night and i went out to crank my car up this morning and test everything and it ran for about 45 seconds at 100 psi oil pressure. I reved it a little bit to see if my gauge was working and the needle wouldnt move so i turned the car off and checked everything for oil leaks and whatnot. No leaks, timing belt was still tensioned, everything seemed ok. So i went back in the car and cranked it again and after about 30 seconds the needle started to move down so i assumed it was getting warm and everything was going to be fine. It got down to about 50 and i gave it a little gas to see if the needle would move and it did, then 5 seconds later the idle dropped way low and it just died.

I assumed that it was just a fuel issue or something and cranked it again. The oil pressure gauge went up to 50 and stayed there for about 3 seconds then dropped to 25 then it died again and something made a knock noise. So i pulled my timing cover off and timing still lines up so i diddnt throw timing.

I guess the oil pump froze up. I know everyone is about to give me hell for this but i used a solid stubby shaft on the BSE. I did so because my balance shaft stub was worn and there was a LOT more slack between the housing and shaft with it in there. Like 10 thousandths. With the solid shaft in It had 6 thousandths which is what the recomended clearance is on the instructions included from parts dinosaur. I figured since your rod bearings require around .003, then .006 is plenty of clearance for oil.

Is there a way for me to tell if the oil pump locked up? Thanks in advance guys, as of now it looks like i may no be going to school this quarter.

 

[viperlp01]

Turn your engine over by hand. If it doesn't turn then your locked up.

 

[jakelandry]

Well it turns over by hand.

EDIT: Heres the video, ignore the dumbasses talking.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5GQbrhYP7o&feature=youtu.be

 

[viperlp01]

If the oil pump is seized the engine will not turn over(unless it stripped the teeth on the timing belt). Also if there is a lot of friction going on in the oil pump the oil pump gear will get extremely hot. The oil temp will also be very hot.

 

[jakelandry]

Im stumped. All the timing marks line up, and it turns over, i unplugged the plug wires and oil comes through the head. Could it sieze up and once it cools off unseize? It was hard to turn over but it will. The belt is still tight..

Ive been reading threads on counting the timing teeth and it makes no sense to me. When i did the timing i just set the crank in line and turned the cams till their inside marks lined up and the dowell pins were up but after reading ive found that theres a way to count the teeth to verify timing, however it makes no sense to me. Can anyone try to better elaborate on this procedure as none of the threads make any sense to me? Thanks everyone.

 

[vingasoline]

So you're front case is worn out and you put a solid stub shaft in to make up for it? The groove in the stub provides more than 6 thousandths of clearance, and is absolutely necessary.

 

[jakelandry]

So you're front case is worn out and you put a solid stub shaft in to make up for it? The groove in the stub provides more than 6 thousandths of clearance, and is absolutely necessary.

The groove does but i see more sense in putting something in with .006 clearence than 10 thousandths and considering that shaft has 3 oiling points over the width of a 1 inch shaft i see absolutely no reason why 6 thousandths is not plenty of clearence for oil molecules to pass through coming from 3 directions. I see the benefit of using a grooved shaft on a new front case where there is .002 clearence, however i saw it more sensible to put a solid shaft in with the proper clearence than a grooved shaft with more slack.

Final edit: Timing is correct.

Bumping out of desperation. This is my dd and I have no way to and from school and work till I discover the problem.

 

[jakelandry]

Well i retract my previous statement of .006 being plenty enough clearence for oil to pass through. Went out and tried to crank it again yesterday and it finally locked up. It literally broke the oil pump timing gear in half. Apparentlly the first time it acted up (in video) it was just beginning to freeze up. Thanks for the info.

 

[jakelandry]

Ok instead of starting a new thread I figured I would try here... When my oil pump locked up my car died immediately. So I'm assuming that the timing belt was what caused the crank to stop spinning. I checked the timing belt thoroughly and found no damage whatsoever. I was wondering if I need a new belt? Even though the one I put on was brand new and only ran for 30 seconds when the motor locked up it took some serious stress I assume and could have possibly stretched... What's everyone elses opinions? Thanks.

 

[viperlp01]

If the car was idling and the car died I would say you are ok. I would set time with that belt and if you have to move the tensioner pulley more than normal to get the belt tight I would replace it but if everything acts normal then I would keep it.

 

[bryanwheat]

I would replace the belt, there was a ton of tension on it when the engine was running and the pump caused it to die.

 

[viperlp01]

There is also a ton of tension when making 800 hp. Do you replace the belt every run? I'm not saying its not bad but if there is no visual damage it should be fine.

 

[jakelandry]

There is also a ton of tension when making 800 hp. Do you replace the belt every run? I'm not saying its not bad but if there is no visual damage it should be fine.

Man's got a point... Really though if it went through that much stress I would think the gear would jump a tooth or 2, but I guess tension would also contribute to that.