WaterPump Lubrication Question

[sdtaylo]

I have a 59AB from a 46 pickup that had one waterpump making noise. I took both off and cleaned out the oiler holes. I have oil running out of one and not the other. I tried putting some wire up there and running air through it. Any ideas on what to try next?

[Old Henry]

Not necessarily the only option but you can replace the pumps with newer ones that have sealed and permanently lubricated ball bearings that don't use engine oil for lubrication. They have other advantages too. On sale now at Bob Drake here: http://www.bobdrake.com/ItemForm.asp...4-079b681a8c45 Ordered mine Thursday will be here tomorrow.

[JWL]

How are you filling the oil cavity to determine whether or not flow is occurring?

[sdtaylo]

I am staring the engine with the pumps off. Oil comes out of the passenger side hole but not the drivers side.

[G.M.]

Originally Posted by sdtaylo

I have a 59AB from a 46 pickup that had one waterpump making noise. I took both off and cleaned out the oiler holes. I have oil running out of one and not the other. I tried putting some wire up there and running air through it. Any ideas on what to try next?

The oil does not run through the bushings on the early bushing pumps. The oil saturates pours of the bushing and puts a thin film of oil between the shaft and bushing. If you want to test the flow remove the bushings. The 32 to 36 pumps should not have grease forced into them or it can crack the housing on these, the grease melts into a thick oil, do not use high temperature grease or it will not melt. When the bushings are pressed in the pump the ID reduces in size and must be precision reamed with a dead sharp reamer. A dull reamer will smear the bronze closing the pours. A .500 shaft needs to be reamed to .501 to .5015 any more clearance and it will leak oil. I'm talking about precision ground shafts that measure EXACTLY .500 not something close to a 1/2". A pump that turns hard because of tight bushings don't usually free up, the hard shaft wears and gets rough with grooves cut in it. Too loose and oil seeps out behind the pulley. A small drop on the on the pump mounting leg is normal but oil slinging on the fender well is excessive. Using thin oil will also leak. A little thicker oil in these engines seems to work better reducing leaks and increasing oil pressure. When a dry shaft is inserted into properly reamed bushings you can feel a little side to side movement. Put a thin film of oil on the shaft and it feels like a new bearing. The shaft runs on this thin oil film and NEVER touches the bushing this is why you don't tighten the fan belt like a banjo string as it will squeeze the oil from between the shaft and bushing. To tight also damages the generator bearing. On a 32 to 36 pump if the housing is cracked (these can be welded) the casting springs apart. The reamer will go through and ream the bushings aligning the crack but when the reamer is removed the casting springs back open. When the shaft is installed you get a binding feel on the shaft and bushings need to be removed and housing welded. For myself I would not travel more than 100 miles from home with 32 to 48 pumps with bearings, AAA will only tow me 100 miles. When a bearing pump go's it usually locks the shaft and the fan belt smokes. Very close to home you could remove the belt and maybe make it home before it gets to hot. In most cases it's change the pump now or the tow truck. The 49 to 53 pumps were redesigned with a longer snout to put more distance between the pump seal and the face of the bearing and bearing seal. Attached picture shows how the later longer shaft allows room for the water to get slung off before reaching the face of the bearing. You can see the extreme erosion eating almost 1/2 way through the shaft at the pump seal and gets less as it nears the bearing. This original 49 bearing still turns free and feels smooth. The water pump seal hydroplanes on a thin film of water and the friction generates super heated steam which mostly evaporates so you don't see leaks. Water pump lubricants only function is to lub the seal and seat. On the 39 bearing pump you can see the erosion starts at the water pump seal and with not much space go's directly to the face of the bearing. You can also see the heat effect on the pump seal distorting it. It only a drop or two of water and the bearing sitting for a period of time to start to ruin the bearing. The 39 bearing is locked tight and don't appear to have been in use any where near the time the 49 type was. I would strongly suggest carrying a spare set of pumps if using these bearing modified repros. You want to blow air back into the engine from the oil holes on the face of the block on 37 to 48 engines to make sure they are open. You can put a small hose down the oil filler to hear air in the pan. I have a 39 CS that the passenger side block oil hole was never drilled. I drove it for at least 15 years even on a couple of long AACA week long ones. Never knew it wasn't drilled until installing a set Skips pumps and blew air in and didn't hear it in the pan. You can see the cast tick mark for starting the drill but the drill must have broke on the block before mine and never got drilled. I looked at another block, got the size and angle of the hole and drilled it, hit water so I plugged the hole with a brass rod. I drilled the drivers pump and put an oil tube with a Gitts cap on that pump similar to the early 49 and Lincoln pumps. It don't take much oil if the original pump lasted all those years with only the small amount of oil from when the pump was manufactured. G.M.

[JWL]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Starting the engine for a short time probably will not result in oil getting into the feeder channel. The pump oiling holes are not connected to the pressure oil system. They are simply "drain" holes that allow oil which is cast off the gears to seep through the opening. One side gets more oil than the other so the holes are of a different size.

Pumps with roller bearings have been used for many years and proven satisfactory. However, the bushing style pump is an acceptable design.