i am at my wits end. 3 months ago i drove my 570 gas into the shop and pulled it down to restore it. had good oil pressure when i drove it in. as it needed a rear main seal i pulled the engine out and repainted everything.put all new seals in the engine. pulled all the accessories off the engine to paint it up..got the tractor all back together. its very nearly finished. runs like a top but zero oil pressure now.replaced the guage thinking it was defective.no pressue in the new guage either.pulled the oil line and blew air through it.pulled the fitting off the side of the block.the manual says this is where you adjust the oil pressure by adding or subtracting washers but this seems to be just a fitting that the oil line attaches to..took it out and cleaned it..there is no spring in it so its just a fitting..next with it out of the engine i quick started it thinking oil should come out of the block where i took the fitting out of. nothing.. now i am worried. cant imagine i did anything wrong when i had the pan off..i am pretty carefull and whenever i set it down with or without a pan i always set it nicely in an engine crate.. had one main cap off and the bearings looked real nice..now i am second guessing myself as to wether i put the bearing in backwards but i shouldnt because i am carefull and know better and always recheck my work.yes. i retorqued the cap..even if i did something wrong and i am sure if i pull the pan i will find that i didnt it should still shoot oil out of the side of the block with the oil fitting out correct??got nothing. helllpppp.
Yes, oil should pump out of the hole the pressure gauge fitting threads into.
My first suggestion is to stop running the engine at all until you get this figured out. If you damage that crankshaft the repairs could cost you more than you paid for the tractor.
After that, check the following:
Is there oil in the engine? Not trying to be funny or insulting- I've seen this happen.
Does the oil pump rotate? Be sure it's mounted correctly and rotates when you turn the engine over. Make sure you don't have a broken shaft or other internal damage.
Is the pickup screen clean, and attached to the pump?
Was a plug left out of either end of the block? That would create an internal oil leak so severe you wouldn't build pressure.
As you have mentioned, is a bearing in backwards? I'm not intimately familiar with the oiling passages in this engine, but even if that wouldn't affect flow to the rest of the engine, you'll still burn up that journal.
ya. i checked all of that.and i appreciate your response. there are no smart ass responses as i realize we can all make stupid mistakes but no.. all the stupid possibilities have been checked.. have the pump on the bench now in a bucket of oil..sometimes it will prime when i give it a spin by hand and sometimes it wont..got it to prime. bolted it back in the block and hung a bucket of oil under the pump screen. pulled the coil wire so it wouldnt start while cranking and hit the starter. it wont prime again..shaft is turning fine cause i have the distributor out and can see the cam turning the pump but zero prime.really dont want to buy a new pump as the guys up here in alberta are quoting me 1300.00. no point in pulling the pump apart to check for tolerances cause if it was wore it would still have some oil pressure and wouldnt be at zero..gonna pull the pump apart to clean it and look it over as i dont have the correct tools to check for tolerances but a tolerance issue doesnt really make sense anyhow
oh ya.. the screen isnt plugged and looks like new..pulled the filter off the pump and stuck the pump back in a bucket.. same thing sometimes it will prime.. sometimes it wont
If you think it's an issue with pump prime, first check to see whether there's a leak on the inlet side that's sucking air. I also suggest disassembling the pump to inspect its condition. You can measure most clearances with conventional tools and Plastigage.
One way to ensure good prime is to pack the pump with Lubriplate 105 engine assembly (NOT general purpose!) grease. I always do this to make sure the engine builds pressure quickly.
the lubriplate is a good idea.. i know i have hurt the bearings as i had this thing idling for 15 minutes before i came to the conclusion that it wasnt a gauge problem.STUPID STUPID.i was wondering how i could prime the pump before i put it back in.. yup gonna pull the pump apart next.. any idea where i can get bearings?.might put rod and main bearings in it anyhow.i think i can do it in the tractor and not have to pull it.. the crank looks real good.according to the tag on the block both rods and mains are .010 tho before ordering em i would pull one of each and see if there is a .010 stamp on the bearing
The .010 on the tag is the valve lash. The .010 is stamped so is permanent but the words "tappet clearance" is painted on so is often missing. All Hercules engines have this. It has nothing to do with the bearing size.
Some oil pumps have an internal bypass or pressure relief. If it has one, could be you left it out? Those adjustable pressure reliefs on the oil systems are for limiting the max pressure so you don't blow out the filter. They do not restore pressure to a worn engine. Not really familiar with Hercs, just trying to help.
