Engine oil in distributor

[Scooter]

So I installed a HEI dizzy and ignition last year and decided to upgrade the innards with a 50k Petronix Flamethrower 3 coil and matching HEI module with rev limiter which arrived from Summit today. Opened it up this afternoon to find quote a bit of oil sitting in it, see photos below. Read around and some suggest this might be from too much crankcase pressure. I have a K&N filter on the drivers side valve cover and a PCV valve on the passenger side valve cover plumbed conventionally to the carb. Checked function of both sides.. the filter is fine and the PCV is not stuck or clogged. Aside from modding the dizzy itself some say just running a filter on both valve covers would keep the crank case pressure from building. I like the idea of burning the vapor that collects with a proper PCV system. But this oil in the dizzy is not acceptable. Kinda stumped, any suggestions?

[734406PK]

 That's a lot of oil, I can see your concern. Worn distributor shaft bushings can also cause oil to accumulate in the distributor as well as high crankcase pressure. Check the side to side movement of the distributor shaft (engine shut down of course) and see what you have.

[Mrbill426]

Yeow that is a lot.  I am thinking crank case pressure.

[Scooter]

Took the whole setup out and cleaned it with ZEP505 and then blew it out with compressed air before I installed the HEI unit. Shaft seemed fine... no excessive play etc.

[Mrbill426]

Figure out the cause for all the oil?

Took the whole setup out and cleaned it with ZEP505 and then blew it out with compressed air before I installed the HEI unit. Shaft seemed fine... no excessive play etc.

[Scooter]

^^^ Have not located the root cause yet. Really no other way oil can get up there I can think of other than crankcase pressure. I'm going to try venting both sides at the valve cover and see what happens.

[Topcat]

So before this new Distributor, everything was fine?

[Brads70]

If you remove the shaft , there should be a felt washer that goes around the shaft and fits in a pocket. It keeps the oil out.  I'm thinking its missing?  At least HEI's on Chevys have the felt washer..... Any jobber should be able to get it. 

in the drawing seal k251d ?

[Scooter]

Topcat: Don't recall oil up top being an issue with the old factory style dizzy. I was looking for it earlier in the garage to check... let you know when I find it. But if it was soggy when I took it out I'm sure I would have remembered.

Brads70: Tore the dizzy down & removed the shaft, there is no felt washer. Is it one of the bottom 2 washers on the illustration you posted?

Double vented valve covers did not fix. Drove about 70 miles and removed cap.. oil. Other site suggested filling 4 of the 5 slots at the base of the dizzy with RTV. Photos below. So I pulled it ans sealed 4 up with right stuff.. will let you know if it works if it does not rain tomorrow.

Before


After

[Brads70]

Brads70: Tore the dizzy down & removed the shaft, there is no felt washer. Is it one of the bottom 2 washers on the illustration you posted?



no its under the pickup coil at the top end. The thing with the triangle looking bits on it.
also...Looks like you need to deburr a little so those chips don't end up somewhere bad?

[Scooter]

^^^ Roger that. Funny thing.. I did not see that area needing the deburr with the naked eye.. camera picked that up pretty easy.

[Scooter]

Well it looks like filling those slots did the trick... drove it a lot yesterday and no new accumulation. I'll check it again in a few weeks and it there is a bit in there I'll fill that last slot.

[Brads70]

I think those slots are supposed to be there to get oil to the shaft/bushing.  Did you check to see if the felt washer was installed under the pickup coil?  On stock GM there is a felt washer and sometimes a clear plastic "cup washer" that goes over the felt washer to keep the oil from going past the shaft.

[Scooter]

I think those slots are supposed to be there to get oil to the shaft/bushing.  Did you check to see if the felt washer was installed under the pickup coil?  On stock GM there is a felt washer and sometimes a clear plastic "cup washer" that goes over the felt washer to keep the oil from going past the shaft.

I was looking at several diagrams on the Chevy HEI. Next time I take it out and remove the shaft I'll remove the pick-up and see if there is a seal or felt washer under it.