Tractor has 3 psi Oil pressure with SAE 30 Motor Oil

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Jun 25, 2014
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Is there any additives or oil weight I need to change?

It's a 601 Ford Workmaster. 3 psi is kinda low, and we need to get the pressure up. probably worn crank or camshaft bearings, but Dad just parked it worried about throwing a rod....
 
I guess the best bet would be to drop the oil pan and check if any screens are clogged and inspect the condition of the oil pickup and make sure that it's not corroded through or you don't have a bad seal somewhere.
 
Throw a mechanical oil pressure test gauge on there to verify accuracy. If accurate, then there's no oil that will give normal oil pressure and you'll need to dig into it. What kind of pressure does it have cold?
 
Sounds like a good excuse to pour in a quart of Kreen and clean it out !
 
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It's possible that Vern_in_IL has a stuck pressure relief valve in the oil pump (unlikely), but other than that, adding solvents to the oil is only going to reduce his oil pressure.
 
That's why you drain out the old and replace with a thicker oil when you use Kreen

That's oil change 101
 
Add me to the list of check the oil pressure with a good mechanical oil pressure gauge first. I'd do that before dropping the oil pan or messing with "thicker" oil or additives.
 
Originally Posted by demarpaint
Add me to the list of check the oil pressure with a good mechanical oil pressure gauge first. I'd do that before dropping the oil pan or messing with "thicker" oil or additives.



Good point
Worth a chance before doing anything else

OP is the oil pressure gauge original ?
 
Pump the foot feed!!!!!
laugh.gif
 
The bottom plate on the Farmall C oil pump warped allowing oil from the pump to flow back into the pan. tested quage against calibrator at work, was dead on so pulled pan. Also plastiguaged rods and mains which were fine. Also checked the rocker arms for lack of lube due to the lack of pressure but were find. Ground the plate to flat on a belt sander.
 
Some of those older Ford tractors could develop cracks in the pickup tube where they were soldered together. That could definitely cause low oil pressure.
Could also be a sludge covered pickup screen, or clogged up oil pressure gauge or tubing.

Then you get into the clearances of it, worn crank or cam bearings or a worn oil pump.

Id probably check the pressure with a test gauge before I started tearing into things.
 
Originally Posted by kstanf150
Sounds like a good excuse to pour in a quart of Kreen and clean it out !

Last thing you want to do with an old tractor.
 
Those mechanical oil gauges and plumbing get sludged up. Buy a new gauge but before installing it, start the engine briefly to flush out the crud from the oil line feeding it.
My 9N is worn out. I now use 20w-50 oil . Allows my 9N to crank fast enough with its 6 volt system and helps a lot with the warm oil pressure. I would believe with 3 psi, your engine would be knocking.
Do not use a chemical to flush. It won't help your pressure. You will loosen all kinds of junk and risk plugging an oil feed to a bearing. Frequent oil changes will gently clean things up. It may then be time to pull the pan and take a look inside and check the bearings and pump.
 
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