cfair

I’m 59, so I was pretty young when my ‘66’s were new. Both my 455’s were rebuilt 10-12 years ago. They were fairly leak free then, but both seep oil a bit now. It’s nothing terrible, but messier than I’d like. I believe the leak sources are basically rear main seal, front main seal and maybe points along the oil pan.

What was the practice in the 60’s and 70’s for resealing these engines? I’m just wondering if there’s something short of pulling the block and going through all the seals to stop minor leaks. I believe the oil pan can be resealed without pulling the engine, but that’s above my (non-existent) pay grade.

When I start thinking about pulling the engine, my mind drifts to all kinds of might-as-wells, like getting carbon off pistons and hot tanking heads and so on but then you’re halfway to a rebuild. Which means the might-as-well list gets real long…

Your thoughts and views are most welcome.
Chris

bccan

It’s your mindset! Oil leaks are just a passive rustproofing system, even if your mufflers don’t really need it.

Rear Main - Not much you can do without making a project of it. I might know someone that has resorted to the “Tampon Method” of leak management. Half a “Pig Pad,” (oil absorbent pad), folded a few times, shoved between the flywheel cover and oil pan, held in place with a fastener or two (paper clips, mech or mig wire, bread ties, zip ties, etc), limited only by your imagination and ingenuity, does a good job and change it annually or as required.

Front Seal - Crank Seal, again not much you can do without toil. Tampon Method deployment between pan and engine crossmember can help keep the floor, starter and exhaust reasonably clean.

Note - Tampon method, properly executed, is invisible to most any naked eye unless someone is REALLY nosey and climbs under looking for indecency, even then…

Front Pan Seal - I used this successfully. Clean it, mask it as if painting and use this as directed. That leak stopped for me.

ourkid2000

Excellent reply! Thanks so much for this advice!

cfair

Many thanks for the product info & advice. Great to hear about something new to try!

But yeah, to really solve the weeping/seeping/dripping, I’ll eventually have to pull the drivetrain and reseal properly.

Chris