Got my 455 ready to drop in - filled with oil and filter and did the priming. Got good pressure but also quite noisy. A steady grrrrrr. Something tells me my pickup might be touching the pan? Anybody ever have this noise? Now is the time to fix it if indeed it is touching. All stock parts here

 

This is why I always pre-oil them on the engine stand. Did you build the engine ? Also Its very subjective as to what is "noisy" Here is a link to a couple of videos I did when I built a 425 a couple of years ago: Maybe compare your sound to this one. This was a stock Melling pump.

 

I did the build - first Olds but done maybe 30 Chevys and Fords. I am used to the light oil pump sound of a wet clickity click but not a GRRRR. I did a 10 sec.video but it won't post here? And yes the drill sound kinda drowns it out on a video. The sound is also very very different at different speeds - about 120 rpm it is LOUD and low pitch

 

Melling/Olds pumps suck. I’ve been back and forth with them for years regarding their poorly machined gears in these.
I take em apart, have the gears coated, check clearances, and put em back together.

 

I can feel the vibrations on the bottom of the pan. Is there a chance my drain bolt is touching the pickup? Or are they not close to the same location?

 

Paul,
Drain the oil out and try it without the drain plug ? Or look in through the drain hole and see if the screen is right there ? I dont think you can post a video here directly. You need to put it on You Tube and then post a link like I did.

 

Did you measure the clearance between the pick up and the pan but when you assembled it?

 

I did not - it was a.bolt on pickup so I took for granted it was the correct height. Looks like I'll find out tonight

 

As Mark said, they are noisy. I believe Mark even had a couple fail. He sold me his best spare pump when was really having issues with them. It is notchy feeling and a bit noisy but has borderline too high cold oil pressure with high volume pump and purple spring using 10W30 VR1.

 

Yes, "notchy" is a good description of the feel and sound

 

Stock pump or HV ?

 

Hv

 

Interesting. I have a standard M22F and a M22FHV pump here and I just put a little oil in both of them and turning them by hand they are about as smooth as any pump I have felt.

 

Hmmm, so you don’t check that even on all the Chevies and Fords you’ve done?
That’s an amateur mistake, sorry.

 

Well in my defense on Chevrolets you have to press in the pickup and adjust for height. This one is a bolt on (hv) and is not adjustable, so I assumed some engineer had it all figured out

 

I recall once I had the lock washers on the oil pump drive rubbing on the main cap. I don't really remember the specifics though.
Maybe the washers are not positioned correctly?

Another possibility is maybe your side loading the shaft while priming and it's rubbing against the block.

 

Never assume. Not a good way to go about this.
Chances are you just have a notchy pump.

 

Drained the pan and confirmed the drain plug bolt is not touching the pickup. I'll pop the pan off tomorrow. Thanks for the tips

 

Might be 2 problems - yes I have a noisy pump, like REALLY loud. Took it apart and I don't see anything wrong, no scars or chunks. Id say poor finish machining. AND the pickup is touching the pan. Tomorrow I'll run grab another pump and give it a try.

 

FYI - another option - Precision Oil Pumps.

 

I don’t recommend those anymore. They round out the gears which results in less pressure and flow.
i take the gears and have then coated, big improvement.

 

Trying another pump is no guarantee it’ll be any better, trust me.
Had you checked all this before you would’ve saved yourself this trouble right? Hopefully this was a learning experience for you.
Take the pump apart and have the gears coated by Swain, Calico or similar. That should fix that issue.

 

how does coating fix poorly machined gears?

 

Yes I agree. I have polished all gear edges before on a Chevy and it made all the noise go away.
Update I have the new pump in, pickup height set and checked, pan back on. Ill let the sealants cure a day. I can already tell this pump is much more quiet

 

They’ll wear in and the coating will fill most if not all of the valleys of the chatter marks. I’ve done it dozens of times, it helps.

 

so coating helps them wear…. gotcha

 

Wrong, but stick with that if you like.

 

it was you who said the coating wears them in.

coatings do not fix poor machining

 

Having the pump pickup resting on the pan probably telegraphed the noise and make it seem a lot worse. I have also run into the opposite situation, where the supposedly correct bolt-on pickup was not close enough to the bottom of the pan.

 

Correct, it’s a band aid at best.
But ALL my pumps with coated gears actually increase in pressure after they’ve been run for a while. To me that tells me the gears are wearing in and there are less voids between the peaks and valleys.
Pressure stays constant from there, that’s all I need to see.

 

Engine is priming very well with the new pump. Sooo much smoother and quieter. All good to drop the motor in now

 

Mark
Are you having the oil pump gears rem finished / micro polished prior to coating?

 

No, just coated.

 

My original oil pump driveshaft didn't have that clip (circled in yellow). The new one I bought does.
#1 - Do I leave it on or take it off (have they ever fallen off) ?
#2 - If leaving it on, does it go on top (toward the distributor), or the bottom (oil pump end)?
#3 - What's its function? (since it wasn't original, on this car).

 

Shaft installs up from the bottom with the clip near the bottom. (It won't go the other way). Keeps you from pulling the shaft out with the distributor

 

This is is a pic of my engine when oilpump and distributor still was mounted.

 

Thank you.

Well that's not going to work, I was a bit slow on this question. The oil-pump and pan is all buttoned up.
I suppose I will either cut that retainer off the new shaft or I could use the old one. My first choice is to remove that retainer. #!&%*$

 

The clip isnt needed. Its only purpose was to prevent the driveshaft from falling out of the engine while it was moving down the assembly line. Kinda like the clips they put over the wheel studs