Hi all. I pulled the distributor from a 403, and the oil pump hex shaft was stuck in the bottom of the distributor and pulled out with the distributor. I was able to remove the pump shaft from the bottom of the distributor easily enough. Any problem just dropping the hex shaft back into the pump from the top and run it like that? Thanks!

 

This is a common problem and yes, you can simply drop it back in from the top. Just be sure it really does go back into place in the oil pump. There is a small press-on metal retainer that is supposed to prevent the shaft from coming up like that, but what usually happens is that the shaft sticks in the distributor and the retainer gets pulled off as the shaft and distributor are pulled out. The retainer falls into the pan, where it will stay until the pan comes off. The real purpose of the retainer is only to hold the shaft in place when the engine is upside down on a stand and the distributor is not installed. Once the distributor is in place, the shaft is properly retained.

 

That's great news! Yes, I got the shaft seated back into the pump with no problem and spun the pump with a 5/16 deep well socket and extension and got good oil pressure on my mechanical oil pressure gauge. That's why I was pulling the distributor...to run some new oil thru this old engine that hadn't been run in a while, before getting it running. So, I'm glad I don't have to do anything special for the shaft, and not have to worry about the retainer. Thanks a lot for your quick reply! Steve