JohnEP

Exactly: Seems it'll take a while to get fully heated ?30 min by just idling there (unable to drive it). With clean oil, I'll pay attention to: dash temp, opening of the mechanical thermostat, engine speed, dash oil pressure, and cup filling (ability to flick oil onto the valve springs).

Even with my test above, there was definite flow through the pushrods at warm idle. However, it was not enough to keep the cups filled, or sprinkle the valve springs. At idle, at 210 deg, with good oil: should the cups stay filled, and also flick a bit of oil onto valve springs, or is 1500 RPM needed for this visual result?

CCKen

At idle you won't see much flow. At higher RPM you should see adequate flow to fill the cups.

bigbadon

Possibly that thin water/oil emulsion was sitting on the bottom of the pan and thickened up after it got circulated. Lucus is hard to flow through that .090 hole in the pushrod,hence fulcrum wear.

JohnEP

The "cup-filling test" results: (Round 2, with fresh oil): When the engine is cold, and I first start it, it takes about 2 min for the oil to start coming up to the rockers. Oil comes up through some pushrods sooner than others. Then, there is a period where I can get the cups to fill, and gently lap oil onto the springs (at just above idle). Some do better than others, but they do all fill pretty well, just like the result I got the first time. OLD pic, from Round 1 (with the bad oil), at cold idle:

(I got this same result with the fresh good oil, but I did not photograph it this time).

Then, as the oil heats up, it becomes too thin to keep the cups full (seems like it runs out the bottom of the rocker just as fast as it enters from the pushrod). At hot idle, there is definitely SOME flow through ALL the pushrods, resulting in a tiny puddles of oil at the bottom of the rockers. NEW pic (with the fresh oil), at hot idle:


When fully warm, if I push the throttle a bit, fountains spurt high into the air through SOME of the pushrods, and all SEEM to flow well (tough to measure). Wanted to push the throttle a bit more to confirm that ALL would fountain at a higher RPM, but the mess was getting out of hand.

In conclusion: I'm not sure how these results could be used to predict anything about the future longevity of this engine or these rockers. However, it is reassuring to see that there is SOME flow to ALL rockers at idle, and that the cups will ALL fill at a certain RPM (about 700 RPM) and a certain temp (not hot).


Well, she's all back together again, and the engine sounds great (so far). Took her out on the freeway for about 10 miles round trip. Wonderful. Then, let her idle for about 20 min after. Dash gauges then read: 660 RPM; 205 deg F; 20 PSI.

I am satisfied for now. I thank ALL of you for your help!
I'll drive her daily for a while, and report back.

Thanks again,
JohnEP

CCKen

Excellent.

Did you use that mix of 5W-30 and 10W-30 oil to do your tests?

If so, at some time, you may want to drain that and replenish the oil with your Rotella and MMO mix, along with a new filter.

JohnEP

For the second test: I used 4 quarts of fresh 10w-40 Autozone "conventional oil" (non-energy conserving), mixed with 2 quarts of modern 5w-30. I emphasize that the results were not significantly different compared to the first test (with the chocolate-milk antifreeze oil).

Starting the Jeep this cold morning, I could definitely here some tapping from the ?rockers? at first cold idle. Not sure what to make of that. Recall: I installed junk-yard pivots and rockers, "mixed in a bag." Only 1 pivot showed a tiny bit of wear, and I matched it to the rocker that showed this same bit of wear on installation. All others are rockers are "unmatched" to their original pivots.

Seeing how the rocker pivots are "dry" for 2 to 3 min after first start-up, and it is still cold here in Mich, I'd like a 5w-XX weight to get flow going ASAP during the break-in for these rocker/pivots. However, to keep oil on the pivots after shut-down (for the next morning), I'd like a Xw-40 or higher. So, I'm thinking 5w-40 best fits my next oil change?

I'm reluctant to use MMO in my oil just yet. I already ran a "kerosene flush" through my engine prior to starting this project. On the other hand, I'd like to make use of my high-zinc (anti-wear) Rotella T 15w-40. Maybe 50/50 with 5w-30? Any data to suggest that this really matters at all?

cruiser54

Put some MMO in there.

Outlaw Star

I know its late but that wear is due to either lack of lubrication or contaminants in your oil. I highly advise against flushing your oiling system. Any sludge that gets broken up goes straight to your oil pan then gets picked up by your pump. Pump gets clogged then causes lack of lubrication. Our oil pressure gauges are electric and not mechanical, therefore not as accurate.

JohnEP

I agree. In fact, I saw this happen myself during the kerosene flush I did before replacing the head (4 quarts oil to 2 quarts kerosene): Flush held 16 PSI (or so) pressure at hot idle, but after I rev'd it twice, the dash pressure then dropped pretty quick down to 6 PSI at idle, so I cut the ignition there. Changed the oil, then it came back up to 19 PSI at hot idle, and rev's did not hurt it. That is when I decided to gamble on replacing the head instead of replacing the engine.

cruiser54

Jeep Engine Oil Viscosity

This was taken from pages 82 and 83 of the 1989 Chrysler/Jeep owners manual.

Selecting Engine Oil Viscosity

When changing or adding engine oil select the proper grade by using the chart on the following page. Select the grade that corresponds to the ambient temperature range you expect to encounter before your next oil change.

30*F to 100*F+ 20W-40 or 20W-50

0*F to 100*F+ 10W-30 or 10W-40

-20*F to 60*F 5W-30

That displayed, I would use 5 quarts of Rotella 15-40 and one quart of MMO. What filter are you using?

bigbadon

Good info. A++ on Rotella 15-40. I use the wally world industrial 15-40 diesel oil in my 4.0 that has had only 4psi for the past 27000 miles!

cruiser54

Yep. Works great and REALLY cleans up sludge at a nice rate without shocking the system so to speak.

CCKen

Here's the oil viscosity chart from the 2000 XJ FSM.

If you live in Michigan you will see most of the wide range of outside air temperatures in the chart.

I would recommend Rotella T6 SAE 5W-40 in your engine if you insist on using Rotella (I used this oil for 3,000 miles once and it worked fine).

cruiser54

Good to see that. I wonder how the synthetic cleans and holds contaminants in suspension compared to the Rotella 15-40 diesel oil.

CCKen

I don't know. When I used the T6 5W-40 my engine was clean to begin with but it did turn blackish by 3,000 miles so I assume it was doing its job.

The problem I ran into using syn oil was my RMS started puking, so I changed the RMS and switched back to dino 5W-30 in the winter and 10W-30 in the summer. This was back in May 2012 that I switched back to dino oil and I haven't had any oil leaks since.

I just think 15W oil is too heavy, especially during start-ups in the winter.