2.0/2.3 Distributor Gear Oiling Mod

[upnsmoke]

Hey guys. I was doing some reading in my down time today and came across this guy modifying 2.3 distributors for improved oil flow to the auxiliary shaft gear and distributor drive gear. I have read that there is a problem with 2.0/2.3s eating distributor gears. I found the dist gear in my 2.0 still looking okay after running around with a high volume oil pump that I stupidly installed. Having done a little research, I have a standard volume oil pump on the way, and do not intend to fire the motor again until after it is in. I figure the mod shown in these links could give my gears a chance at having a little more life.

Here are the links- link 1, link 2.The guy explains things in a little more detail in the second link. He has some pictures. You have to read a few posts on both to get the whole story. I think I understand what he is doing. One thing that is unclear to me is exactly what the slot on the shaft is for. Is the oiling hole in the block at the bottom of the slot he is making? If so, I see where there could be an oiling problem to start with. If nothing else, I see how the slot in the bottom of the dist gear could work. I guess I will check on the location of the oiling hole in my block when I get a chance. That could help clarify things for me.

I figure there may be a few others here interested in this, or who have done it, as well. I am interested to hear any thoughts or opinions on it, as I believe I will give it a try, unless someone has a good reason not to. I have an extra distributor with the gear off for reference.

 

[upnsmoke]

A few more thoughts on this

I took a picture of my spare distributor to help me write out and organize my thoughts. This seems like a simple job, but I still had a little trouble getting my head around it. If anyone else suffers the same confusion I am, hopefully this clears things up to a degree. I anyone can set me straight on anything I've misconceived, or substantiate some of my unknowns, please do.

What I know for certain:
The green arrows point where the roll pin holds the gear to the shaft. The blue arrow points to a bearing surface on the bottom of the gear that sits near the top of the groove pointed out by the red arrow.

The way I figure the oiling to the dist works:
The white arrow is around where I believe there is a passage in the block feeding pressurized oil between the shaft and the sleeve it runs in. The pressurized oil from the passage makes its way between the shaft and sleeve, either to the bottom, returning to the oil pan, or to the groove. Some of the oil that goes to the groove enters the hole, presumably making its way up the inside of the shaft to lubricate bearings. The oil that does not enter the hole lubricates the bearing surface, pointed to by the blue arrow, on the dist gear. I don't know any of that for sure, but it seems logical to me.

My interpretation of the modifications explained in the links posted above:
A slot is made around the circumference of the dist shaft, less than one quarter of the way around the shaft, at the same level as the oil passage pointed out by the white arrow. The slot will be about .4" down the length of the shaft from the groove pointed to by the red arrow (I will measure this for myself eventually), and rotationally in the same position as the hole in the groove. A vertical slot will be made connecting the new slot and the original groove so that oil can pass between the two. A slot will be cut in the bearing surface of the dist gear that is 90 degrees counter clockwise, when the dist is looked at from the bottom, from the original hole and the new slot.

My best guesses as to the intended effects of the modifications:
The new slot on the dist shaft will allow pressurized oil from the passage to move freely up to the groove pointed at by the red arrow. Pressurized oil can only enter the new slot when the slot is aligned with the passage, allowing a surge of pressurized oil through the new slot and into the original groove once per rotation of the distributor. The rotational location of the slot in the bearing surface of the dist gear is located so that when the pulse of oil pressure occurs, oil is allowed to escape the bearing surface in the direction of the auxiliary shaft gear. I believe this is the main intended function of the mod, as the oil would hopefully lubricate and cool the aux shaft gear directly, and, indirectly, the dist shaft gear.

Potential ill effects of the modifications that I would worry about:
I imagine that if the new slot were cut too far around the circumference of the shaft, too much oil could enter the dist shaft and make a mess, and possibly begin to bleed off oil pressure. The slot in the gear could allow too much oil to escape, causing a lack of oil pressure at the original hole in the shaft. The distributor shaft will be weakened and could break, especially if the horizontal slot is cut too far around the circumference of the slot.


If anyone has any thoughts to contribute I would love to hear them. I think this is a good idea, and I am going to go ahead with it today or tomorrow if no one has a reason I shouldn't. I have a new standard volume oil pump now as well, and want to put it in soon, but I am working outside, and it is windy today. I want to wait until a day when the wind is calmer to pull the oil pan off. I figure I still can get the distributor mod done and see how it works. I'll post up results when I know something.

 

[Mark_88]

Interesting read...

Since I have no idea what effect centrifugal forces would have on the oil flow (does it flow up or down???) I would have to say if it works and provides better oiling for the dizzy then it's worth the effort.

I've had one dizzy stop working when the pin broke a few years ago...amazing how much gas can accumulate in your muffler when the plugs don't fire properly...and even more amazing how loud a muffler can be when it explodes...

 

[tomw]

Well, with Lima engines regularly running to 300k miles and more, I don't think there is much problem with distributor gear lubrication. Don't know of the 'link1 link2' entries are for people into racing or off-road or other 'severe' operating conditions, but have heard exactly zero comments on dist gear lube problems.
You may be 'belt and suspenders' in doing the mod, though cutting grooves to allow oil to flow does make a bit of sense.... IFF there is a problem. You may cause pressure loss to other areas. Whatever gets 'out' of the lube system on the dist will no get up the block and through the head to the cam & lifters. The cam followers on pre-91(?) are not roller, and need a lot of oil. The first 2.3's out the door had a problem eating their followers and cam lobes a little early in life, but that was ~10 years before the first Rangers...
tom

 

[upnsmoke]

Tomw, you have some good thoughts there. The discussions in the links are about Mustangs. As far as I can tell, the guy talking about the mod doesn't specify any condition that he has seen to cause the issues, just that it can happen. I haven't been able to turn up any specific cases of gear failure myself, and thus can not say for sure that is actually a problem or not. I have read of concerns about the issue from those supposed to know their 2.3s, especially if a high volume oil pump is used. I was concerned about oiling as well, but I'm thinking it may be okay. I ran the oil pump manually with the distributor out of the engine and the valve cover off, and it looked like plenty of oil still made it to the cam lobes. I figure the size of the oil feed hole in the block or the passage going to it may limit the amount of oil lost. Then again, if that is the case, I guess the effectiveness of the mod would be limited, too.

Well, I still don't foresee this mod causing any immediate issues, so for now I still figure on going through with it. It does make some sense in concept, I just wish there was a way to verify that it works or not. I guess I could pull the distributor and look at the gear after running the motor a bit.