Date: Wed, 06 Aug 1997 07:41:02 -0700 From: "Robert K. Kuhn" Subject: The on going saga of Baby's oil temp ... As stated by the local weather people, it was a pretty hot afternoon here in San Diego. It just got over 100 degrees in Poway. Actually, according to Chippy the Chipmunk yard thermometer, it was 104 degrees when I got home around 2:30pm PST yesterday. For those that just tuned in, the engine is a Type-I 1776 built by Gex International back in 1992-93. The carbs are dual Kad's with stock jetting, but they sport K&N filters along with Berg linkage. They are fed by a Facet electronic fuel pump with a Holley Blue fuel regulator. I have a BugPack remote breather box and the the heater boxes were pitched many many many years ago. The exhaust is a BugPack "Turbo" Muffler that tucks up under the left rear fender. The heads were recently rebuilt (by moi) with Manley spings and valves. The oil is SAE-30 and the stock oil cooler is still in use. The spark is fed from a Bosch blue coil to a Bosch 009 with a Pertronix Ignitor (been in use for over 3 years) which in turn sends said spark down the Bosch silicone plug wires to the Bosch Platinum plugs (gapped at .026). What sparked this oil temp saga/series was when I mentioned to the list (last year?) that I was running an oil temp gauge that was fed data via a copper "T" fitting. The "T" fitting was installed where the stock oil pressure sending unit was located. I've run the car/engine this way for over 2 years. The gauge reported that the oil temp was in the mid 160's to mid 170's on a *hot* day. Other people were reporting that their oil temp's were in the 230 and above range. I was also told not to believe what my gauge was telling me. The oil gague is an electronic temp gauge made bu SunPro. The sender was also checked by sticking it in a pot of boiling water along with a thermometer. So the sending unit and gauge were both fine. The only thing that was in question was the location of the sender. Somewhat concerned, I borrowed an electronic digital thermometer (Fluke) from our Facilities department so that I could once and for all determine what my real oil temp was. They even gave me a 6 and 9 inch test probe so that I could actually stick it down the dipstick hole. Having said all that, here's what the Fluke said yesterday (August 5, 1997 @ 2:30pm PST): At the "T" fitting: 190F At the base of the dip stick tube: 193F On the dipstick: 195F On the block under the 009: 197F ... with the engine off: The oil on the dipstick: 195F Sticking the probe down the tube: 202F The gauge was reporting an oil temp of 185F With the engine still off, I left the probe down the tube to see what the temp is (as this was requested by someone who I can't for the life of me remember now). After sitting for about 3-4 minutes, the temp rose from 202F to around 230F ... it stayed at that temp for about 10 minutes (during the 10 minutes, it went up a degree or two, but it seemed to stay at 230F) before it started to drop down. Even though it was in the low 100's out here, the humidity was also pretty low. I don't recall what it was but it was more of a dry heat (like the kind you find out in Arizona). The humidity doesn't get all that high out here, but the next time it does, I'll try and see what my oil temp readings are. So, in conclusion, my gague was still about 15 degrees off. I am still looking into drilling a hole in my sump-oil drain plate and mounting the sending unit there as this seems to be the most poplular place to locate the sender. Or, perhaps get the famous Gene Berg dipstick sender. For past series on this test, check out David Raistrick's home page: http://www.armory.com/~y21cvb/west/darkness.html And while you're there, check out some of the other articles that he's collected over the years. They're very informative (good work, Dave!). Robert K. Kuhn (kealoha@isisph.com) Isis Pharmaceuticals -- Systems Admin/Web & Notes Slave http://www.isip.com/users/kealoha " They make 10,000 cars ... They make them exactly the same way and one or two of them turn out to be something special. Nobody know's why ..." -- Jim Douglas "The Love Bug"