Oil leak

[Scott G]

Hi all! I just installed my rebuilt motor and transmission. I started it today after a couple of un satisfactory tries yesterday. The motor ran well. I ran it for about five minutes and shut it down. I found a puddle of oil under the motor. Maybe 1/2 a quart.
I had snugged up the bolts to the inspection cover prior to this because they were leaking after I added oil to the motor. After the last run with the puddle the bolts were wet and there were som trails but nothing of significance.
I contacted the builder and he suggested that it could be the felt gasket in the front of the hogshead, and that black RTV was my friend. He had done the entire assembly in his shop. I am not completely satisfied with his answer.
So the question is, does the felt seal need to swell with oil to seal. If not is there a way to seal with black RTV without removing the hog’s head? I do intend at this point to drain the oil and seal all the bolts with RTV since they will not stop leaking.

[Scott_Conger]

Scott

that volume of oil is probably not going to be the felt seal per-se

however, where the front left/right corners of the hogs head come to the corner of the rear of the block and the pan, that little pinky-sized corner can end up with little to no seal. I'd start the car again and shine a flashlight on it and bet you see little spittle flying everywhere in the beam of light, and a steady line of oil running down and dripping off the drain plug. If that's the case, there is a solution. Go start it, check it and come back with an answer.

[Professor Fate]

Welcome to the forum Scott G. !!!! 1rst post fever!!!!

[Scott G]

Thanks Scott, I had that thought also to start and look, good advice. I am pretty annoyed and frustrated with this.

Thank you Dr. Evil for the welcome!

[Scott_Conger]

You'll get past this - whatever it is but it is easy to feel your pain.

now that you know where I'm talking about, if you have any leak at all there, I've found that some shots of brake-kleen and thorough scrubbing of the area, followed by a small chewing-gum size or large pea-size dolop of Ultra-Black RTV schmeered all around that corner and worked into any exposed felt, sealing over to all metal edges will make that corner DONE. Don't squeeze it directly into the corner abyss, just onto your thumb and work into and all around the flange joints and any gasket material you see. You want a thick bridge of material but not a chunky blob extruded down inside that risks someday liberating itself into the crank case. Ultra-Black is very nice as it cures into a decent durometer of rubber and not a snotty stringy mess that will shred like cheap silicone gasket material in a tube (AVOID!)

[Randall strickland]

Are you using the mag coil? If not the two corner hoghead bolts must be put in block or you will have a oil leak

[RajoRacer]

I'm with Randall on this - some, not all, left & right lower field coil bolt holes in the rear of the block are blind holes but can leak oil as it was coming from the corners of the felt - need to look real close.

[Professor Fate]

Won't be long.... teething pains on a new setup.

Scott C. has a good plan that will not require disassembly. Hopefully brake cleaner and ultra black will fix it.

[Norman Kling]

I agree with the above about cleaning and smearing Ultra Black. Other places can be the space between any two bolts under the engine or the hogs head. It can even leak through the 4th main and into the U joint ball. That one is harder to fix.. Sometimes someone will install a gasket between the 4th main and the ball cover. That will leave too much space. There should be only one gasket between the 4th main and the ball joint cover. Be very careful if you plan on tightening any of the bolts around the crankcase. The area around the hogs head and the block at the edges of the hogs head are very easy to crack if too much pressure is exerted. Then the hogs head will be ruined.
Norm

[DHort]

Take it back to the builder. It should not leak like that. In fact, if it is a rebuild, it should not leak at all.

[Professor Fate]

I am sincerely hoping that these issues be worked out soon, as the poster of this thread is my neighbor and good friend.