The standard oil pressure I've gotten from a rebuilt 1959 235 with about 4,000 miles on it, after full warm-up, has been about 14 pounds at operating speed (30+ miles per hour) and down to almost nil (2-4 pounds) at idle of 850 rpm. The gauge pegs out at 30 pounds when the oil is cold at startup. My interest is in raising the pressure during idle when the vehicle is warm.
As I'm working on a new rebuild I've set up the main bearing clearances at 0.002 by installing the bearings, determining the dimension after torqueing down the bearings and then having the crank turned as needed to provide 0.002 clearance.
Any suggestions as to how to measure main and rod bearing pressure when the engine is running other than to read the standard gauge? Removing and re-installing the oil pump multiple times would get real old very quickly; trying to re-seal the oil pan after the engine is installed in the vehicle is a real pain. I have multiple oil pans, I could cut a door into the side of the pan for access to the oil pump.
Thoughts, suggestions?
Thanks,
Ted
