No oil pressure for maybe 15 seconds

[kevs1969daytona]

So my brand new engine 440 went belly up, was driving down the road, my kid says he was looking at the temp / oil pressure gauge was at about 40 plus PSI coming to a stop, I turn a corner something happens maybe blue smoke behind me, I get it into second gear, look at temp gauge was 160 and then the oil pressure 0 psi, I turn the ignition off and coast to a stop.  Running Penzoil 10-30 VR racing oil (zinc) brand new oil change about 3 days before.  Engine has may 30 or 40 miles on it.  Shop who build says they will fix.  How bad can that be with no oil pressure for a 15 seconds.   I think my drive shaft to the oil pump snapped.  Have pulled the oil filter there is some very small metal flakes, or maybe from when I sawed the oil filter open.

[c00nhunterjoe]

No oil + metal shavings= a bad time. If it were mine, i would ask to be present for the tear down and inspection to avoid any.... "confusion" that may arise later as to cause and effect of the failure and long term effects.

[John_Kunkel]

15 seconds at low speed shouldn't be a problem but you need to know for sure what the source of the shaving is. You don't want to use a toothed cutter to open filters because they produce shavings.

[Challenger340]

"Brand new" 440 with 30 or 40 miles on it ?  Fresh Oil change 3 days before ?

Boy.... suffice to say I have a ton of questions, but best left until you do some further diagnostics,
first of which......
I would pull the Dizzy and Oil Pump Drive Gear/Shaft and take a 'boo ?   Strange a "new" Oil Pump Drive would break that soon unless you had gunga Oil Pressure/Tight Bearing Clrcs in the Engine ?

What were you Oil Pressures BEFORE this happened with the 10-30 Oil and at what Temps ?

[flyinlow]

You pulled the filter. Have you drained the oil ? If not , send a sample out for oil analysis. Filter some thru a paint filter to see it the fillings in the filter where caused by cutting it open.

Having  NORMAL oil pressure and then losing it for 15 seconds at low power settings would not put me in a tear down mode if the oil pleasure issue could be explained... oil pump drive, drain plug came out, oil pressure gauge problem. Also the  engine would have to run and sound normal after the issue was repaired.

[kevs1969daytona]

Still waiting for room at the shop to open up, sometime this weekend I hope.  I suspect it was the distributor shaft that snapped.  The oil pump was a new melling M-63.  I think when they build the engine they put the factory distributor back in.  Read somewhere they have to be hardened or replaced that shaft.  Not an engine builder but that's my guess at this point.  Not going to touch it.  The shop can deal with it.  Oil pressure was between 40 and 60 psi.  

My son filmed the car on Apr 25 a few weeks before it happen at you can see the oil pressure is fine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpMYp7I-raw

[c00nhunterjoe]

You wouldnt feel the shaft break. He clearly said he could tell something happened and then tailpipe smoke.... there is more going on then 15 seconds at idle with a broken oil pump drive.

[1970 D100]

I've had oil filters plug on start up. May have been the assembly lube. Did you try another oil filter?

[kevs1969daytona]

Yes tried new filter, no change

[74Rallye]

I had a fresh 440 break a rocker on the dyno and toss a lifter which resulted in zero oil pressure. Hope yours is as easy to fix as mine was.

[c00nhunterjoe]

We are a week in, any updates?