1975 360 rebuild question

From : lance carpenter

Q: i am rebuilding the 360 in my 1975 1/2 ton powerwagon and i have hit a snag. all of the machine work is done and i am most of the way through the re-assembly. when i tried to install the distributor/oil pump drive it would not go in far enough to engage the oil pump. further investigation revealed a bushing aluminum in the opening of the block next to the cam gear where the distributor drive shaft enters. the drive shaft has a shoulder on it that will not go through this bushing. when i disassembled the engine i dont remember this bushing and the drive was fairly easy to remove. when i take the bushing out it lifts out easily i can install the drive and it engages the oil pump as it should. im concerned about taking the bushing out if it is actually supposed to be there but none of my manuals chiltons haynes and how to rebuild your small block mopar by don taylor mention it or show any photos/drawings of it. does anyone know if there is supposed to be a bushing in this opening or have a service manual with an exploded view of the oil pump drive and distributor that might show what is or isnt supposed to be there if it is supposed to be there why doesnt the shaft fit through it anymore as you can imagine im close to finishing the rebuild and im anxious to finish but i want to do it right. any help would be greatly appreciated! lance carpenter .

Replies:

From : fmbneil nelson

is it a bushing or something placed there to protect the opening id call the shop that did the machining this morning and ask. good luck fmb only one b in fmb i am rebuilding the 360 in my 1975 1/2 ton powerwagon and i have hit a snag. all of the machine work is done and i am most of the way through the re-assembly. when i tried to install the distributor/oil pump drive it would not go in far enough to engage the oil pump. further investigation revealed a bushing aluminum in the opening of the block next to the cam gear where the distributor drive shaft enters. the drive shaft has a shoulder on it that will not go through this bushing. when i disassembled the engine i dont remember this bushing and the drive was fairly easy to remove. when i take the bushing out it lifts out easily i can install the drive and it engages the oil pump as it should. im concerned about taking the bushing out if it is actually supposed to be there but none of my manuals chiltons haynes and how to rebuild your small block mopar by don taylor mention it or show any photos/drawings of it. does anyone know if there is supposed to be a bushing in this opening or have a service manual with an exploded view of the oil pump drive and distributor that might show what is or isnt supposed to be there if it is supposed to be there why doesnt the shaft fit through it anymore as you can imagine im close to finishing the rebuild and im anxious to finish but i want to do it right. any help would be greatly appreciated! lance carpenter .

From : neil nelson

lance carpenter fiveseas@earthlink.net wrote i am rebuilding the 360 in my 1975 1/2 ton powerwagon and i have hit a snag. all of the machine work is done and i am most of the way through the re-assembly. when i tried to install the distributor/oil pump drive it would not go in far enough to engage the oil pump. further investigation revealed a bushing aluminum in the opening of the block next to the cam gear where the distributor drive shaft enters. the drive shaft has a shoulder on it that will not go through this bushing. when i disassembled the engine i dont remember this bushing and the drive was fairly easy to remove. when i take the bushing out it lifts out easily i can install the drive and it engages the oil pump as it should. im concerned about taking the bushing out if it is actually supposed to be there but none of my manuals chiltons haynes and how to rebuild your small block mopar by don taylor mention it or show any photos/drawings of it. does anyone know if there is supposed to be a bushing in this opening or have a service manual with an exploded view of the oil pump drive and distributor that might show what is or isnt supposed to be there if it is supposed to be there why doesnt the shaft fit through it anymore as you can imagine im close to finishing the rebuild and im anxious to finish but i want to do it right. any help would be greatly appreciated! lance carpenter yes that bushing is supposed to be there. likely what happened is; the machine shop removed and discarded the old one since it probably woudnt have survived the hot tank cleaning process. they re-installed a new bushing but did not resize it. the resize procedure involves a special too that draws a sizing ball thru the bushing which opens up burnishes the bushing to the correct diameter -and- swages it to the bore in the block. the correct sizing tool is miller # c-3053 and is still available from otc/miller/kent-moore .