gonna whine for awhile. Please say something encouraging.

[dhughins]

I have 2 empty bolt holes on the front of the block in front of the fuel pump. Will try to find sone bolts to fit it tomorrow. That would be awesome if it was my fix.
Posted via Mobile Device

[dhughins]

I have 2 empty bolt holes on the front of the block in front of the fuel pump. Will try to find some bolts to fit it tomorrow. That would be awesome if it was my fix.

My engine is supposed to be a 1976 305. Haven't been able to confirm that yet.
Posted via Mobile Device

[doubleb's69]

Originally Posted by dhughins

I have 2 empty bolt holes on the front of the block in front of the fuel pump. Will try to find sone bolts to fit it tomorrow. That would be awesome if it was my fix.
Posted via Mobile Device

Those two holes are accessory holes and wouldn't fix it. I agree with 71swb4x4 that that is a knock sensor and I would guess that it is original to that engine not something someone put in just to plug the antifreeze drain hole.

[dhughins]

As soon as read accessory hole I was like duh! Then why was everyone telling me to make sure they were plugged?
Posted via Mobile Device

[vectorit]

They are not accessory holes.
They are a hold over from the days when small blocks had front motor mounts.
The top hole actually goes through to the pump shat, and will seep oil over time - some worse than others. Put a short bolt in there, and forget about it. Just make sure it's about a 1/2" long, any longer and it could hit the pump shaft.

This is not your problem, it is only a minor leak source.
Your oil leak is a major one, and after cleaning up the mess you should be able to locate where the leak is coming from.

The oil leaks I have seen that could cause this much of a mess, has typically been from intake manifold front and rear seals, oil pressure line leaks, harmonic balancer seal, and valve covers.

Being that you have fresh oil mess coming from the top down, get the valve covers addressed and check the oil pressure line. At the same time look carefully at the intake front/rear seals, if they are the rubber gasket type and all cracked then it may be time to do that too.

This is a lot of work for someone like you, and that's why I recommend getting the mess cleaned up so that you can hopefully find the leak then fix it.

Of course you could just do it all, but then why not take the engine out and re seal it. Then one would ask, why not rebuild or replace? See, it gets to be a slippery slope (no pun intended) real quick when it comes to issues like this and being on a budget.

[PHAT TONY]

Has the intake manifold been "upgraded"? Alot of guys just run a silicone bead at the front/rear and if the instal went bad it could've been screwed up or the gasket buggered. I can't see an oil pan soaking the starter and motor mount with oil...dip stick cracked badly? If you can remove the valve cover in a "clean and jerk" fashion, you'll see on the new gasket how it's sealing to the head; there'll be a "print" of the head surface.

[Hubscrub]

i agree if that bolt hole in the front is open put a bolt in it, my buddy had a newly acquired nova and nature called he got on it to get to the gas station and smoke was coming into the car from burning oil on the headers, from where you ask that bolt hole being open. I investigated while he done business and found it so they can leak bad from that spot.

[beautimus]

first things first. its all about getting your head in the right place to ENJOY the old truck. If your gonna have an older ride, and make no mistake you got a nice one there, you are gonna have a few challenges along the way. what you need to do is schedule a weekend for a good engine reseal. get your self a shade tree and a sixpack of your favorite beverage (on ice) a portable radio near by to play your tunes,let the engine cool off, relax and enjoy messing with this thing.
now that your head is on straight, lets work on the simple stuff first. those stamped steal covers have got to go. you know you can tackle this, you have already replaced the cover gaskits once so get some cast aluminum ones, they arent as prone to leaks, thats why they make em, and a little bling don't hurt. get a new set of gaskits and some quality sealer. not rtv silicone sealer. that stuff will let go and you'll be back to square one.
next look at the back of the intake manifold you should find an oil light switch. some people call it a sending unit, those crack and leak around them. or you could have a tube for a oil pressure gauge attached there, anyway if its a switch replace it and put sealer on the threads. if its a tube for a gauge , inspect and reseal it or remove the tube and plug the hole to make sure its not the problem. okay next check around the back of the intake, those gaskits are notorius for leaks at the corners and for the gaskit to squeeze out in the middle at the back. if you see the gaskit is squeezed out make plans to have a trustworthy mechanic replace the gaskits and maybe put shiny new intake on it. kill 2 birds with one stone. ok, now the fuel pump area has 2 gaskits that can be replaced that can leak oil so take care of those. make plans to replace that kinked fuel line just in case it screws up on you while your working on the pump. do take the time to put a short bolt in those bolt holes. they may not be a true "blind hole" ( a hole that has a bottom in it , it may be a thru hole, into the oil gallery.) okay, by this point you have most likely taken care of the oil leak and spent some quality time with the old truck.
and insured that you will have more fun times without smelling burned oilall time your driving
next problem, if it smokes a tad at start up and then stops smoking , is it really that big of a deal to you ? okay if it smokes all the time its a problem because your gonna have to constantly check the oil leavel. but if it puts out a puff or two at start up then clears, the valve seals are dripping a bit, don't worry about that for now, you can attack that later, its not a big deal right now. next up, the sludge in that engine. forget you saw it. keep running a good detergent oil in there and keep it changed at decent intervals. the sludge is what it is, and it ain't gonna hurt it. besides, theres nothing you can do about it untill you have the engine rebuilt or replaced. that engine has run a long time with that sludge and it is gonna run a long time yet with it in there. fix the stuff you can and the things that are keeping you from driving this truck safely. then ENJOY the ride. best of luck to you Tony

[dhughins]

I know y'all have probably accumulated stuff over time but I haven't. Where do I go to find a bolt for the hole in front that might or might not stop any oil leak? Auto parts store or hardware store? Do I just buy a few assorted sizes til I find the 1 that fits? Thanks again for all the advice.
Posted via Mobile Device

[PHAT TONY]

3/8 coarse thread, 9/16 head, 1/2 inch long. Wrench size may differ; your header bolts are the same and they're allen bolts.

[ole dollor]

vectorit:i beg to differ on that the hole in the front of the block that helps you hold the fuel pump rod up can only produce a very small oil leak, and could not be the problem, i have seen several like this and they would not leak much just running setting still, but you take it out and drive around a while and oil will be everywhere , it needs the bolt anyway , i beleive that this will cure his problem, but we all know that these old chevy's can have more that one place dripping, it could be a valve cover, timing cover, crank seal, oil pan, intake gasket. bad dip stick tube......and on and on....lets take it one leak at a time, and let him enjoy his new ride.....

[vectorit]

Originally Posted by ole dollor

vectorit:i beg to differ on that the hole in the front of the block that helps you hold the fuel pump rod up can only produce a very small oil leak, and could not be the problem, i have seen several like this and they would not leak much just running setting still, but you take it out and drive around a while and oil will be everywhere , it needs the bolt anyway , i beleive that this will cure his problem, but we all know that these old chevy's can have more that one place dripping, it could be a valve cover, timing cover, crank seal, oil pan, intake gasket. bad dip stick tube......and on and on....lets take it one leak at a time, and let him enjoy his new ride.....

I wasn't saying not to fix that, more like fix it and move on to the other leaks.
In his photo's there is a large amount of fresh pooled oil, which tells me that there is a large gap somewhere letting oil out.
My money is on the rear intake seal, and the valve covers as being the main contributors to the oil mess.

But judging by the look of the engine, I would be thinking about doing an entire engine re seal. That is me because I know how to do that stuff fairly easy and cheaply, where as in the OP's case he is on the other side of that spectrum with a tight budget, no place to perform the work, and skill level.

One leak fix at a time for sure, but right now I would find that leak quick because the current situation looks like a fire hazard.

[dhughins]

ya'll might not believe this but I went and got 2 bolts and plugged them holes in front of block near fuel pump and i'm 99% sure it fixed it. i cleaned all around there and drove it like i did yesterday (but even farther) and it's still clean.

gonna keep checking on it, but unless that test drive was a fluke it might be fixed. i'll put clean pictures up if i can get any.

just for arguments sake i'm pretty sure the bottom hole is an accessory hole.


Thanks PHAT TONY for the bolt size. the local hardware stores around here don't vcarry those in 1/2 inch so i went with 3/4 added a lock washer and didn't go all the way in with it.

[ole dollor]

vectorit: now i agree with that, any bad oil leak is a fire hazard, and a big mess, i have seen that one little hole cause lot of oil loss ,and only leak while driving around, not sitting still.... could also be a pressure build up inside the motor . like a bad pcv valve that could have made it worse....when he gets the bolt in, maybe it will solve the problem...i hope it does

[dhughins]

I just got back from another drive. Still no oil leaking. I think we fixed it.

It still has a big cloud of smoke on startup, but I know that is a separate issue that I can live with. I can at least drive it with having to add oil every day.
Posted via Mobile Device

[dhughins]

Oh yeah I checked my Pcv valve the other day and it has plenty of suction.
Posted via Mobile Device

[CC69Rat]

If it only smokes on startup and its coming out of the tailpipe I would say a valve job would take care of it. Glad you got the leak straightened out.
Posted via Mobile Device

[PHAT TONY]

I'm grinning for ya...have fun with it!

[ole dollor]

man that is great....now go out and have some fun with (ole leaky).....

[GASoline71]

vectorit was spot on with that hbolt hole leak. That bolt hole is the cause of many a SBC guy to pull their hair out lookin' for leaks. It can leak a lot of oil. I always put a bolt with a little RTV on the threads in those 2 holes.

I noticed from your pics that your steel fuel line is kinked pretty bad down by the pump. Could be casuing a pretty serious restriction and causing your stumbling and hesitations...

Gary

[omodified]

Wow. Congrats on the find dhughins. Now go enjoy it it. Make sure you let your wife know that you just saved the family $2000. It's nice to have credits with the wife!!!

[dracula4999]

glad it was an easy fix. I cant believe no one mentioned changing that breather cap on the valve cover. Those are notorious for making and oily mess as well.