wet sumping alloy oil pump 50s chief

[hairynob24]

G,day my 50 chief keeps wet sumping , i only know the cast iron pumps ,is there a fix with the spring and ball check valve ? its starting to get me p---ed off ,can the the check valve ball be punched to seat it properly and should the spring be replaced onced it gets under a certain length , cheers Rob

[fillibuster]

G,day my 50 chief keeps wet sumping , i only know the cast iron pumps ,is there a fix with the spring and ball check valve ? its starting to get me p---ed off ,can the the check valve ball be punched to seat it properly and should the spring be replaced onced it gets under a certain length , cheers Rob

A friend did it, and yes, used the old check ball to "seat" the aluminum seat, with a punch and hammer, a soft rap, discard that ball and install new ball (they're common ball bearings available from industrial houses). He had a spare spring and used it, but the old one was saved.
I run a 47 with cast iron pump, so wait for more assurance from others here with first-hand experience.

[Yellow53Chief]

Hi,
I forget which of the vendors said it, but supposedly the correct spring will extend 1/8" past the face of the pump before the unit is installed. There have also been a couple of different sized balled used, so the best idea is to reuse the same size ball if replacing it. Seating the ball by striking it has worked for many people. Another approach that I personally use, but didn't come up with the idea (I'm not sure who did), is to lap the seat using a fine grinding compound (I start with regular valve grinding compound and finish with a 1500 grit compound). I bought two new balls of the same diameter that came out of my engine. I soldered one of the balls to a 4" long piece of small copper tubing (some guys weld a ball to a piece of small steel tubing). I used this tube/ball tool, to lap the ball seat. I use a magnifying glass to monitor my progress. When the ball seat became smooth, and I had a decent pattern on the lapping tool, I stopped and cleaned the area well. I then assembled the pump to the engine using the second new ball that I bought. For me, it has greatly reduced the wet-sumping problem that plagues many Indians. If my bike sits for a couple of weeks unused, I sometimes can feel that the engine is turning over with difficulty when I go to start the engine. Typically this is caused by the flywheels hitting accumulated oil that has leaked down. When this happens, I pull the drain plug and empty the crankcase. This prevents the heavy smoking and plug fouling that can occur with wet-sumping. As long as I use my engine fairly regularly, it never wet-sumps. NOTE: In some of the Indian literature, the ball is given as being 5/16" in diameter. The ball that came out of my 1953 Chief 80, was 11/32" in diameter. Jerry Greer sells the 11/32" ball, so that is what I used.

[hairynob24]

thanks fellas for your imput , i will take it on board ,and get some new balls ,cheers Rob

[Coolbreeze]

Just ran across this thread. I hope to solve wet sumping problems on my '48 Chief and '56 Harley KHK this winter. I will report on what success I have had.

[Coolbreeze]

My mechanic tried lapping the ball in the seat, but the '48 Chief still wet sumps something fierce. It was suggested that I just buy a new pump. Clearly, this problem has not gone away.

[hairynob24]

i have ever had a problem with the cast iron pumps ,still may go that way but than you to change cam shaft on the front

[Skirted]

My 48 hasn't sumped since I bought it in 2012 even after sitting a couple months. Not sure how mine was redone before I got it but I've had it apart and nothing out of ordinary in there. Original pump casting too. I suspect your mechanic may not have been patient enough or paid attention to detail in the process of seating the ball, either that or mismatched parts are being used. If the seat is right with a good ball and spring it won't leak by.
A new pump is not cheap and even just the new housing isn't cheap. If your mechanic is not able or willing to determine the cause and fix it, I'd try sending it out or taking it to someone else.

[exeric]

I have to agree with Jason. A ball type seal is strictly a mechanical function, and barring a deep gouge, or serious flaw in the seat; it should be fixable.

[tfburke3]

The factory added,I dont know when,the "killer ball" spring loaded ball valve in the pump body,Suction pressure would open the valve .This caused other oil starvation problems and most ,I think,dont run it.
I would rather get the check valve working or drain before a ride.
Tom