Should I paint lifter galley?
 

I'm starting to get parts around to rebuild my 351w fpr my '82.
Last night I painted the block but was debating if I should paint the lifter galley or not. I read in some mags that painting the lifter galley promotes better oil return to the crank case because the surface is smoother.
I'm using VHT high temperature engine paint.
Has anyone tried this or heard about it?

My vote is no,just dont like the idea of paint particles possibly inside my motor

I wouldn't, sounds too much liks using sand paper to scuff the outside of rod bearings. Sand paper and bearings should never be in the same sentance!!

I paint the valley on all my motors. If you do it just make sure the metal is spotless clean and use brake cleaner not carb cleaner for the last stage of cleaning because it will strip off any chemicals you used to clean it and when it evaporates it leaves no residue behind.

My block was hot tanked so I should be good to go then.

Still use brake cleaner to clean offf the block there is chemical residue left over from hot tanking the block.

not a good idea folks.

I've never painted an engine.. but...

a) you're not going to see it
b) it's allways coated with oil so it wont rust or anything
c) why take the chance of the paint peeling up and crapping up the inside of your engine

that's just how I see it... plus it's easier not to, even if you were to paint it, you've have to mask off all the lifter holes and oil holes... hardly seems worth the effort... gravity will get your oil back down, getting to the top is the hardpart.

-=as

mine is painted...its a special paint for this..and yes..it is to help oil run back to the pan faster...it is called Glyptal...you can buy it from eastwoodco.com

http://www.angelfire.com/linux/demondan/engine1.jpg

Thanks DEMON . I knew I heard of that before.
Chunkfunky , I think you totally misssed the entire point of painting the lifter gally.

I understood why one would do it... but I just didnt think it was worth it. It's one of those gambles, is it worth getting wierd paint chips in your oil for the return of the oil to come down faster... I suppose if you have special paint designed for such a purpose it makes it more worth while.
-as

you can go to eastwoodco.com and search Glyptal to find the product....gives a little more info....i wouldnt worry bout paint chips and stuff like that....im sure the ppl who made that stuff have already thought of that

Man, I think if you're thinking that a coating of paint is gonna help get the oil back to the pan faster you may be right, but so what? Think about it. How many times have you heard of someone saying, "Man, I blew up my motor because I didn't have painted surfaces on the lifter valley so the oil didn't run back to the pan fast enough!" ?????? NEVER. Engines are designed with oil supply in mind. When the engineers at ford decide what oil capacity to give the engine, they take into consideration the amount of oil that is going to accumulate in the lifter valley while the engine is running. An engine only has maybe a couple of quarts of oil actually being used to lubricate at any one time. Part of the reason that you have 5 quarts of oil in a motor is because some of it is going to accumulate on top of the heads and in the lifter valley. A little paint isn't going to magically force the oil back to the pan, it might make it run down quicker, but like I said, so what. So if you're just wanting to be able to say, "Yeah, I painted my lifter valley because it makes the oil flow back to the pan faster" That's your thing, but when you post a quote saying, "Man, I got paint chips in my oil sump screen and blew up my brand new motor" I'm gonna laugh and say I told you so. I mean honestly, ask anyone who's ever painted a block. Unless that thing is perfectly clean with no residue the paint isn't going to stick for ever. Sorry if I sound like I'm trying to knock you, but it seems foolish to me to put foreign objects into your engine on purpose. Anyway, do what you want man, that's my opinion, but it's your engine, and your money. Paint that sucker if you want.

I hate thread wars and I dont think anyone is right or wrong.. though from a simple view of it all... it takes times and preperation to paint it and there's nothing wrong with that.. but I think the return on investment isnt worth it. Oil likes ot eat away at things... I pulled my stock distributer out this weekend and I was trying to pull off the O ring to replace it and it shattered into a million pieces. I dont think this paint is a rubber o ring or anything... but nothing last forever, and the inside of your engine is very HOT and nasty place to live.
-as

Go ahead and paint it using the right stuff. You're not gonna lose anything by it, and only gain some extra oil flow.

IMO, spinning a High Volume pump robs some horsepower, so adding a windage tray would help, so would making the oil flow "free-er" through the engine. Makes sense to me.

"Who cares if the oil gets back to the pan faster?" I don't know about you but I want my main/rod bearings lubricated as fast as the oil can get there.
I love my Fords but they do not have the best oiling system. That honor, I hate to admit, goes to Chevy....sad but true
I don't see you callingDEMON crazy for painting his lifter gally.
People use windage trays in their oil pans for better oil control but you don't have to use one. You see what I'm saying?
Every little bit helps.
I guess everytime you hear of someone blowing their engine you are going to say "You didn't paint your lifter gally..did you? It's probably why it blew up!! "
I'd also think twice about laughing at someone after their engine just blew uo too...for whatever caused it unless you have a magic crystal and can guarantee that you will never have car problems yourself for as long as you live.
FYI, I read that artical about painting lifter gallys in some performance book a while ago. Why the hell would they recommend doing that if it can cause damage?
I didn't pull that topic out of my ***hole.

The worst part of these message boards is the battles back and forth sorry, but the post asked should I paint it?? QuantumMotorsports gave you his opinion and backed it up with some good reasoning If I had answered you it would have been very similar. Try searching around and see if anyone has painted their oil galleys and tore there engines apart 5 years later and still was in good shape (no flaking or dissolving) maybe the paint works great and never comes off. Just something I'm not willing to support and say it is a good idea to paint inside your motor.

actually, the windsor small blocks have an excellent oiling system.

Paint it if you want, but its not going to make any difference of note on a street motor.

sounds like you made up your mind to paint it already, so why even ask others opinions?

here is a few more pics

http://www.angelfire.com/linux/demondan/enginefront.jpg

http://www.angelfire.com/linux/demondan/engineside.jpg


all i can say is..to each his own..if you wanna paint it..paint it..if you dont wanna sit there and worry bout it...dont paint it...but like 82 GT said "every little bit helps" ...just like why ppl put underdrive pulleys on there car..or a K&N filter...its not going to make your car go from 14 sec to 12 sec but it helps....

I didn't know weather or not I should paint it at first or not until I read Demon's reply and a coupe others on here.
I figured they can't all be stupid.
If I remember correct, I think SHAGGY paints all his lifter gallys. Why would he keep doing that if it did harm to the engine?
The only point we all agreed upon was not to use regular paint.
I found out it could be done as long as the proper materials are used.
So, yeah, I am going to paint it.