1st Engine Build & have assembly lube questions

[FinallyGot1]

So I got my motor on a stand and I'm all set to slide my cam in. New cam bearings are in & cam spins smoothly. I have a bottle of Clevite Bearing Guard I was planning on using liberally on all my rod & main bearings and thought it'd be good stuff for cam bearings as well. Good idea or not?
Also, when I ordered my cam from Crower, they included a little packet of Joe Gibbs Driven Assembly Grease. I didn't know they were going to do that so I also ordered a small packet of ZPaste assembly lube. I was planning on using the ZPaste on the cam & lifter bases but I don't think this one little packet (0.625 oz) is going to be enough. I say this because I remember an article in a hot rod magazine (probably Car Craft or Popular Hot Rodding if it matters) where they were installing a new cam and they showed the cam lobes absolutely slathered with moly EP grease. Is this ZPaste stuff a totally different animal than the grease they used "back in the day"? Now I only need a dab where they used to use a healthy glob?
I also have a big tube (10 oz) of Sta-Lube engine assembly lube that has moly-graphite in it. This stuff says it can be used on everything (probably not piston rings though.....motor oil for them). So would it be better to just use one kind of assembly lube as much as possible or use different lubes for different parts? I know it only matters for the first few seconds of running but it's a real important few seconds....particularly for a flat tappet cam.

It's very likely this engine will sit for a few months before it goes in the car. Does that make a difference in assembly lube choice? Methinks thicker & greasier would be better but I know squat about building a motor.

TIA everyone!
Hope you all have a nice turkey coma tomorrow.

 

[cantflip]

Contact you cam manufacturer. Follow their recommendations to the letter after being sure to explain the wait time. The cam either will or will not survive the break in period and current motor oils have been refined to eliminate sulfur which helped keep flat tappet cams alive. Proper lube is all about allowing the cam to live through it's initial heat cycles. Ask the tech folks about continued use of additives... they may recommend something containing ZDDP which is a sulfur substitute.

 

[jake]

Any of the pre lube is fine, just make sure not to get any on the sides of your lifters, you want them to spin and rotate. Just make sure that you run a drill on your oil pump and get pressure up while somebody rotates the motor by hand before you start your engine. Use proper break in oil and you should be set.

 

[FinallyGot1]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I also got a bottle of ZDDPlus to add to my break-in oil. I plan on using 5W-40 diesel oil for break-in and 15W-40 after that.
My father-in-law says he prelubes his motors with a speed handle so he can feel the pressure build up. Says he spins until it comes out and then rotates the crank a quarter turn and repeats the process until he's gone one full revolution. I'd think 2 revolutions would be needed but hey, what do I know?

 

[FinallyGot1]

Contact you cam manufacturer. Follow their recommendations to the letter after being sure to explain the wait time. The cam either will or will not survive the break in period and current motor oils have been refined to eliminate sulfur which helped keep flat tappet cams alive. Proper lube is all about allowing the cam to live through it's initial heat cycles. Ask the tech folks about continued use of additives... they may recommend something containing ZDDP which is a sulfur substitute.

Never heard much about sulfur in motor oils. Rear end lube yes but not motor oil. In any case, the zinc and phosphorus levels have been steadily declining too ever since the EPA determined that zinc poisons catalytic converters.
Neat that they can reformulate our oil to try & kill the old cars and they don't have to put it on the label. The 10w30 you buy today isn't the same stuff it was 10 or 15 years ago. Sad.

 

[70bigblockdodge]

I always use the Sta-lube black moly stuff, I think it is a little more forgiving than the grease as far as getting on the side of the lifters. I have used the grease in a couple of instances, main concern is to protect the cam/lifter interface until the engine starts to settle and sling plenty of oil off crank to lube cam and lifters and build up the protective layer put down on the surface of the cam by the ZDDP in the proper type of oil for a flat tappet cam, not wal-mart with a additive. My proceedure for pre-lubing is lifters in rocker arms and shafts bolted on with push rods, intake or valley pan(BB) off, valve covers off. turn oil pump with drill or speed wrench while turning engine slow watching for oil to flow out of rocker shafts and fill up rocker arms making sure to stop turning engine once oil starts flowing to allow air to bleed out of the shaft, also insuring air is out of system in general, then continue to turn until oil comes out pass side rocker shaft also allowing time for air to bleed. then get the engine turned to tdc on #1 compression and do not rotate it again until the starter spins it, put oil pump drive in (BB slot parrallel with cam, small block pointing to #1 cylinder intake bolt), then I relube the cam and lifter faces with more sta-lube, pull lifter up a bit squeeze more lube in between for all then install push rods and reinstall rocker shafts also putting some lubriplate no.5 on the valve tips and pushrod tips. Then button it up to go back in.

 

[cantflip]

But what about the waiting period he plans? I would expect the manufacturer to recommend repriming the system prior to start up with so much time after assembly. I haven't been dealing with flat tappet cams for a long time, but I definitely agree that a properly blended oil is the way to go...off the shelf cheap stuff and additive never made much sense to me.

Sulfur has been refined out of fuels and oils for some time now. The idea is to prevent contamination of the catalysts and oxygen sensors. Newer engines were designed with this in mind and are tolerant of modern oils. Old cars are screwed and it will only keep getting worse... a good argument for roller cam upgrades.

 

[70bigblockdodge]

I would not leave it sit 6 mos. but I think a month or so should be fine. Sooner the better.

 

[FinallyGot1]

I always use the Sta-lube black moly stuff, I think it is a little more forgiving than the grease as far as getting on the side of the lifters. I have used the grease in a couple of instances, main concern is to protect the cam/lifter interface until the engine starts to settle and sling plenty of oil off crank to lube cam and lifters and build up the protective layer put down on the surface of the cam by the ZDDP in the proper type of oil for a flat tappet cam, not wal-mart with a additive. My proceedure for pre-lubing is lifters in rocker arms and shafts bolted on with push rods, intake or valley pan(BB) off, valve covers off. turn oil pump with drill or speed wrench while turning engine slow watching for oil to flow out of rocker shafts and fill up rocker arms making sure to stop turning engine once oil starts flowing to allow air to bleed out of the shaft, also insuring air is out of system in general, then continue to turn until oil comes out pass side rocker shaft also allowing time for air to bleed. then get the engine turned to tdc on #1 compression and do not rotate it again until the starter spins it, put oil pump drive in (BB slot parrallel with cam, small block pointing to #1 cylinder intake bolt), then I relube the cam and lifter faces with more sta-lube, pull lifter up a bit squeeze more lube in between for all then install push rods and reinstall rocker shafts also putting some lubriplate no.5 on the valve tips and pushrod tips. Then button it up to go back in.

I like that process. Thanks for sharing.

 

[70bigblockdodge]

Hope it helps. Also the moly stuff clogs your oil filter so I try to get it off there soon after the cam break in just the filter I leave the oil to continue to "wash" the inside and pull out any dirt, which there should not be any but it always seems to get in there. Beyond that I cut the filter just to look.

 

[moper]

I use the Crane Cams paste to coat the lifter bases and camshaft, after it's been mocked up once and tested for lifter rotation using only WD40 for lube. Do the mockup, make sure all the lifters rotate with no pressure, then pull it out, clean the surfaces, and use the paste. Any liquid will tend to not stay put - so I like the paste. The less rotations the better but you have to turn it to get the top end oiling verified so... it is what it is. Normally it's the turning over with the starter to get fuel pin the carb and oil pressure that wipes all the lube off.