58 250 hp fi PG dist. oiling

[Ronald R.]

Can anyone clear this up. Have what appears to be the orig 915 dist. Vacume advance is HEX and oiling is by engine oil via tube. Aim shows has tube with flip lid like passanger car??? thanks RDR

[William C.]

Re: 58 250 hp fi PG dist. oiling

'915 and '914 oil the same way, via pressure feed at the rear of the block. AIM drawings are not representative of actual parts in many cases.

[Ronald R.]

Re: 58 250 hp fi PG dist. oiling

Bill . sorry the 1958-60 Judging manuel on page 40 specifies the oiling type and the 914 and 908 distributors have centrifugal advance and the 915 has vacuum. thanks RDR

[John H.]

Re: 58 250 hp fi PG dist. oiling

Can anyone clear this up. Have what appears to be the orig 915 dist. Vacume advance is HEX and oiling is by engine oil via tube. Aim shows has tube with flip lid like passanger car??? thanks RDR

Ronald -

Photo on page 317 of Colvin's CBTN book shows a 915, made in October of '57, and it has an oiling tube for the upper section and a hex vacuum advance. Accompanying GM drawings of the 908 and 914 centrifugal-only distributors don't show an oiling tube. The fuel pump drive gearbox on all three is pressure-lubricated.

[Ronald R.]

Re: 58 250 hp fi PG dist. oiling

John Thanks , sounds like the judging manuel needs to be looked at.
thanks again RDR

[John D.]

Re: 58 250 hp fi PG dist. oiling

Ron, The 915 has a separate oil tube on it with a flip top cap. Configuration of the tube is important as so many of the car distributors had those tubes in the 50's, etc.
O
First of all every 57 to 65 FI distributor was fed engine oil (not a grease fitting) via a distributor oil line assembly consisting of various fittings and the 3/16 steel oil line.
Original T fittings for this oil line kit are much thinner than todays T fittings. In fact most all of the old time original fittings for this kit/assembly are a small OD than whats available today. But you didn't ask this.
Recap: 915 had the usual distributor oil line and also a curved tube with a flip top cap to it.
The hardest thing about restoring a 915 today is getting an original hex vacuum advance. Another difficult item is figuring out what is correct for the vacuum line from the distributor to the FI unit. Power glides used a different setup that std trans cars.
The 915 is single points and has no provision to drive a tach. The low HP FI's tachometer was run by the generator. John

[Ronald R.]

Re: 58 250 hp fi PG dist. oiling

The one I have has tack drive and no place for tube with cap. Is the correct base hard to find? Have all t he rest of the stuff, hex vacuum, blanking plugs etc. Any good pix anywhere?
thanks Ronnie