Oil pressure light on after engine re-assembly

[tourbox]

A couple ?'s before you take the pump off. When you removed the outer cover did you leave the top 2 screws in place,tight, near your ball check valve? If they were loosen or removed you will again have to align the pump. While you had it(the cover) off you said you could see the gears turning while the motor was turning over. The gears can rotate some because of the drag of the oil on the shaft it rides on. I, just today, had to remove the cover on a '95 Ultra for the same problem. I used a 90 deg. pick to see if the outer key had sheared. Manually try to turn the gear. It should not turn.
My buddy had let the key go behind the gear while slipping it on the shaft. It fell to the bottom of the pump cover in a cavity. We reinstalled it,made sure it would not manually turn this time. Removed the ball check valve fill it with oil 2-3 times until it quit going down, filling the pump. Started bike up and in a few seconds light out and had pressure.
To get the clip off rotate the clip where you can see both ends. Use a small flat blade screw driver to catch the groove of the shaft and gently pri it outward and hold in that position, it doesn't move that much. Once it is out you can put the screw driver behind the clip and use a pic or another small screw driver to push on the other end,opening the clip, and slip it off the shaft. If you are really really careful you can reuse the clip other wise it needs to be replaced. Book says to replace it. Keep us posted, my Curiosity is getting to me.
tourbox

 

[HDDon]

A couple ?'s before you take the pump off. When you removed the outer cover did you leave the top 2 screws in place,tight, near your ball check valve? If they were loosen or removed you will again have to align the pump. While you had it(the cover) off you said you could see the gears turning while the motor was turning over. The gears can rotate some because of the drag of the oil on the shaft it rides on. I, just today, had to remove the cover on a '95 Ultra for the same problem. I used a 90 deg. pick to see if the outer key had sheared. Manually try to turn the gear. It should not turn.
My buddy had let the key go behind the gear while slipping it on the shaft. It fell to the bottom of the pump cover in a cavity. We reinstalled it,made sure it would not manually turn this time. Removed the ball check valve fill it with oil 2-3 times until it quit going down, filling the pump. Started bike up and in a few seconds light out and had pressure.
To get the clip off rotate the clip where you can see both ends. Use a small flat blade screw driver to catch the groove of the shaft and gently pri it outward and hold in that position, it doesn't move that much. Once it is out you can put the screw driver behind the clip and use a pic or another small screw driver to push on the other end,opening the clip, and slip it off the shaft. If you are really really careful you can reuse the clip other wise it needs to be replaced. Book says to replace it. Keep us posted, my Curiosity is getting to me.
tourbox

Tourbox, you and Hoople have a way of making things real clear. Reading this and some of your other post it's almost like you're standing right behind us as we make the repair. Thanks, HDDon

 

[tourbox]

Well thank you HDDon. Where do you want me to stand, I'm ready for a trip(lol).
tourbox

 

[doctor727]

Tourbox, make sure they provide liquid refreshment while you stand there.

 

[tourbox]

Sounds like a plan doc.
tourbox

 

[Mel Neff]

I removed the oil pump and took it to the local Harley dealer and had a tech look at it. He said it looks OK. Blew out oil passages with compressed air. Re-assembled, being careful that the gears were keyed to the shaft. Made sure hose connections were tight. Still no oil pressure.

I'm stumped and frustrated.

 

[Jack Klarich]

I removed the oil pump and took it to the local Harley dealer and had a tech look at it. He said it looks OK. Blew out oil passages with compressed air. Re-assembled, being careful that the gears were keyed to the shaft. Made sure hose connections were tight. Still no oil pressure.

I'm stumped and frustrated.

Have you checked the tappets? Do you have adjustable push rods?

 

[tourbox]

This is Frustrating. Per your 1st. post " I just re-assembled my Evo engine after replacing a bad tappet and cam.". Did you dismantle the entire engine or just the nose cone? There are 2 different nose cone gaskets, one has 2 holes on the left center area, the other has 3. One also has an extra strip of material below the breather gear that turns towards the front of the bike then down. I don't think the wrong one would cause your problem but possibly worth a check. When you re-installed the pump after Harley dealer looked at it, did you check your alignment of the pump with the Pinion gear and oil pump worm gear off the Pinion shaft? I don't know what your knowledge of assembly is and am not trying to get you mad at my methods or questions. I hope I'm not ticking you off. Just trying to help.
One other test, if you don't mind. Disconnect your wire to the oil sending unit. Turn your key on, then ground the wire to the frame or bolt. The light should be out until you ground it. All this does is check your wiring to the bulb. You can check the switch by removing it, ground the switch housing with a jumper then blow 10-15 lbs. air pressure in the small hole at the of it. With the wire hooked up and the switch grounded the light should go out with the air pressure.
I ponder on this some more. Keep us posted.
tourbox

 

[Mel Neff]

Have you checked the tappets? Do you have adjustable push rods?

I do have adjustable pushrods.
How would the tappets cause no oil pressure?

 

[Mel Neff]

This is Frustrating. Per your 1st. post " I just re-assembled my Evo engine after replacing a bad tappet and cam.". Did you dismantle the entire engine or just the nose cone? There are 2 different nose cone gaskets, one has 2 holes on the left center area, the other has 3. One also has an extra strip of material below the breather gear that turns towards the front of the bike then down. I don't think the wrong one would cause your problem but possibly worth a check. When you re-installed the pump after Harley dealer looked at it, did you check your alignment of the pump with the Pinion gear and oil pump worm gear off the Pinion shaft? I don't know what your knowledge of assembly is and am not trying to get you mad at my methods or questions. I hope I'm not ticking you off. Just trying to help.
One other test, if you don't mind. Disconnect your wire to the oil sending unit. Turn your key on, then ground the wire to the frame or bolt. The light should be out until you ground it. All this does is check your wiring to the bulb. You can check the switch by removing it, ground the switch housing with a jumper then blow 10-15 lbs. air pressure in the small hole at the of it. With the wire hooked up and the switch grounded the light should go out with the air pressure.
I ponder on this some more. Keep us posted.
tourbox

I only dismantled the nose cone.

I'm not sure what you mean by alignment, but I did check that the shaft was not binding and that it turned when the engine was turned over.

I did check the wiring, but not the switch itself, but I have also been using an oil pressure gauge, which reads zero. When I dsconnect the gauge, no oil is in its hose.