OIL PUMP SETTINGS - BIG PORT

[Luddite]

My Big Port chucks oil out everywhere!  I've been progressively turning the drip-feed dial down, but am worried that I'll cut off all of the supply before I stop the mess!  The sight glass is always full, and the drips are coming around once every ten seconds at idle.  Even with the pump turned way up, I never get the blue haze. Can anyone give me a pointer as to how many turns out from fully closed the regulator should be?

[Swig]

Assuming you run a Pilgrim Pump with a sight feed. Set it for a drip every couple of seconds and see how it goes. If it feels like it's running hot and labouring increase. Where does it leak oil from ?

[33d6]

Ignore the blue haze bit. Those instructions were written before oil control rings were commonly fitted to pistons. It only works if you have an original piston without an oil control ring or don't have one fitted on your modern piston.

Oil control wasn't much of an issue in the days of total loss lubrication as you used it by the bucket load anyway but as dry sump lubrication systems were introduced and engineers began to realise excess oil in the combustion chamber reduced performance they redesigned pistons and fitted oil control rings to keep the oil where it belonged. Great efforts were made to eliminate the blue haze by preventing oil getting past the piston and into the combustion chamber.

Don't cut the oil down too much. Oil is cheaper than engine rebuilding.
Cheers,

[Luddite]

Thanks for the replies, your advice is very much appreciated.

''It only works if you have an original piston without an oil control ring or don't have one fitted on your modern piston.''

This fact dawned on me over the weekend as I was checking the oilways etc.  To be honest, I felt a bit of a muppet for not twigging onto that one a bit earlier 

''Where does it leak oil from ?''

I've not bottomed this one out yet, there's the usual timing case/ oil pump leak which I've seen on most Big Ports, and a weep from the tappets which I kind of expect, but it's draining out of somewhere else, too.  Doesn't seem to be the crankcase joint and there's not a great gush from the chain oiler.  It's not coming out of the tap or the pipe joints, either.  When If it stops raining I'll be out with the plunger pump tap turned off to eliminate the possibility of syphoning from that side..

Any tips on how to get bunt-on oil stains off nickel exhaust pipes?

[33d6]

Full strength Eucalyptus oil is good for removing burnt on oil. I used to get mine direct from an old boy distilling it but I don't know how you go in countries without eucalypts.
Cheers,

[Luddite]

Full strength Eucalyptus oil is good for removing burnt on oil.
Cheers,

The best way without Eucalyptus oil, as I've discovered, is two evenings worth of gently rubbing with Autosol (ironically whilst sat under the neigbours overhanging eucalyptus tree).  The nasal decongestant strength of Eucalyptus which I raided from the family first aid bag made no difference, but now you can smell the bike coming.  Maybe it's cleared the inlet tract, too.