Don't believe so, no. It's not hollow on my '62, and hasn't been hollow on any of the other solid-lifter engines I've worked with. It's also shown as solid in the '62, '64, '68 and '72 factory parts and service manuals I spot-checked. Perhaps the '81-up hydraulic-lifter engine used a hollow rear rocker shaft retaining bolt; I'm not sure. (the '68 FSM does contain a little advisory note in a box, saying some rocker shafts might not have a flat!)

The rearmost bolt is extra long compared to the others, though. That's because the rearmost bolt's threads engage in a hole that's recessed below the level of the pedestal base, with the space between the bottom of the pedestal base and the top of the threaded hole being an oil passage. So, oil flows to the rocker shaft around, but not through, the rearmost bolt.
Yep. A quick-and-dirty way to check is to remove the rocker shaft, crank the engine and keep an eye on the rearmost rocker shaft mounting pedestal. If you see oil forced out of that pedestal under a goodly amount of pressure, your problem is in the rocker shaft (dirty or improperly installed) and/or arms (dirty).

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

it seems i have one of those rocker shafts that do not have the flat ground at one end. one end looks a little off, but not hardly enough to be called a flat spot. so i switched it around, etc, and still getting oil up there, but.. not very much. mainly to the 4 5 6 cylinders, i did a test by wiping clean the rocker arms to see if and where any wetness was occuring, and its slinging the oil, at the last three cylinders, but not out of the top of the rockers to drip down on the valve stems at all. i will take the rocker shaft off one last time and look for the extra large bolt hole to be mated to the rear most rocker shaft pedestal, and cross my fingers that for 40 years or since whoever had it before me installed it upside down, since i already switched it around, and the same result happened.
i do have a .45 that i could point at the block in anger

The .45 should clean up the rocker shaft nicely

Hmmmmmm......Dan, I do believe you may be correct. Now that you've called me to rask, I remember that it was an '87 engine that I was tearing down that I found the hollow bolt.

So.....Dan is probably correct for a solid lifter engine.

Roger

well one final go proved well. just for information the rocker shaft on mine has no flat spot, and even more frustratingly, all the holes are the same. my vision is fine, and i triple checked the clearance with a bolt on the edge. i relied on the fact that it made most sense for the little oil holes to match up with the oil grooves on the inside of the rockers.
anyway, i popped out the little end plugs on the shaft and after i though i had it clean, it was'nt. i soaked a rag with brake parts cleaner, and rammed it through with a rod, much like cleaning a gun barrel. also found the oil journal hole in that last pedestal, and rammed the snot out of it with a length of copper wire. i was hoping the wire would take to the bends and twists in the journal, but i was only able to ram it about 3 inches, hoping i didnt break something loose and clog up where the bend in the journal was.
put it all back together, revved the engine, and what a freakin MESS. it was beautiful! i think the oiling is a little more pronounced at the rear of the engine still, but that could just be the heater hoses getting in the way of the spattering. without a doubt... oil was coming nicely out of the tips of the rocker arms now. all of em.

thank you for the assistance, men.
now onto that soup -vs- kerosene to blast the rest of the oil system.
is 3 parts kerosene, 2 parts oil even the right mixture? is it more or less safer or effective than dans elixir?

Good job getting your rocker shaft oiling issue resolved. The difference in bolt hole size is hard to see -- easiest way is to put a bolt and curved retainer washer through each of the holes, in each direction -- that'll easily turn up the (slightly!) larger hole that goes bottom-rear.

As far as which flush mix to use, I'd say "none of the above". From what you've said, you've got a LOT of crud in the engine. Flushes are fine for moderately dirty engines, but you're just beggin' for trouble if you flush an engine as crudded up as you report yours is. Me, I'd probably lean towards dropping the oil pan and manually cleaning it and the oil pickup pipe, then reinstalling it all. THEN a flush might stand a good chance of cleaning out the rest of the engine's crud without posing a danger of serious engine damage.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

If it were me, I'd use nothing but good quality oil and I'd change at maybe 1000-mile intervals for the next few changes. Change the filter every time too, or even change filters in the middle of an oil run. If the filter clogs and goes into bypass mode, that's when you risk getting crud spread around the engine.

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I've been wondering just how much of a mess the oil-slinging rockers would make, once we got our slant started. In my other post "Eureka!" I explain how we finally discovered, just as AWOL did, the oil passage in the rear pedestal. Reamed it out real good.

We packed rags all around the head in anticipation of a big mess, but I was pleasantly surprised that it did not make that mess. Oil comes up the narrow channel to the rocker's tip over the valve and deposits on top of the valve spring retainer a nice puddle, which in turn washes down over the valve stem. Another channel directs oil to the top of the rocker where it exits and runs down a narrow crease between the two stamped metal halves of the arm. It simply flows down through the oversized hole that was threaded for the adjusting screw and washes over the cupped end of the push rod.

It wasn't the big gusher that I expected, but rather a nice even and liberal flow of oil. Is this what many of you have seen, or do I have more to worry about? My guess is, at a higher rpm, the oil would probably be "slung" off, but at idle (and with 50-55 psi pressure) I really didn't even need the rags. AWOL, what did you experience, and what rpm were you running at?

By the way, my other post includes a pic of the two types of bolts on the rocker shaft.

Jerry

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There's a difference between ignorance and stupidity.
Ignorance is not knowing any better.
Stupidity is knowing, yet doing it anyway.

Jerry, At idle, you have made a perfect description of what I have experienced with both my slants during valve adjustments. If you rev the motor up, the action of the rockers slamming the valves will make a splattered mess. As long as oil is flowing, everything will get lubricated when you merge onto the interstate This is also why the valve cover needs baffles.

Awol, it sounds like you've got this oiling problem licked! Hopefully this will be reflected in less overheating as well.

I would go really easy on the motor flushing, and be prepared to open the top up to clean/inspect it again soon.

Great troubleshooting guys. It must feel great to have it fixed!

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1980 Aspen 225 super six

Run 1 quart of ATF in your oil. It is very high detergent and will clean your engine out well, but not rapidly as to clog oil passages with junk.

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Official Cookie and Mater Tormentor.

Slant6ram, more than you know.
By the way, what is a valve cover?


Just kidding
We've been looking at the engine like this for so long, I almost forgot how it will look buttoned up.

Jerry

_________________
There's a difference between ignorance and stupidity.
Ignorance is not knowing any better.
Stupidity is knowing, yet doing it anyway.

i dont think you have anything to worry about. when i was experiencing the mess, i was revving the hell out of the motor.

Power flushing systems are used
by some garages as money flushing
gimics, but I believe the systems can
work well.

Back flushing a motor with a heated
filtered solvant might work pretty good
as you could remove most all of the
sludge without plugging the pickup
screen. It might not be difficult to
build something like this, it is mostly
a tank, an oil pump, a filter and a
heater element. If would be like
giving a motor a dialysis. You could
maybe use kerosene, then switch to
motor oil and reverse the flow. Run
the flusher for a couple of hours every
six months . Maybe use a large
capacity truck bypass oil filter. It's
the new tool all old car hobbiest need.

I recommend 20% dexron 80%oil for a flush. Change filter, add oil mix, drive gently for 30 min., drain. If it comes out like tar. do again. I have driven a car for months with this mix in it with no problems. Just remember not to load the engine hard. Kerosene, B-12, diesel, and solvent will break down the lubricity of oil, and increase the chance of bearing failure.

This is just my opinion and exexperience

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Dave

1977 d-200 crew cab ex-army pickup wants it's /6 back
1962 Valiant 2 door, 170, three on the tree
1972 d-100 parts truck
80 volare wagon now a parts car

The fleetguard lf697 lube filter is a 2 qt filter, might be a good ider when flushing gunk

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Dave

1977 d-200 crew cab ex-army pickup wants it's /6 back
1962 Valiant 2 door, 170, three on the tree
1972 d-100 parts truck
80 volare wagon now a parts car