Hi David
You are right about oil pressure on the splash lubrication 216 engines. The book basically says if the pressure gauge shows any pressure it is OK. But that is only the beginning of the story the oil flow inside the engine is amazing. I wanted to understand this better and when I was building up the 216 engine for my Patter 12 I did all the steps called for in the manual and then started documenting what was going on. Take a look at
http://canadianmilitarypattern.com/P...Page%20Two.htm which includes a video of the water test for nozzle alignment.
While testing a 216 one time the tee fitting on the side of the block broke off and in a matter of seconds it had pumped most of the oil out of the engine. Fortunately I was standing at the control panel when it happened and hit the kill switch. After that I did a test by pumping the crankcase pan out using the regular oil pump driven at low speed by a drill 5 quarts of hot oil in between 7-10 seconds.
I'll have to add the video of the 216 running with the valve cover off and the transparent side panel that I use to check the push rod function and lubrication.
The inside of the 216 is literally an oil fog when running above idle as the troughs are emptied by the scoops coming through the actual lubrication is of the lower rod ends is by the stream of oil hitting the scoop, which is why correct aiming of the nozzles is so important. Watched this by putting a clear port over the fuel pump mounting hole in the block.
Cheers Phil