I picked up used a Stef's Aluminum Oil Pan a while back to use on a Non-Girdle 464 I'm building as a temporary power plant for Bluzilla. The pan had a few issues that needed to be addressed before I would attemp to use it. The first being a very thin gauge pan rail flange that was bent, twisted, and mangled. So since I recently had Steve Reynolds build me an incredible oil pan for a future girdle engine, I asked him if he would be willing to help out with the Stef's pan. He was up for the challenge. The first thing on the list was to remove the thin rail and weld on a 1/4" rail while also reforming the front section to fit the crank gear/chain and slinger. It turned out excellent. After picking up the pan from Steve I started thinking about other modifications. So I stopped back up at his shop and dropped the pan off again. This time he fabricated a -12 offset external pick-up assembly as well as a hard acceleration baffle that keeps oil around the pickup. I needed to address the windage issue so I started looking around and found a louvered full length aluminum tray that was intended for a BBC pan but with a little tweeking I managed to get it to fit my pan. I made (4) aluminum stands for the tray and tapped them for 5/16-18 attachment bolts, then Steve welded them perfectly in place along with (4) .250" tall tabs welded to the front floor of the pan to keep the louvered tray at the manufacturers recommended height. The opposite side of the tray gets wedged under the already integrated crankshaft scraper. While he was at it I asked him to weld in a fitting for an oil temp probe in the sump area. I also requested a -8 fitting to be welded in the front right of the pan for the T/A Performance 1512E Oil Pump Cover's pressure relief return line. I especially like where Steve placed this as it is below the louvered windage baffle which will not only help speed the return of oil to the sump, .... but also it keeps the returning oil out of the crankshaft windage area. As a note: Before having Steve perform these mods I did test fit the whole louvered tray assembly using a rotating assembly with main studs and everything cleared. The last thing I have to do is cut an opening for an oil dipstick ,...though I'm not too concerned about having a dipstick as I'll know how much oil I need and they have been known to rattle anyway. I feel this pan turned out as good as I could ask for, only second to Steve's "SRE" pans!:TU: Thanks for the outstanding work Steve! Larry
Real race motors don't have dipsticks... That's why the TA blocks have that hole threaded for an 1/8 pipe plug.. p Nice pan.. JW
Thanks Jim, right on! .......... I should have proof read my post better as it was getting late and I left out the word "not" as in, "though I'm not too concerned about having a dipstick". :error: I have made the edit. Larry
Update: I feel I really lucked out. I found that the dipstick actually fits through one of the louverd slots in the tray with ease, no cutting needed. And it will clear the edges without scraping off the oil. Now all I have to do is drill and tap the deck of the block for the 1/8" pipe plug JW mentioned and the blocks off for machining. Larry
