Gene berg pump cover

[Hotrodvw]

I also try to warm it up, and keep the R's down until the temps come up.  Oil weight choice does have a lot to do with it. 

[Cheesepanzer]

I don't use roofing tar for oil, so my pressure never goes above 60psi (according to the gauge).  If the pressure doesn't exceed 60psi, what value is the bypass valve?

   Actually, I didn't think I was running roofing tar.  The engine had 40wt in it at the time and was fully warmed up on a warm day.  I was almost home, got on it through 2nd and the oil light came on.  Shut it down and pulled over.  I simply followed the "trail" back to the "point of impact."  Never did find the filter.   

[TexasTom]

texas tom, what pressure gauge you running?  i have a crap vdo pressure gauge that doesnt give any accurate readings. it goes to about 30K when cold and drops to zero at hot idle. i know there is nothing wrong with the engine because the oil light doesnt light up at all.

Pupjoint,
I run a VDO as well, but have it speced out at NASA every month!
Be nice to it and it'll be nice to you.
TxT

[dragvw2180]

 I had a Berg bypass cover but was concerned about oil foaming in the pump as it recycled . I replaced it with a " JayCee powerflow oil system ". Any excess pressure is bled off through a tube back to the case. Here is a link to his products, part is about half way down the page,


http://www.jayceevw.com/products

               Mike McCarthy

[So.Cal.Life]

   Air being the cause of ( oil foaming ) clearly has "nothing"to do with" any kind" of pump cover , air can only come from a leak in the oil pickup prior to the oil pump , so your pump cover statement is factually incorrect !!!     I'm still waiting for someone to give a" real reason"other then crap in the oil , for a Berg bypass cover failing ,   but I'm not holding my breath.      ROOFING TAR WITH GRAVEL perhaps.      

[Bruce]

Why do you need a reason?  It is a fact that they have gotten stuck in the bypass position.

The diameter of the ball is always going to be almost exactly the same size every time to within tenths of a thou.  The surface finish of the ball is extremely good, so IMO, it' can't be the fault of the ball.
This leaves the bore.  The diameter of that machined bore is going to vary during a production run, and from run to run.  Maybe the one my friend had was on the small side such that the clearance between the ball and the bore was smaller than many others.  This would mean a smaller piece of grit could cause it to hang up.
Maybe the surface finish of the bore contributes too.

[So.Cal.Life]

    Because Bruce , there are "reasons" for failures, sounds like you have it all figured out , doesn't it ? same size balls, ball should move freely in its bore, measure both , do the math, if you think its the finish in the bore , polish it, Like I said before ,they're not rocket science, Bruce, don't let a simple part like this kick your ass, I'm confident you can figure it out.   I am, believe it or not,trying to be of help to you and your friend.  The ball only seals at the bottom of its bore ,ie.the seat, so if you polish the bore, the only thing of real concern is the seat.  I noticed that you used the word" grit" in your last post, so I think you might be on to something ,   I agree, I also think we would agree" grit"  has no business in well filtered oil , or performance engines .  Hope this helps.

[Torben Alstrup]

Hehe. This always stirs up the opinions. I have to say that I stopped using the Berg units about 10 years ago, due to exactly that of what Bruce describes, on 2 different engines. And then on a third I couldnt get pressure at idle and found that the ball seat was not machined correct. Enough of that. I really think they used to be good quality.
That was also when I really began to try and figure out how much "oil pump" is really needed and ditto the viscosity needed. Let me put it this way, - my use of 30 mm oil pumps have decreased to Ally cases and left lane engines with front mounted coolers, and a few race engines using the new style full flow system. (I´m not absolutely sure it is needed, but it is recommended and I for one have not pushed the limit) When I have to use these relief covers I use the CSP. So far so good 

On the other hand. If you are determined to use large Melling pumps etc. its most likely a good insurance against blown filters and hoses.

T

[Bruce]

  Bruce, don't let a simple part like this kick your ass, I'm confident you can figure it out.   I am, believe it or not,trying to be of help to you and your friend.

I don't need to figure it out.  I have 100% prevented this problem by not using it.  No one using that cover can make that claim.
That pump cover is a solution to a problem I don't have.
If the pump cover works for you, keep using it.

[Hotrodvw]

So, I've heard of maybe 10 people (and that's a fat guesstimate) that have had an issue.  I don't know of any single item where someone hasn't had an issue with some part of it.  I'll keep mine.

[Bill Schwimmer]

For those of us that don't live by the Arctic circle this is what we have to use. It has more dead dinosaurs than regular oil so the cam won't go flat. 2 pages about a pump cover, thats pretty funny.