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Oil dipstick tube

olyolson

Well Known Member
Friend
I have a Lycoming IO-360 B1B that has no valid marking stamps on the dipstick to indicate oil quantity. The only stamp is towards the bottom with an "8" and obviously this won't work. I bought the RV-8 like this so I think I need a new dipstick. I think this is what I need: but not the tube, just the dipstick.

LW-14758* (75736 long oil tube)
or LW-14780** (75767 intermediate tube)

I haven't measured the length of the current dipstick but even if I did I'm not sure it would be relevant since this one isn't evidently standard. I would like to get one that is stamped for 6 and 8 qts at the proper position. The dipstick is scribed at what I think is about 7 qts but is kind of hard to read as it is a light scribe. Any advice where to get one?
 
Last edited:
Oly,
Not sure what your exact set up is but no matter what you buy to get an exact reading with a taildrager you will have to make your own marks. I simply scribe mine on the back side of the stick. Drain the sump and add oil a quart at a time stop at number of quarts that you want an indication for and use the location of the oil on the stick as your reference for each scribe line.
Ryan
 
Calibrating oil dip stick

Is calibrating your engine oil dipstick like this normally done? I'm about to do first start on my new IO360-A1A. It shows where level for 8 quarts is and I was going to trust it. But I guess I better double check and even calibrate 2, 4 and 6 markings.

thanks
 
Is calibrating your engine oil dipstick like this normally done? I'm about to do first start on my new IO360-A1A. It shows where level for 8 quarts is and I was going to trust it. But I guess I better double check and even calibrate 2, 4 and 6 markings.

thanks

Calibration is only necessary for the traildraggers. You have a -7A so you should be able to rely on the current dipstick marks. However, be sure you have a mark for 6-qts because you will probably find that is the sweet spot. More than that and oil may end up on the belly of the plane.
 
Sounds like you may already have a suitable dipstick, Oly. Grind/sand the old markings so they're no longer visible, empty your sump, pour 4 quarts of oil in, and mark that level with a scribe line on the dipstick (and, if you want to get fancy, a number punch). Put in 2 more, quarts, repeat. Not sure anything other than the 4qt and 6qt lines are needed for a typical 4-banger Lyc, but get as many marks as you care to have.

Of course if your dipstick isn't long enough to get a reading at 4 qts, you may need to change it out. There's a roll pin in the oil cap that holds the dipstick (rod) in place. Punch that out and the rod will come right out. Substitute any aluminum rod that will fit.

The upside to this DIY method is that your dipstick will be perfectly calibrated for your particular engine. The markings on my factory Titan are off slightly, but I've found it doesn't matter all that much once you know the oil level your engine likes to run at.
 
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