Here's my rationale behind upgrading the connecting rod oiling- - - -"Splash-oiler" is actually an incorrect term for the Babbit rod 216 and 235 engines. "External oiler" would be a more accurate description. The 216 and 235 engines use spray tubes aimed at the dippers on the connecting rods as they reach the bottom of their travel (where load on the rod bearing is at a minimum, just as it reverses its direction of travel) to squirt a stream of oil into the dipper. The faster the crankshaft turns, the more oil will be forced into the bearing as the rod intersects the stream of oil. The 4 cylinder engines do not have the spray tubes- - - -the oil pump simply fills the troughs in the pan with oil, and the rods dip into the reservoir of oil as the crankshaft turns. It looks like it would be a fairly simple job to fit a higher volume oil pump (like one for a 216) and add spray tubes to increase the velocity of the sprayed oil for more efficient connecting rod lubrication. Improved design dippers can be fitted to the rod caps to direct the oil into the rods more efficiently. The current system looks like it was designed by Fred Flintstone! As long as the load on the distributor drive gear on the camshaft doesn't exceed safe limits, I believe the added oil volume won't have any downsides. Here's a view of the interior detail of the oil pan:
www.ebay.com/itm/325926327712?The angled troughs at the side of the pan align with tubes attached to an oil distribution manifold on the crankcase which receives the output of the oil pump to fill the troughs. Those same tubes could be incorporated into an improved spray-oil system.
Jerry
