235 oiling questions

[slinginrods]

I have a 235 from a 55 Chevy truck in a t bucket I'm building,when warm the oil pressure is very low,12-15 lbs ,goes up to about 25 lbs driving.it has a bee hive filter on it ,do you think that will affect it?also should I add more oil since I have that installed?im running 5 quarts in it now
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[OrrieG]

I have never had a six or sbc with stock or near stock oiling systems that you could not use the oil pressure gauge for a tach!. Good news is they have good systems and I have ran them with the oil at 15# or even a little less at idle for years without a problem. Usually it picks right up to 30+ off idle, if not then you have a problem. If the level is good on the dip stick I would not add more, too much and it gets thrashed by the crank which can add air bubbles or foam it and could cause problems.

[dwcsr]

I would add the oil otherwise when its running it will always be 2 quarts low. We don't really care if it drains back when its shut off we care about running oil capacity to feed the pump. The chances of drain back are slim due to the vary thin lines used. It may drain back if it sits for a few days but it will go to 5 qts normal level after a few seconds of running.