I put together an FL350 balancer vent system that does not require modification of the Engine side case. It is very simple and cheap to make. It is designed to use the dip stick plug hole as the vent. I have seen the modification using the stock dip stick modified by drilling a hole through it and a hose glued into the opening of the dip stick, but I decided to take a slightly different route.

Here's what I did:
I modified an F150 radiator drain plug (same thread as the stock FL350 Odyssey dip stick), screwed it into the dip stick hole and attached a vent line that is runs to a fuel filter. This filter is suspended above the motor (( Internal Combustion Engine ? )) somewhere allowing enough line that if the oil can not make its way up the hose and flow out. I have considered attaching the filter outlet to the Stock air box so it will have a continuous air draw on the line to assure proper venting.

Please note: This is just the design phase and I have not used this mod on a running Ody yet.

The parts required are:

1.) A radiator drain plug from a 1988 through 2003 Ford F150.
2.) Three of four feet of tubing (carb overflow fuel hose).
3.) A small filter such as a replacement filter for a lawn mover or a motorcycle.
4.) The rubber O ring from the stock dip stick to use as a seal on the new vent plug.

The drain plug needs a slight modification to get it to work. If you look at the pictures below you will see the Ford radiator drain plug before modification.

Modify the drain plug as follows:
1.) Cut off the two prongs located on the end of the plug. I cut them off at the where the O ring is located but it may need to be cut off just below the threads.
Note: If you do cut the plug just below the threads, you will not need to drill the end of the plug out.
2.) Drill the end of the plug out with a 7/32" drill bit. Remember if you cut the plug just below the threads, you will not need to perform this step.
3.) Glue a three to four foot long piece of carb overflow hose onto the opening of the modified drain plug.
4.) Attach the other end of the hose to a small fuel filter.

If you do not want to glue a hose into the center of the plug, you can grind off the thumb tabs on the drain plug and attach a 3/8" ID hose to the nipple you just made by grinding the thumb tabs off. Note doing this may make it difficult to get the plug tightened into the motor (( Internal Combustion Engine ? )).

Any comments or changes to this modification are welcome! Post away!

nice mod.think im gonna try that on mine.

Thanks Jim,

Don't forget, you still need to plug the hole that vents into the pull starter (stator) side of the case.

I was thinking of a way to not have to plug the stator side vent hole........
I thought about routing the end of the vent line into the lower air box and then leave the vent in the stator area open (with a filter on it) to allow for a continuous air flow through the entire system. I decided against it because it would be in an area of a lot of dust dirt mud etc... Besides that it might be a hassle to have to clean the filter on regular occasion.

So in the end I just plugged the stator side vent hole. Also don't forget to plug the vent line just above the starter.

Rand

great idea, thanks for the pics. I run mine with a low amount of oil but I will be adding that to.

OOps! Screwed up on my post! Lets try this again!

I have been running the low oil amount per the service instructions but when I pulled apart the side case there was still some oil in the bottom of the case and traces around the the starter!

Another part of the mod I didn't post is I'm going to shield the hose from some of the heat by covering it with some split plastic wire cover. The hose runs a little close to the exhaust system for my taste!


Rand

The following pictures show an entirely different set up for the vent system while still using the Ford F150 radiator plug. I didn't like the idea of such a small diameter thin walled hose not rated for heat so close to the exhaust. Not to mention the only thing holding the hose into the plug was just a small amount of locktite, although I had to use a lot of force to pull the hose out of the plug.

I simply cut the thumb tabs from the plug and threaded a 1/8" x 1/8" npt barbed nipple onto the end of the plug. To do this after I cut the tabs off, I placed the plug into a drill and sanded a taper into the plug so I could thread the nipple onto it. After threading the end of the plug, I threaded the fitting onto the end of the plug and used a little locktite for a permanent hold.

This should hold up to heat a lot better than the first setup.

The opposite end is an expansion bellows almost identical to the Odysseysalvage setup. you can get it at http://www.polyperformance.com/shop/PSC ... 17158.html" .".." .".. for 5.50 plus shipping. I made the mistake of paying $19.00 plus shipping for one from trail-gear.com before I found the above link! !@#$%&*
Oh well, live and learn I guess!

Looks good keep the wheels turning guys the more ideas the better..

Can you describe the bellows better, does it have a small hole to vent or is the bellows all sealed up once installed?

Hoser, I was going to ask everyone's opinion on the sealed system so I'm glad you responded.

The system is completely sealed. Randy from Odyssey Salvage sells something that is almost identical but as you know the venting is done by tapping the side case and not using the dip stick hole. I have seen it installed on numerous 350's so I'm assuming that the system works well.

I have mixed feelings about using a totally sealed system. I am not sure that the bellows will expand enough to compensate for the pressure build up.

I have not used the system yet because my Engine is still sitting on the bench waiting for my water cooled from Hillside Honda. I have checked on this idea with the 4X4 crowd (differential venting) and get mixed reactions and questions about leaking past the axle seals. If you are curious, the system is called a "Creeper Breather".

Whats your opinion?

Thanks, Rand

Hehehe, you said nipple.

Nice mod, might have to do some work on mine too.

I would have to see the bellows, I would say try it its gotta be close if not perfect if Randy is using it, you could always poke a pin hole in the bellows so it cant build up enough pressure to blow the seal out, get it hot and see how much the bellows blows up I guess. vent mod

The bellows can not only expand but can also contract. If the system is truly air tight then the bellows can be installed in the collapsed position which should make up for the expansion when the balancer oil is hot. After giving it a lot of thought the air space within the balancer gear area is quite small and the bellows should be large enough make up for expansion.

While in my "I'm thinking about it" mode, I came up with another idea to vent the box but its not sealed. I don't know if any of you guys are familiar with these but they are a diffuser for a device that expels air. They come in varying sizes, I happened to have access to one with a 1/8" npt thread. Dense enough to keep most anything of the line but I would still use an in line fuel filter.

Here is another idea for holding the hose into the plug from jim327. I like this idea! I changed my set up to the threaded on nipple because I didn't like the idea of just gluing the hose into the drain plug.

Good work Jim! Keep the ideas coming guys!

Here are the final pictures of the vent modifications.

Rand

Picture angle is deceiving, probably 2" of clearance. I used high pressure fuel line so heat shouldn't be an issue.

Thanks, Rand

I see what looks to be a radiator but no cool head? Am i missing something??

It's a new double top secret air cooled / water cooled head! To activate the water cooling once the air cooled head gets hot, you stop riding and dump the water in the radiator on top of the air cooled head! LOL I know, smart ass remark! Trying to keep my spirits up.

I am still waiting for the Hillside Honda head to be completed. I decided to install the motor (( Internal Combustion Engine ? )) and do my heat cycles and possibly run it around the block a couple of times before the water cooled head arrives.

Rand

Heh heh very nice , had my head spinning!

Just as an update I have about 5 hours on the vent setup and it works great with no issues. One small drawback is that when you want to remove the plug to check the oil level you have to loosen the hose clamp holding the hose to the nipple to allow the hose to spin freely on the nipple. If you don't do this, the the hose gets twisted and knotted up when you try to twist out the plug.

Rand

any oil blowing up into your filter.glad to hear it works

Not running a filter, just the sealed system like Randy sells. I will have to pull the bellows off and see if I have any oil up that far.

Rand

ok since my Engine is on my bench i am going to do this..but what is better a sealed system or using some kind of filter or air difuser...also the vent at the starter is the one that you plug up?

To answer your first question............I would say that you need to keep anything from entering the ballancer area. You can do this with either a sealed system (bellows), filter on the end of the line (jim327's setup) or the diffuser that I have installed.

I originally used Randy's (OdysseySalvage.com) sealed system. I have since changed to using a diffuser at the end of the line V/s the bellows Randy uses. I did this because I have had ballancer oil puke out through my exhaust pipe. Randy's bellow system is supposed to expand and contract with the pressure in the ballancer area. I do not believe that the bellows I have is expanding as it should. I did not purchase the system from Randy so the bellows I used may be stiffer than the one he supplies with his kit.

Here is the original link that was done by Randy (Odysseysalvage.com)
http://www.odysseysalvage.com/fixstarteroil.htm

To answer your second question..........The hole that you are going to plug is located at about the 2 O'clock position in relation to the flywheel. It is slightly recessed back into the case but you can get to it without having to remove the flywheel. I first filled cleaned the hole and filled it with a small amount of silicone then screwed in a self tapping sheet metal screw that was just slightly larger than the inner diameter of the vent hole.

Make sure the hole and screw are clean and free of oil so you will get a good seal.

Rand

ok..i see now..i will black gasket maker and then put a self tapper in. as for the breather part problem use a small filter of some kind see what i can find around here

does anyone have a part number for that Ford F150 radiator drain pulg?