Reply to "Fontana block & oil level"

Just chatted with Don and he said that overfill on the stock stick is common with the Fontana block builds with 10 qt oil pan. He tried to explain to me but besides being a mechanical rookie I am more of a visual guy too so I was a little lost. If I saw a photo visually that would click with me. He is in the process of building a Fontana set up now and expects the same situation. He basically builds the engine, puts 10 qt in and then re-welds the stick to match the actual fill mark. This probably explains why both my Fontana builds show overfill on the stick, but in actuality it is not overfull. So I will just put in my 9.5 or so and then return to my usual practice of monitoring on the "W" or "A" on the stick for being full.

As far as oil temp, you are correct I should probably drive the car longer to get the oil temp up. Will take longer beach cruises. On oil change the oil was dark, even though I don't drive it much so it needed the change anyway. I like to see it pretty clear on the stick.