a thought on Joel's Low OP

[Terry Rust <trust@domain.elided>]

The scenario:
> Now on a side note about my incredibly low oil pressure (off scale
>     low!), I changed the oil with stright 40wt. last night (since it's so
>     freaking hot here) and bingo the pressure is back.  The needle drops
>     to around the peg at idle but I get a solid 1/4 scale on run, and no
>     clicks!  I'm a happy binder driver!  Didn't have time to check the
>     Transfer Case light, but it continues to flicker with the pressure
>     reading high, so that light must have a pinched wire somewhere.  The
>     other question is:  Since the light continues to work with normal
>     operation of the TC shift lever, does the TC light switch make a
>     ground, or does it make 12v?  It would appear that it makes a ground,
>     and that the pinch merely momentarily makes ground.  If itmade 12v,
>     and there was a pinch, it wouldn't light the bulb and would blow a
>     fuse?  Errors in reasoning?  Please inform.
>
JB,
If I understand that the xfer case light and oil pressure seem somehow
related? I think I'ld be inclined to wonder if the problem isn't in the
power that is common to both. Have you verified the low oil Pressure is in
fact not an indication problem? I ran into this when My daughter first
fired up her 304 after the rebuild, we simply tapped into a plugged hole in
the block with a mechanical gauge to verify. If they truly are related to
one another, I would look towards a problem in the common wiring, bad
solder joint, abrasion that intermittantly grounds out. Perhaps in the
gauge cluster? Just seems illogical that oil pressure would affect the xfer
case light any other way.