1920 Roadster oil level indicator.

[Lahti35]

I noticed this oil level indicator on my 1920... I don't see anything like it in my manual so i'm thinking it's an old owner addition? Does the little boss on the cylinder wall to the left indicate the correct amount? I read that 6 quarts is the appropriate amount. 

[Mark Gregush]

Book says 5-6, I went with 5 which should be more than enough. I added 3 qts, marked the cylinder wall, then added 2 more and again marked the cylinder wall to give a range to watch. 

[Mattml430]

Some of the floats can sink a little or a lot so best to measure the amount going in. I always lift the pin and you can sort of feel where the float hits the oil and go from there. 

[TonyAus]

The home made indicator and red paint seem to be a little pointless given that the level may be determined by reference to the protrusions on the block.  The Book of Information states that the end of the float rod should be between the marks.  This prescription could be clearer.  Does it mean that the maximum and minimum should not exceed these limits or that the correct level is exactly between them?   I've taken the latter interpretation without problems. A dry fill to this point is exactly five litres - a convenient point for the size of oil container sold here in Australia. A refill after change is a little less given that some oil remains in the bottom of the sump.  You may have to convert this sage advice to US quarts.

And you might like to think about the hat missing from the top of the indicator rod.  Check out earlier discussion on this forum. 

[nat]

     Six quarts only brings the top of my indicator to the top of the lower mark on the block.  I try to keep it about half way between the two marks but the level seems to drop quickly from there to the six quart level where it remains for much longer time.

[Minibago]

Perhaps your float has some oil inside.

[cutdown]

I had some problem with this. When I first rebuilt my engine, I discovered the float would sink to the bottom, although it would stay up for a second before sinking. In the end, I got some other floats and compared the weights. My sinking float weighed 52 grams I think and another weighed only 42grams.  The 42 gram one floated as per the picture, with 6 quarts in the sump. I suspect that so long as the float is above the pint where it bottoms out, that you may be safe to drive the car. My bottomed out float sits about 1/4 inch above the block opening, which is below that lower indicator.

Edited June 6 by cutdown (see edit history)

[nat]

30 minutes ago, Minibago said:

Perhaps your float has some oil inside.

     I suspect so.

[cutdown]

According to Mr Google, 6 US quarts = 5.67812 litres. As that is the maximum recommended, it necessarily follows that that is what should be in the engine to start with.