Keep it Flowing
Accumulator systems are remarkably simple yet effective gizmos. As its name implies, an accumulator is a hydraulic cylinder that stores a reserve supply of oil, then discharges it back into the engine when oil pressure drops below a predetermined level. Since they tap into the engine's oil supply system, accumulators don't require a separate pump. Canton's Accusump unit features an internal piston that separates oil on one side from pressurized air on the other side. When the engine is running, oil pressure entering the Accusump squeezes the piston farther into the cylinder bore until both sides of the piston reach a state of equilibrium. Anytime oil pressure drops-whether during hard cornering, braking, or acceleration-the pressure differential between the oil and air side of the Accusump forces the piston to push oil out of the cylinder and into the oil galleys. Depending on engine displacement and rpm, the Accusump can provide a 15- to 60-second supply of oil. Once oil pressure inside the motor stabilizes, the engine forces oil back inside the Accusump once again in preparation for the next time it's needed.
Canton's Accusump is offered in 1-, 2-, and 3-quart capacities, and with a variety of manual and electric accumulator valves. Per Canton's recommendation, we ordered up a 20- to 25-psi valve that automatically discharges oil out of the Accusump when pressure dips below 25 psi, and recharges the reservoir once oil pressure stabilizes back to 25 psi. Also available are manual valves in addition to electric valves that operate in the 35- to 40-, and 55- to 60-psi range.
| WHERE THE MONEY WENT |
| Item: |
PN: |
Price: |
| Canton oil accumulator |
24-026 |
$175 |
| Remote oil filter mount |
22-625 |
$100 |
| Oil filter adapter |
22-593 |
$66 |
| Pressure control valve |
24-271 |
$155 |
| -10AN hose (10 feet) |
632170 |
$64 |
| -10AN hose end (4) |
23-625 |
$40 |
| -10AN to 1/2-inch NPT male fitting (6) |
243-245A |
$36 |
| -10AN 90-degree hose end |
23-665 (2) |
$40 |
| Brass 1/2-inch NPT male elbow |
N/A |
$5 |
| Brass 1/2-inch NPT coupler |
N/A |
$1 |
| Total: |
$682 |
To minimize the length of...
To minimize the length of hose to and from the Accusump, it should be mounted as close to the motor as possible. On Project Olds, the perfect location turned out to be right in front of the passenger-side wheelwell, behind the headlight. The Accusump was secured in place using a pair of brackets and clamps supplied with the kit.
For engines without an unused...
For engines without an unused oil pressure port on the block-which was the case with our big-block Olds-Canton offers a sandwich adapter that can be screwed onto the oil filter boss. Due to space constraints, this wasn't an option, so we elected to run a remote oil filter mount instead. The remote mount acts as a distribution point by channeling oil from the block into and out of the Accusump. Johnson mounted it on the inner fender, next to the alternator.
When transitioning from NPT...
When transitioning from NPT to -AN passages in an oil system, it's not a bad idea to use an -AN fitting that's 1/8-inch larger than its NPT counterpart. Therefore, we stepped all the 1/2 NPT ports in the Accusump system up to -10AN using adapter fittings.
The second piece of the remote...
The second piece of the remote filter mount puzzle is an oil filter adapter that attaches to the block. By screwing to the block's filter boss in place of the oil filter, it features an outlet port that feeds oil to the filter, and an inlet port that sends oil back to the main galley after it's been pressurized by the Accusump.
The oil filter adapter rotates...
The oil filter adapter rotates 360 degrees, which makes it easy to clock the fittings in the appropriate direction. Johnson positioned the fittings pointing rearward so that the oil lines could be routed upward along the firewall, then forward to the remote-mounted filter.
The oil lines were bolted...
The oil lines were bolted to the passenger-side inner fender, away from the headers and suspension, using a couple of cushioned Adel clamps. A nice side benefit of the remote-mount oil filter setup is that it allows moving it away from the headers for cooler oil temps.