damn push rod would fall down in the way and you couldnt get the pump back in. everytime you would push it up it would fall back down!
[damn lubricant anyway!]
2 ways i know of were to grease the snot out of the shaft, push it up, and let the grease hold it up while you stuck the pump in.
2nd way is to bend a hook or loop on a peice of wire, the you can push it up, hook it with the wire, or hold it up with the wire, and install the pump.
i have actually done it with a long skinny screwdriver instead of wire once or twice, and had to do it with my finger one night in the middle of nowhere oklahoma!
I'm old enough. However, I can honestly say I have never replaced such a thing on a chevy engine. I bought one buick in my life. Never owned another GM product.
My X-wife owned a Monte Carlo briefly. I traded it for ford parts after she left.
The grease thing worked if the motor wasnt hot. I've used a feeler gauge, coat hanger, and that threaded hole on the front, if tou put a longer bolt in there, it would wedge the rod to the top.
Another Wunderbutt was The ol early GM v-6; I owned one in this Buick Skyhawk, and I was living in the high desert in Californicate. The Oil Pump started to go, and it was an EXTERNAL pump. At first I thought "wonderful!" til I tried to rebuild that thing in the High Desert heat. It's a lot like the pump on the 7.3, that you pack with Vaseline so all the pieces stay in place while you put it together and it gets its prime.
Ever tried to "PACK" vaseline in 105 degree heat?
No, Todd, EXCEPT you.
I put the Vaseline in the freezer for a bit then used a CO2 Fire extinguisher on the area to get it a decent chill and THEN got the stuff to
stay in there long enough for me to bolt it all back up!