Replaced broken oil pump in 1978 f150 ranger xlt 351m first time trying to start it cranks easy then hits something hard and drains the battery. Am I the proud owner of a blown engine? Could a broken distributor cause this?

 

being that the oil pump was toast it could of taking out the motor.. how long did it run without oil being pumped through the motor ?

 

The distributor is connected directly to pump so it broke when pump seized.

 

Sounds like your looking for an engine !. Be glad it isn't a late model truck , these older one's are cheap to fix compared to the new one's. Was the engine turning free after you removed the broken distributor connecting rod or did you check that ?. A broken distributor connecting shaft , the one that connects it to the oil pump could have lodged in there.

If it was mine even though it is a pain in the *** , i would uninstall the oil pump connecting rod and take a good look in there and make sure a broken piece of distributor connecting rod isn't lodged in there. While it is out turn the engine by hand through a few reveloutions. If it is your engine that has the problem then it will hit some thing hard as you said , if it turns free then it points to a piece of debris ( broken rod) in the way. If it locks up and does not turn through a revolution with out locking up then stop!. After that test i would say your engine is the issue however all the cars and trucks i have had through the years i have found it is usuall the easiest thing first that is wrong. Best of luck.

 

I doubt you blew the engine if it ran that short of a time without the pump running. Plenty of people have run these 351Ms without oil pressure for a year or more.

I also would bet on the connecting rod between dizzy and oil pump. Spin it by hand some and see what you come up with. Crank bolt is 15/16". Removing plugs makes it easier to turn by hand.