DIY Oil Squirters – Drilling Into Your Block Has Never Been Easier

Let’s face it, whether something is “DIY” or not can vary wildly person to person. When it comes to the engine, some people’s DIY limits might be bolt-ons, while for a lifelong engine builder, the only limits might be those of the equipment in the shop. Most of you reading this will likely fall somewhere in between those two extremes.

The term “DIY piston cooling jets” probably isn’t something that seems super logical the first time you read it. Most of us here are pretty comfortable doing things ourselves, but the thought of “machining” a block for oil squirters yourself is definitely out there. However, once you watch the video, your mind might be changed – ours sure was.

Piston cooling oil jets go by many names (oil squirters, piston squirters, piston jets, oil jets, etc.), but have a single function. They direct cool oil from the main oil feed to the underside of the piston to help remove heat. While their pros and cons of their importance and effectiveness can be debated, for the sake of this article, let’s assume you’ve decided you want them, but your block doesn’t have them.

If what is arguably the hardest part — tapping the holes for the oil jets — is being done one-handed, while filming, how hard can it be, really?

This video by YouTube user Epic Tim makes the whole process look downright easy. While that might be largely due to the installation kit he uses from Get’M Performance, which appears to take most of the guess-work out of the process, it still takes some confidence to remove metal from your engine block.

While this video shows him performing all the steps on an LS block, a little research shows that kits are offered for a variety of small-block and big-block engine families. While the kits aren’t the cheapest thing in the world, they are presumably less expensive than if you sent your block somewhere to have the service performed, and who doesn’t like having new tools for their toolbox?

So the question is, would you be willing to try it for yourself? Not only did Tim do it himself, but he also did it one-handed, while holding a camera. How hard can it be?

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Greg Acosta

Greg has spent nineteen years and counting in automotive publishing, with most of his work having a very technical focus. Always interested in how things work, he enjoys sharing his passion for automotive technology with the reader.
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