Quote:
Originally Posted by ConnClark
Actually its not there to prevent drops from hitting the crank. Its there to keep oil sloshing up from the pan from hitting the crank. Preventing drops from hitting the crank is futile because the drops come from the main and rod bearings. Some of this leakage is necessary to splatter some oil on the cylinder walls to provide lubrication to the rings.
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A windage tray is present to help protect the sump oil and shield the rotating assembly from splashing or migrating oil. This is a difficult set of tasks that are often diametrically opposed in implementation. The more you shield the sump the more you create a second sump that embodies that which you are trying to avoid. Some engines have three layers of trays (see, for example, the RB26DETT).
At low rpms the scraper does physically remove adhering oil but at higher rpms, oil is actively entrained in a cloud by the pressure differential around the rotating assembly. The scraper disrupts the pressure differential and this releases oil until a different equilibrium is reached.
If you increase the efficiency of your cooling system (oil on the underside of pistons that is applied and removed quickly) you can more safely run the engines on leaner mixes and/or higher compression. You may enter into issues about FE for a given octane level and fuel cost but that will give you something to chew apart at leisure.
If you want to do this cheaply then look at the NA Honda B-series engines. Their four cylinder engines have a total of twenty oil squirters directed at the base of the piston for cooling. Sixteen of those (twelve for a G10) can be easily added to the rods.