Ed - I will presume we are still talking about the PM800?
There are 2 check valves in the oiler system, one is the disc under the manual pump and the other is a check ball (and spring) in the automatic oiler. If either of those are not functioning the oiler will not work.
To access the disc check valve in the manual oiler the tank has to come off, cover off the oil tank, and remove the two screws holding the manual oil pump down. One is tapped into the housing, the other has a nut (11/32") inside the tank. There were two different discs used and they have to work with the flange on the oil pick up hose. The thicker phenolic disc works with the thinner flange, the thinner aluminum disc work with the thicker flange.
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Thin flange
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Thick flange
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To access the ball check valve in the automatic oiler you have to remove the automatic oil pump from the tank (should be one screw and the spring clip on a PM800). On the older pumps you could remove a screw from the top of the pump and take everything out. This is another version of a spring clip that attached to the top of the automatic pump to help press it firmly against the seal (gasket) at the mounting surface.
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On the newer pumps there is no access to the ball and spring so you just have to shoot some brake or carburetor cleaner in the ports and the steel guide in the pump and hope it unsticks the ball.
Test the check valve by putting some oil in the inlet hole and working the piston manually. If everything is O.K. you will see the oil go down the inlet and back up the outlet. Inlet is on the left, outlet on the right. You can also test the check valve by applying pressure to the outlet side, is should hold 5-7 PSI, but just holding pressure will not tell you if the ball is stuck. If you apply pressure to the inlet side it will push the piston out.
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Mark