My truck lvl2 has 272k miles and runs and works fine. The front tensioner guide broke and I changed out both along with chains and tensioners, all motorcraft. Also replaced water pump and the oil pump, melling I believe. The front tensioner did have a leaking problem but that is finally fixed. My problem is that every week the chain will start to rattle because the tensioner isn't getting oil. I tested that by pulling off the intake and removing the oil restrictor plug, removing the fuel pump fuse and cranking it over. No oil. First time I removed the plastic piece that sits in there and found a small black chip of something like some gasket rtv. I cranked it again and now was getting oil. Engine ran fine for a week and the ticking came back. This time checking no oil was coming out even with the plastic piece out so I blew some air in the hole and now oil was coming out when I cranked it. Putting it back together an it is running fine again. I have brand new synthetic oil and filter but I guess I can change it out again. Anybody have any clues as to what is going on?

 

How small was the "small black chip" relevant to the size of the blocked passage?
Sounds like some contamination got into your galleries. Maybe an oil filter is breaking up or shedding glue.

 

It was small and curved like some rtv that spread out and chipped off. It was small like half of a pinky toe nail clipping but black. Its baffling to me because when I first took off the valve cover, to change out the chains and guides, there wasn't a speck of sludge. The only place that I've seen any carbon build up was in in the intake, along with some oil that pooled up when I leaned it over on its side to check the restrictor tube.

 

I am going to put a tee on my oil sending sensor and run up a hose to the tensioner plug and feed oil to bypass possible sludge.

 

Good luck. The fix you mention is hard to visualize.
You say an externally run oil line will hook up to 'the tensioner plug'?