Water in oil

Hi,

Started that old Canadian Six Ford engine today after been standing for a cupla weeks, dipped the oil and checked the aqua first, engine oil has turned quite a milky brown. Also once it did start, slight miss at idle (has had new points, plugs, carby kit etc.)

At first I suspected a blown head gasket, but neither using any coolant, nor any bubbles (or oil) appearing in radiator. Got a spare head gasket as well as a complete top gasket set and before I chuck a wobbly and start ripping bits off willy-nilly, any simple checks I can do? Don't have a compression tester here. Engine was SUPPOSED to have been reconditioned not all that long ago (set up for LPG at the same time).

Had a weep between the block and head in an old 250NH Cummins many years ago, threw a can of 'Chemiweld' in it and simply kept driving it. Don't know if it's still available and wondering if it's worth trying? The chemiweld, I mean. Any clues?

Cheers, Dave_64

Dave is there any chance the water (condensation?) got in there before you started up and was just waiting for some stirring?

I live on these fantasies

otherwise you gotta suspect the head gasket.

/me

Hi,

Started that old Canadian Six Ford engine today after been standing for a cupla weeks, dipped the oil and checked the aqua first, engine oil has turned quite a milky brown. Also once it did start, slight miss at idle (has had new points, plugs, carby kit etc.)

At first I suspected a blown head gasket, but neither using any coolant, nor any bubbles (or oil) appearing in radiator. Got a spare head gasket as well as a complete top gasket set and before I chuck a wobbly and start ripping bits off willy-nilly, any simple checks I can do? Don't have a compression tester here. Engine was SUPPOSED to have been reconditioned not all that long ago (set up for LPG at the same time).

Had a weep between the block and head in an old 250NH Cummins many years ago, threw a can of 'Chemiweld' in it and simply kept driving it. Don't know if it's still available and wondering if it's worth trying? The chemiweld, I mean. Any clues?

Cheers, Dave_64

Chem I weld is still available, and works as well as it did 50 years ago, when I first used it as an apprentice.

If it's not long rebuilt, maybe just a head re-torque?
I did have one of my Studes corrode the head gasket out and was filling up a pot over a few days, no bubbles when running! Cranks over normally?

Head gaskets are cheap enough, anyway if it is that.

Jarrod.

I don't like chemi weld much as it clogs radiator cores up.
There is better products these days that do the same job with out the radiator core issues that chemi weld does.

Try sealwell get it from Repco (looks a bit like solvol soap) it works really well.

Thanks for the suggestions, Guys.

Gilly said to try and wind each piston over to TDC and using an adapter (got one here somewhere or other) try charging each cylinder individually.

Bit reluctant to use any additives only for the reason that I had a brand new radiator custom made up for the application and did'nt want to clog it up.

Dave

No eBay APP ID and/or Cert ID defined in Kunena configurationBy far the best way to check cylinder losses is to use a compression leak tester.

They are pretty cheap on ebay



You are not messing around with uncertain pressures on a cranking engine and you can track the source of the leak accurately as the pressure comes from external air.

Screw in tester. Get the cylinder to top dead centre with the valves closed. Turn on the air to say 100psi.

Turn off air and watch the gauge until it stabilises (it will drop fairly quickly to a stop point then very slowly bleed down if you walk away, unless you have a serious leak. You want that initial stop pressure)

It will bleed down to a number when you turn the air off. If it stops at 70-80psi the cylinder is good. If it drops into the 50's you have sick cylinder.

With the air turned on:
Listen to exhaust - hear noise = Exhaust valve leaking.
Listen to Carb - hear noise = Inlet valve leaking
Listen to oil filler - hear noise = rings leaking or badly scored bore. Squirt some oil in and if pressure comes up it proves the bore/ring diagnosis.
Look at radiator - see bubbles = head gasket or crack in block or head.

These test units are used every 100 hours on all aircraft engines which live or die by the bleed down pressure results. They are so accurate in pinpointing problems there is a no-go number which grounds the plane until the compression is brought back to the pass mark by valve, ring or complete cylinder change work.

This test just covers cylinder/piston/valve and head gasket problems. There is nothing to my knowledge which will tell if there is a hole in a water gallery leaking into the sump other than pressurising the radiator. The crack or corroded hole might be so small and only open up when the engine is warm that a radiator pressure test will not indicate any loss.

My bet would be, after eliminating cylinder/head problems stick some magic potion in to fix the water loss.

Lang

Thanks, Lang.

Probably worth the sixty odd bucks, and a bit of grief!

Dave

Does the engine have wet cylinder liners?

Beaver,
No liners at all, old styleengine, bore em out to they hit the limit.

Cheers, Dave