still burning a little oil :-(

[moveoverGM]

Well, had my hot rod club friends do a compression check on the Ol' 73 and all 8 jugs came in at right around 125. PCV is brand new and so is the breather on opposite valve cover. New valve seals installed about 500 miles ago. Spark plugs are clean and look almost new. Idle is perfect. Nothing rough. But it is still sipping oil. I have narrowed it down to two possibilities (I think). Perhaps the small gaps in the rings have lined up allowing some oil to be drawn up into the chamber on the intake stroke or slightly worn valve guides. The receipts on the rebuild show new valve guides as well as everything else. The engine has about 1500 miles on it but the rebuild was done in 2010. So, my question is this: in lieu of pulling this engine and doing an exchange should I just keep an eye on the oil level and replace the filter at needed? At least the consumption has not increased. Right now I just don't have the cash to do an exchange.

Thanks for any suggestions. Donald.

 

[fatherdoug]

Are you showing leakage on the ground, or blue smoke when first started? And how much oil? My truck consumes a quart of oil about every 1500 miles(400 engine), and I change every 3000 miles(Lots of in-town driving and dirt roads). I'm happy with an extra quart of oil between oil changes.

 

[moveoverGM]

Hi Doug. After I have parked the truck for the night the next morning it shows two spots on the floor about the size of a half dollar. Had a small main seal leak but the has almost gone away. After the truck has sat for a couple of days it does "puff" some white smoke briefly then cleans up pretty well so that any smoke is hard to see at all. That is why I am leaning towards valve guides... It goes through a quart about every 200 miles.

 

[CowboyBilly9Mile]

......The engine has about 1500 miles on it.........

IMO and experience, that's an automotive engine that's not yet fully broken in and thus, fair game to be making a judgement on as far as oil consumption goes. I would fix any leak so you can correctly establish where the actual oil consumption is at.

 

[moveoverGM]

Bill, good suggestion. The mileage on the engine is only an estimate. When I bought the truck the old feller handed me all the receipts and said the the engine only had about 500 miles on it. I have driven it about a grand or slightly more. For an engine built in 2010 it had almost no miles. But it sat for a while. Your observation is true enough and well noted. Maybe that is why the consumption has not increased at all and might have even gotten a little less.
But the leaks, and I am knocking those down one by one, don't account for the amount of oil.

 

[Fellro]

The puff on start up signals valve guides. My last FE actually burned a valve, and was pressurizing the crank case so bad it was leaking everywhere.. I was totally broke at the time, so it had to get me around yet, so I was to the desperation of putting used oil through it, as I was going through an insane amount.

If the motor hasn't totally broke in, it can also use some oil. The leaks can be from a number of sources, and sitting isn't particularly good for a motor, especially one that isn't broke in yet.

 

[moveoverGM]

Bill makes a good point about break in. I certainly accept that and am keeping a close eye on it. But, I also agree with Fellro that some symptoms are pointing towards valve guides and I am leaning that way. I intend to do another compression check recording the numbers for dry and wet compression. I will also see what the bleed down looks like. If it is valve guides then at least the good news is that the engine does not need to be pulled. Just the heads removed to replace the guides. At least that is my understanding.
This photo shows a typical plug from my engine. Almost pristine. So with that said, I guess I am safe to operate the truck until I can have the offending problem fixed?

Thanks for your input. Donald.

 

[Fellro]

That looks like a plug straight from the box... I would just keep running it for now. You would hope that if they went through the engine that they did the heads too... If so, then they should be fine. There is no indication of really burning oil on them.

 

[moveoverGM]

Fellro, I know exactly what you mean. And every plug looks just like that. I guess that is why I am so stymied about the smoke and oil usage.
But I agree with you and I think I will just hunt down the little leaks that remain and put some more miles on it before I jump the gun!
Thanks to all for the kind input! Donald.

 

[cbaker65]

+ 1 what everyone says ,id put some easy miles on it first an let everything
settle in!...

 

[moveoverGM]

Will do CB! Thanks!

Donald.

P.S. Can't believe how much attention it gets around town. People ask what year it is, where I got it, how original is it, etc, etc.
Built FORD tough!!

 

[CowboyBilly9Mile]

....... I intend to do another compression check recording the numbers for dry and wet compression. ..........

Speaking of compression tests, the 125psi did seem low, although I'm not sure what an acceptable range wold be for that engine. Also, me likes to focus on uniformity between the jugs. So with that in mind I do wonder if, when the last compression test was done, was

a) throttle wide open

b) engine warm

c) all plugs removed and left out while testing?

I'll assume the battery and starter are good and thus, crank speed is up to snuff. Also, one quick and dirty test I do when someone drags me along to give an opinion on a used car is to pull the pcv valve while it's running. If smoke comes out while it's idling, that a red flag. If it's not smoking at idle but smoke comes out when the throttle is suddenly opened, it's still blowby, just not as much (either way, it's not valve guides). Another thing I've noticed (but wouldn't bet my life that's if always 100% true) is that engines with worn rings, etc smoke and have the blowby stink when floored; engines with worn valves/guides don't do that but, if you let the vehicle coast such as going down a long hill and then suddenly hit the gas, there will be a puff of smoke out the tailpipe. A little food for thought.

 

[moveoverGM]

Hey Bill, thanks for the suggestions. I will do some homework and try to find out what PSI on this engine is good. Also, the blowby test sounds like something I would like to do. Certainly makes sense. Thanks! Donald.

 

[moveoverGM]

Did some checking on line and 125 is right in there. The starter and battery on my truck are very good and test was done with all plugs removed. One thing they did not do was a "wet" test. If I do another compression test I will include that. DO'.

 

[Ozzie]

Perhaps I missed it, but I'm wondering which engine you have.
The wet test should tell you something about the rings.
I wouldn't rush any major work.
If you can fix any leaks, fix them.
While viscosity is probably not the problem I've seen so many screwy situations I have to ask what you are using. It should be correct for your temperature environment. If the recommendations allow, sometime switching to a slightly more viscous oil can make a noticeable difference in oil consumption.
The spark plug makes me think that it is not normal excessive oil consumption through the combustion chamber if the plug had significant mileage on it.

 

[moveoverGM]

Ozzie, I am currently using 40 weight dinosaur oil. It has been and will continue to be pretty warm here in Tennessee for a little while longer. I will then go to 30 weight. But your reply has got my attention. Could you shed a bit more light on what you might be thinking? Thanks, Donald.

 

[moveoverGM]

Ok, here is what I have done. I warmed up the engine to operational temp. I then removed the PCV valve. Photo 1: What I found was vapor being emitted from the hole. It had almost no odor and dissipated very quickly which to me seemed to be more water vapor than oil. I plugged the PCV back in and the idle went down a little but still steady. Then I pinched off the PCV tube leading to the carb. Photo 2:I then pulled the valve cover breather/filler cap and noticed almost no smoke or even any amount of air being forced through at all. Note: in this condition the engine only ran for about a minute then stalled....
I removed the clamp from the tube and restarted the truck and I went back to the tail pipes which still had a small amount of white smoke coming out. I tried to take a photo but could not get the smoke to show up well. Anyway, all very interesting. Went to the store to get some cat food without any incident or even a cough from the engine. Sweeeet!

 

[Ozzie]

Ozzie, I am currently using 40 weight dinosaur oil. It has been and will continue to be pretty warm here in Tennessee for a little while longer. I will then go to 30 weight. But your reply has got my attention. Could you shed a bit more light on what you might be thinking? Thanks, Donald.

There is no problem with your oil viscosity. Sometime I have encountered someone using very "thin" oil and wondering why their engine uses oil. I just wanted to be sure that yours was O.K., and it is.

 

[moveoverGM]

Went to see my mechanic today. Told him the whole story, testing, on line research and he is convinced that even though the engine has comparatively few miles on it, the rings did not set well. I will give it some more time and see what happens. Am running Marvel Mystery Oil in there now to see if any improvement but if no change will have him pull the motor for a ring job. Best thing to do.... Thank you all for your great suggestions! I will keep you updated as to status. Donald