The Mechanical Mystery Tour Continues

anchorclanker · Sep 28, 2012

Roger Long said:
I’ve also learned that I probably need another 1/8 inch down on the dipstick as a safety margin in water rougher than I usually let myself get into. I’ll probably run with higher oil in the smooth water of the ICW but I’m going to be sure the oil level is proper before facing open water.

The other interesting thing I learned is how an engine will continue to produce high crank case pressures and oil filler blow out for quite a while after a foaming event. It takes overnight and some heat for things to calm down.

If the engine can tolerate a lower oil level in rough seas, it could likely do so in calm waters. The biggest consideration is having reserve capacity to deal with consumption loss, and enough capacity to handle cooling. The first part you cant do anything about without modifying the pan as I wrote earlier. The second case could be monitored with an oil temp gauge. If your changing oil by vacuum, next time its empty you could pull the sump plug and find a thermocouple to fit the thread, or via an adapter. Alternatively you could monitor the sump with an IR heat gun. 200F is about the max you would want to see.

Interesting about the time to settle the oil. What kind of oil are you burning?You may want to look into an oil with better anti-foaming properties, or an anti foaming additive. Your know your bound for some rough waters again.

I would do something to that stick to permanently remove the current marks and put a new mark on it where it needs to be, so there is no more confusion.

kloudie1 · Sep 28, 2012

Possible, Roger but not probable, in my opinion..
Aircraft and other air cooled engines can do this easier because there can be large differences of temperature between pistons and cylinders .. if ya have a bit of coking behind a ring and, while flying, pull the power way back, the piston stays hotter and the cylinder shrinks quickly, pushing the ring into the coke in the piston groove where it is likely to stick.. In an engine like yours, the water tempearture and the mass of cast iron cannot change temperature nearly as quickly..

anchorclanker · Sep 28, 2012

Roger Long said:
Shell Rotella 15W40.

One final possibility I'd like your opinion on: When the head gasket failed, a lot of salt water and other stuff circulated around thorough the oil system. Cleaning out the engine circulated a lot more. I wonder about the almost miraculous decrease in oil fill blow during yesterday's run.

Could something have lodged in one of the piston ring grooves or some minor corrosion caused a sticking ring?

There is no way to know without a teardown, and if its already cleared itself you still wont know, buts its certainly a possibility.

Your engine has suffered some real hard knocks. Its had copious amounts of salt water and air entrained oil run through its bearings, and several times suffered low oil pressure. Running clean oil through it, and making numerous oil changes, should have removed 99.9% of contaminants. What damages it may have suffered as a result, are simply unknown without a teardown.

The bright side is it was a used engine when you bought it and its still a used engine. If you bought a used engine to replace this one, or bought another used boat, you would know nothing about their history. If way back you had bought a new engine, it would have suffered the same fates this one has suffered until you got a handle on its needs. Right now it sounds like a happy little engine and you should motor onward and I wouldn't give it any further thought until its hauled out. At that time I would strongly advise you pull it and throw new bearings in it (or at least look at them), inspect the oil pump, and install all new gaskets and seals. I would also consider that sump mod I spoke of. You could also through a set of new rings it after cleaning the pistons, and you would almost have a new engine.

Jake N Eggs · Sep 28, 2012

Hey Roger,

Hope everything will be all right moving forward. As far as your question about the reduction in crank case venting at the oil fill, here is a theory.

When oil is aerated there is an increase in heat generated by the mechanical contact with the oil and in addition to a reduced oil pressure the aeration causes the oil to loose some of its heat transfer capacity. The reduced heat transfer causes the engine cylinders and pistons to run hotter than normal. The pistons create their own crankcase turbulence and it is possible that what you saw at the fill was a result of that turbulence in combination with high crankcase temperature and aerated oil mist.

AC is correct in advising to mark the new maximum level on the dipstick but be aware that in a high angle installation situation the minimum oil level mark will have to move up as well. You will ultimately have a smaller normal oil level zone. This is due to the position of the oil pick up tube. I am making an assumption that the pickup is in the middle of the engine. If it is in the back of the engine it will not make a difference and you could actually lower the minimum mark.

Good luck and a safe journey.

FourPoints · Sep 28, 2012

Roger Long said:
or my next adventure will be the progressive and fast failure of a critical bearing or some other part damaged by the salt.

Please don't speak propheticly like this only days before we leave for what hopefully will be a uneventful straight through shot from Stamford to Annapolis (for the rest of you, it will be with a 3rd person to also stand watch, don't worry it won't be just Roger and myself)...

sea_casper · Sep 28, 2012

Roger Long said:
Hey, as Shoaldrafter keeps pointing out, 100 years ago, we would have thought nothing of making this trip without an engine. Of course, we would have been open to the possibility of it taking us three to six weeks.

And no one would even know we took the trip, until a year later if the story was published.

leftbrainstuff · Sep 28, 2012

In the interests of providing some value other than the many good posts already provided you might like to ponder this.

Hoses, particularly those of a certain age, can sometimes delaminate internally which can produce a flap which can act like a one way valve. If you're still experiencing an intermittent issue you might like to investigate further.

Stu Jackson · Sep 28, 2012

Roger Long said:
...as Shoaldrafter keeps pointing out, 100 years ago, we would have thought nothing of making this trip without an engine.

Would the Ditch have been there back then? I recall (not personally!) that George Washington had it started.

An engineless craft in the Ditch? Hardly. One would have been forced to "go outside" and potentially join the wrecks around Cape Hatteras. Do they have an emoticon for "uh oh?"

perhaps!

Shoaldrafter · Sep 28, 2012

Aortic Disection

Roger Long said:
Well, go with the mechanic's opinion then. You'll notice that, every time I have a problem, the trip is over, I'm going to have to sell the boat, etc.. Look at my luck. Doom and gloom really seem to work for me.

Hey, as Shoaldrafter keeps pointing out, 100 years ago, we would have thought nothing of making this trip without an engine. Of course, we would have been open to the possibility of it taking us three to six weeks.

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Stu should think of a long pole in the ditch, while
specs say it is supposed to 12 foot deep, tell me
how often that occurs in the ditch parts. Only
when you get to a sound or river is it deeper.

Think of Roger singing in Italian as he poles
the canals of Venice... also known as the
Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway.

And the description of the Aortic Disection means
we have a doctor on board?

Ed K

Stu Jackson · Sep 28, 2012

Ed, good one! All Roger needs now is a mandolin.