Cat 3406 industrial blowing oil out exhaust

[2DASEA]

Oil isn't coming out of the intake side just the exhaust.It's running out the bottom on the exhaust side of turbine housing. I'm aware of what a runaway is.I only changed the cartridge, haven't been any deeper into it. The motor is a 1976 model. I've always thought of it as a "B" but a parts guy I spoke to said it was an "A" at any rate it's old school. If I were to try to re- seat the rings, if that is what the fix turns out to be. I'll take the boat out and run the **** out of it. 10 gal an hour or no!
I've heard that cat use to have a part number for a Bonami type powder to put in the intake to help score up the cylinders for break in.... I'll find out the next step after I remove the manifold. I posted earlier that I'm hauling out for paint and I'm not tearing into it till after that.. We'll have to wait. I will come back on here and give the full report. I really appreciate all the help.

 

[CRAFT]

I knew you ment the exhaust side ... that's why we were all along suggesting to pull the exhaust manifold off.

But now you I.D. the engine as an "A "model .... that's quite a bit different beast ...... never had one ...seen a few around .... also is yours the one with the one piece head ?? ..... cause from what I remember they had a head cracking issue .... now that may open another can of worms if yours is ....... I'd still pull the exhaust manifold off ....that'll deff tell you how far you need to go ...... if only one then i'd suspect that it's in the head (may only be the seals) ...if all then the suspision of rings not seated would be some thing to look at ....... I wish you all the luck on this one ! ...cheers

 

[Nige]

Best of luck from me too. Be sure to update us on whatever you eventually find.

 

[2DASEA]

Best of luck from me too. Be sure to update us on whatever you eventually find.

Well, sorry for the long delay. Finally got the time to focus on this issue. I removed the exhaust manifold and found all holes wet. Pulled valve covers and discovered play in the exhaust valve stems that were not under spring pressure. I plugged turbo oil lines and fired the motor. I peeked in the holes with my flashlight and discovered oil freely running down the valve stems. I guess the shop that reconditioned the head missed a detail or two...Its time to pull the head and send it in. I'll be able to get a good look down the sleeves too. I'll sure be glad if I don't need to pull the motor! Wrestling the 300+lbs. head out of the hold will be enough of a workout for me.... Thanks everyone for the great advice.Happy Hassle-Free motoring to you all!!!:

 

[2DASEA]

oops this is an old one, Well put everything back together and on the advice of an old Cat mechanic, I did the old Bonami trick. Bonami is a cleanser that is mostly made of egg shells. It is a mild abrasive that Cat mechanics used in the old days to seat rings in a newly rebuilt motor that wasn't seating. I figured with not much to loose and looking at hauling the engine out for a proper rebuild, I went for it. I got the beast up to temp and running at about 3/4 speed with a load on , I began introducing the powder , right int the Turbo. I really had to overcome alot mentally to do this and had to override my brain to actually dump something into a turbo, but the engine never even missed a beat. I put in a couple of tablespoons, ran it for a few min, then another scoop. gradually the blue smoke began to go away, as did the drip at the turbo. I probably put 2 cups total through there. I wondered what damage this stuff could be doing to my bearings and such but my old Cat guy snuffed and said not to worry. I changed oil , filters and she's good as new....

 

[Nige]

Sounds like a classic case of what happens when an engine has been run under-loaded for an extended period. Happens with gen sets all the time, especially when those responsible for running them seem to have no concept of the idea that it's as bad to underload an engine as it is to overload one.

 

[CRAFT]

…………….. on the advice of an old Cat mechanic, I did the old Bonami trick. Bonami is a cleanser that is mostly made of egg shells. It is a mild abrasive that Cat mechanics used in the old days to seat rings ………….. gradually the blue smoke began to go away, as did the drip at the turbo. I probably put 2 cups total through there………….. my old Cat guy snuffed and said not to worry. I changed oil , filters and she's good as new....

I've heard of alot of tricks that the 'ol boys have used over the years !! …… BUT Never this one !!! ….. I've seen and even used Bonami (mostly known to be a Kitchen cleanser) i've used it to get scratches out of wood finishes, but never read the label to see that it was actually ground egg shells …. WOW !

This is ONE I will never forget !!! ….. Thanx for Sharing the end results !! ….cheers

 

[norite]

I have heard of the Bon Ami trick, never tried it myself.

I was told it was a short term fix, that the Bon Ami scratches the glaze up in the cylinder vertically instead of horizontally like a bore hone would and that it doesn't last.

I am interested to know if this works long term.

 

[lantraxco]

As I heard it from my Dad who is now in his 80's, the Bonami trick got started when the automakers started using chrome rings and hadn't figured out the right combination for crosshatch and break in oil yet. Heard the same story when I worked for the local CAT dealer about the diesel engines.