Metal in the Oil

[The Hitman]

it's normal to have some metal in a fresh engine build especially with new parts,

But that cam bearing bothers me, that's a lot of wear for 6 pulls... isn't it?

[Rich Biebel]

Definately a lot of wear on that cam bearing for such a short time running.

Might be from lack of oil or from not enough clearance.....or other possibilites.....

Cam bearings usually do show wear there but it looks like more than usual for such a short time running

[Richard Grant]

Always run several magnets inside the motor and the drain plug. It gives you a better idea how much metal you're dealing with and pulls it out of the oil to prevent damage. It sounds like you've checked the suspect areas and found nothing. It's hard to tell about the cam though, you need to check lift if you haven't. I am not familiar with Smith lifters. If they are the same as Schubecks then you should have no cam problems, if not I don't trust anything but Schubeck type lifters with todays oils and spring pressures.

[Dave Ribeiro]

Ben,

Having gone thru the same thing a couple of years ago, I know exactly how you feel ... I would take apart the oil pump & check it closely ? I asume the cam bearings were new ? I agree with Rich, you need to look at oil flow to cam bearings ? You also could have a bad cam bearing ? Look at everything you can while you have it apart ? How was the oil pressure on the dyno ?
Could have been a single piece of dirt /metal on one bearing ? I would check the cam ( several times ) for straightness & ground in metal ? Better to be Safe than Sorry ... Good Luck & keep us updated ........... Dave,

[Alan Roehrich]

It appears that either the main journals on the crank are tapered, or they have a large radius, and the bearings did not have the correct chamfer. It also appears that there is insufficient oil flow to the cam bearings, or that there is insufficient clearance. The wear on the cam and main bearings is not normal for break in and 6 pulls on the dyno.

I suggest you cut the oil filter open and inspect it, and also tear down the oil pump.

Also, why is the front cam bearing hanging out the front of the block? Even if the block has been damaged, and the damage corrected, the bearing should not hang out the front. The front of the bearing should be cut off, and the Torrington bearing on cam gear shimmed to compensate for the amount the block has been cut to clean up the damage.

[Rich Biebel]

Front of that cam bearing face appears to have been machined and a step was left there possibly to retain a wear shim.

BB's often had wear on the block there. We normally cut it all the way across the face, and used a .030 or a .060 thrust washer available from Manley....

[Alan Roehrich]

Oh, it was obviously machined. But look at the jagged appearance of the leading edge of the cam bearing, that looks like wear. I always machine the whole thing off, and place a shim between the gear and the Torrington bearing.

[Sean Marconette]

Something I found on my Smith lifters when I first primed engine. One lifter would not pass oil to the pushrod? After removing and dissassembly of the lifter, it had a small piece of debris in it. After correcting that it took right off. This was found while priming engine on engine stand.

Sean