Okay,

Last night, i was changing the oil in the primary and the engine and discovered metal ,shiney silvey bits and slivers, in the oil. I cant say which part of the bike it came from because i typically drain the oil of the engine and the primary at the same time into the same pan.

I didnt even notice until i was pouring the old oil in bottles.... Primary oil was still that clearish brown of new oil (change my oil a lot).


Ideas? I was getting the bike ready for a 2000+ mile haul to md and back tomorrow....

 

There's not much advice to be had "after the fact" with the oils mixed, other than pointless, wild guesses.

I'd order a couple of (free) test kits from Blackstone Labs before you leave. When you get back, you'll be ready to take a sample of your oils and send them off for testing. If you drain them individually into a clean pan you should be able to determine which one is contaminated and send it off for testing.

That's not likely to pinpoint the exact problem, but you'll know whether it's motor or primary/tranny, and the metal type contamination should show up in the report and narrow down the suspect parts.

 

I wouldn't worry about it too much if it sounds good and not using oil.
Moto Guzzi had a magnetic drain plug to capture metal particles. The plug would always be full of particles, and the engine ran strong.
Without the magnetic plug it would be hard to detect the metal without a lab test.

 

I would say more than likely it was from the primary/trans. But with you draining both engine and trans/primary oil in the same pan it's hard to say.

The reason I say trans/primary is due to the gear clashing in the transmission (especially when going from neutral into first gear and first to second gear) and primary chain wear.

 

My '97 Sporty did this. I isolated it by using a magnet-on-a-stick tool. I stuck it down into the oil-bag, and pulled up a ton of metal. Very depressing.

Ended up being a lower-rod bearing. Entire engine had to come apart at 22,000 miles.

Was accompanied by a rod-knock sound I could control w/throttle on the freeway.

 

All I can saw is, AAAHHHH ****. I feel your pain. Hope it is under warranty. It could be a good thing you caught it before it scattered and did damage to you legs. Good Luck Dude.

 

Does anyone know where can I order a magnet for brass and aluminum? I searched Ebay and amazon with no luck.


Soap sample (Spectrometric Oil Analysis for Particulates) is the only way to find out what is wearing.

 

LOL! A *Little bit* more than common "wear" here, in this situation, don't you think?

The OP is seeing silver metal flakes, so it's not the brass cam bushings. Silver flakes are steel, or aluminum. If they're aluminum, there WILL be steel as well, you can take that to the bank.

Harleys use roller bearings (steel), and the cylinder walls are also steel (no Nikasil here). A stick-magnet *will* tell the story in a Harley Davidson motor, as it did for my bike.

 

[QUOTE=Hal64hd;13327663]Does anyone know where can I order a magnet for brass and aluminum? I searched Ebay and amazon with no luck.


Neither brass or aluminum sticks to a magnet.

 

[QUOTE=HOTLAP;13327908]My point exactly