Just beginning my mep-003a journey

[2Pbfeet]

So I started the generator yesterday afternoon and let it warm up, then applied the load. It worked fine for a while but at times white smoke would blow out the exhaust, light amount and engine sound would change slightly. Then the engine blew gra smoke,bogged down and died. Smoke was coming from the 3 & 4 cylinders’ exhaust. That part of the engine only had injectors replaced. Called the mechanic and he suggested adding atf to help lubricate the ip. I added a quart to what I figured was about 4 gallons of diesel in the tank. I had treated the fuel with “hot shots” before I filled the tank. Started the engine and let it run and it seemed to be a little quieter after about a minute. There was slight smoke coming out the exhaust. Began applying a load on the generator and noticed the % amps meter was fluctuating above 50% and back down to 0% (this could be the heaters). As the load increased the engine would pull and Hz would only drop from 60.1 to 59.8. I’m noticing blow by com out of oil filler tube. And at times 3 & 4 exhaust would turn gray as load increased. Took a couple of videos and spent all night and part of this morning trying to get them to YouTube, hopefully I can link them here. What are your thoughts? Fuel system was cleaned and filters replaced. Let’s see if I can link the videos, the one that is less than a minute shows blow by and gray smoke. The other one which is over 2 minutes only shows the meters as the load fluctuates.

@Scoobyshep thanks for parsing the link!

@Rodburner That is more blow by than I would be comfortable with, but that may just be me.

When you say that you applied load, how much load, and for how long?

I think checking the valve lash might at least rule that out, and I would look for malfunctioning springs while I was in there, but in my experience valve lash issues are more consistent. The amount of blow by suggests a sticking or bad ring to me. If you have time, I would pull the injectors (or glow plugs) for #3&4, and put in a small amount of SeaFoam and let it soak for a day or more. Then crank it with the injectors out, and reinstall the injectors. (While you have the injectors out, I would clean those, too, as that gray/black smoke isn't doing anything nice to the injectors.) While my first thought is sticking rings in a old unit, I do have the concern that something more substantial might be going on, like needing new rings and a honing job.

@Guyfang suggested WD-40 in this thread a few years ago;

MEP 003a engine replacement

Well It looks like I am having a blowby problem on my MEP-003a, and am debating if it is economical to try to salvage it, or if I should look for one of those rebuilt engines that seemed to be everywhere a year or two ago, but seem to have all disappeared now. Any suggestions with the cost of...

www.steelsoldiers.com

All the best,

2Pbfeet

 

[Rodburner]

@Scoobyshep thanks for parsing the link!

@Rodburner That is more blow by than I would be comfortable with, but that may just be me.

When you say that you applied load, how much load, and for how long?

I think checking the valve lash might at least rule that out, and I would look for malfunctioning springs while I was in there, but in my experience valve lash issues are more consistent. The amount of blow by suggests a sticking or bad ring to me. If you have time, I would pull the injectors (or glow plugs) for #3&4, and put in a small amount of SeaFoam and let it soak for a day or more. Then crank it with the injectors out, and reinstall the injectors. (While you have the injectors out, I would clean those, too, as that gray/black smoke isn't doing anything nice to the injectors.) While my first thought is sticking rings in a old unit, I do have the concern that something more substantial might be going on, like needing new rings and a honing job.

@Guyfang suggested WD-40 in this thread a few years ago;

MEP 003a engine replacement

Well It looks like I am having a blowby problem on my MEP-003a, and am debating if it is economical to try to salvage it, or if I should look for one of those rebuilt engines that seemed to be everywhere a year or two ago, but seem to have all disappeared now. Any suggestions with the cost of...

www.steelsoldiers.com

All the best,

2Pbfeet

Thanks, I’ll be trying those suggestions next week

 

[Rodburner]

for the next guy,

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Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

www.youtube.com

I appreciate you fixing that for me.

 

[Scoobyshep]

I appreciate you fixing that for me.

You're welcome