Major oil leak


Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 479

Joined: Fri Dec 28, 2012 4:44 pm

Post Thu May 10, 2018 2:18 pm

Major oil leak

Hi Guys, not posted for some time now. I have been re doing my bathroom, which been a real pain in the butt. That however is another story. I started a thread last year about engine paint and rebuilding the top half of my BD220. So for some time it has all been reinstalled, but i have been experiencing oil leaks from what i thought was the push rod cover, but now it appears to the actual cylinder head. I don't understand how it can be coming from there, unless i have not tighten the bolts to the correct torque ( I'm sure i have) or there has been some debris when i placed the head back on ( insure there wasn't).

Could there be something else that would cause this, a blockage maybe? Any help or advise would be greatly appreciated. Luke

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Thu May 10, 2018 3:52 pm

Re: Major oil leak

Leaks can be hard to find, and you wouldn't be the 1st to think it is leaking from one spot only to find it was from somewhere else. I'll admit I once pulled a head to fix a coolant leak only to discover it was a pin hole in a hose! Fortunately it was my own car, so only my pride got hurt.
There is an oil passage from the block to the head, but it is very un likely for that to leak externally.
The absolute best way to find a leak is to steam clean absolutely clean, then spray the effected area with dye check developer, it dries to a white powder and will show a leak very quickly, but needs to be applied to an absolutely clean surface, to not be misleading.
My best guess is either the push rod cover or rocker cover, but that is only a guess on something I have not set my eyes on.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Location: Canada's left Coast

Post Thu May 10, 2018 6:09 pm

Re: Major oil leak

Another cause of oil leaks is from the covers being over tightened and warping the cover flanges. This is common on the sheetmetal SBC valve cover as well as old IHC engines.
If the covers are warp damaged the repair is little more than carefully tapping the edge flange flat. Check You Tube for a video.
I have used oil resistant RTV gasket maker instead of the old cork gaskets. Cork gaskets leak.
This RTV solution is an excellent replacement for the differential cover gasket. NOTE: Less is best. Use only enough RTV to contact both surfaces. This will reduce the chance of squishing the extra sealant inside.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 479

Joined: Fri Dec 28, 2012 4:44 pm

Post Fri May 11, 2018 2:40 pm

Re: Major oil leak

Thanks for the advice. Im almost sure it not coming from the cover, it looks like its coming from under the head gasket itself. I will try and take a slo mo video of it and post it. As i said its absolutely pumping out. Luke

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 479

Joined: Fri Dec 28, 2012 4:44 pm

Post Sat May 12, 2018 1:52 pm

Re: Major oil leak

Here's a link to the dreaded oil leak. Filmed in slo-mo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Mpd2okdu30

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 5170

Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:28 pm

Location: Lyman, IA

Post Sat May 12, 2018 6:10 pm

Re: Major oil leak

wow, I wouldn't call that a leak, there is something else going wrong, Clogged tappet drain combined with something wrong on the head/block. A crack in the block or something else major.
What is the oil pressure?

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 479

Joined: Fri Dec 28, 2012 4:44 pm

Post Sun May 13, 2018 3:58 pm

Re: Major oil leak

I removed the cylinder head today. I can't see anything to that looks to out of place. There is definitely no crack in the cylinder head. The only thing i did notice was a missing hole in the gasket which was for the coolant inlet/outlet. I will order some new gasket from rock auto's. Scratching my head on this one. Im on 24hr call out now for the next week, so i will probably not get much time to look at it over the next week. I will put some photos up when i get the chance. Thanks for the help. Luke
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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Mon May 14, 2018 4:21 am

Re: Major oil leak

Have you straight edged your head and block in that area ? When I had my motor at the shop they made sure each surface was true and flat , you can do that your self now that the head is off if you have a straight edge , you can get pretty close . I don't think it could leak like that if the surfaces were flat . Nice clean oil though !

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Location: Fletcher, OK

Post Mon May 14, 2018 8:08 am

Re: Major oil leak

That is one heck of a leak. I suppose that it is possible that if your head gasket is incorrect and lacking a passage at that spot for an oil passage that the pressure could force it out under the gasket. This is, of course, purely supposition.
46 K3
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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

Posts: 479

Joined: Fri Dec 28, 2012 4:44 pm

Post Mon May 14, 2018 3:42 pm

Re: Major oil leak

I ordered more gaskets from rock auto's this morning, they will be here in a couple of weeks. I feel a bit stupid now, that is one thing i never checked was the flatness of the engine and cylinder head. I just assumed it would the two surfaces would be true to one another. I will check. The way I'm thinking at the moment is....its something stupid I've not seen or its something really bad and gonna be a pain in the butt to resolve. Once again, Thanks for the help. Luke
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