Metal in oil filter

[fitz3820]

I went to LVD for the BOP day last Saturday, put some good gas in, changed
the tires and went to start the car and...serious valvetrain noise

We thought it was a bad rocker so I pulled the valve cover and swapped in a new set of rockers (thanks Jack Cotton!)

The noise was still there but it went away after running the car for a few minutes.
Oil pressure is ~17# at idle warm. I decided not to race. Thinking it must be a bad lifter.

I changed the oil last night and cut the filter open with a can opener (don't tell my wife), there are a few metal filings on the bottom where I had a magnet on the filter. How much metal is too much? The amount in the filter wouldn't cover a dime.

Mark F. 11.9 @ 115

 

[salvageV6]

Is the metal chunks?

Larger pieces or fine powdery stuff that's kinda mushy with the oil?

 

[fitz3820]

No, they are larger chunks, filing size, not suspended in the oil.

There isn't a whole lot of metal, I don't know how much (if any) is normal wear. Anybody cut their filter apart on a regular basis?

Mark F. 11.9 @ 115

 

[fast eddie]

Could be shavings from the plastic cam button wareing on the front cover?
Ed

 

[GN SBS]

Do the shavings respond to a magnet or are they brass or aluminum; that could give you a clue as to the source.

-S.

 

[fitz3820]

The shavings are magnetic, I have a magnet on the oil filter and the shavings are stuck to the bottom of the filter where the magnet was.

Mark F. 87 GN 11.9 @ 115

 

[turbo nasty]

I always get small filings(not much/some) on my mag drain plug at each oil change.

Now the car had 90k miles when I first put the mag plug in and then the next oil change after the plug install, from all the years of metal settling to the bottom of the pan ...well it had a mad amount.

i.e. - if your car several thousand miles on it without the pan ever being dropped and all the metal particles cleaned out and then you put a mag plug or mag on the oil filter then the mag will catch whats gets sloshed/circulated through the lube system.

So maybe thats were they came from.
All motors wear metal to metal upon break in and through out their operation and will have metal in the pan. the amount varies of course to application

 

[fitz3820]

I am going to have the Master, Jack Cotton look at it. He has a few ideas on what it could be. He has done all the work on the car so we will see.

Wish me luck!

Mark F. 87 GN 11.9 @ 115