Debris found in the oil filter

[Bavafa]

I changed oil and cleaned my oil filter and found a fair amount of junk in the oil filter. There is just about zero ferrous metal and no other metal that I can tell. These are some what coarse under the fingers but with moderate force between fingers they turn to dust (perhaps softer than carbon). My compression check was all good 78-79/80 but this is the first time I have seen such things in my oil filter. The oil had only 15 hours on it and 4 months. The only change this time around has been that I have started using MMO in my fuel (4oz for every 10G) after having a stock exhaust valve in my #2 cylinder. I am debating whether to continue to use the MMO or not. My tanks are full and has MMO in it. If it is due to MMO, one question would be that are these the things that the MMO dissolves and now contains in oil or is it the byproduct of burning MMO.

Any/all feedback and experiences will be appreciate it.

 

[rocketman1988]

I changed oil and cleaned my oil filter and found a fair amount of junk in the oil filter. There is just about zero ferrous metal and no other metal that I can tell. These are some what coarse under the fingers but with moderate force between fingers they turn to dust (perhaps softer than carbon). My compression check was all good 78-79/80 but this is the first time I have seen such things in my oil filter. The oil had only 15 hours on it and 4 months. The only change this time around has been that I have started using MMO in my fuel (4oz for every 10G) after having a stock exhaust valve in my #2 cylinder. I am debating whether to continue to use the MMO or not. My tanks are full and has MMO in it. If it is due to MMO, one question would be that are these the things that the MMO dissolves and now contains in oil or is it the byproduct of burning MMO.

Any/all feedback and experiences will be appreciate it.

MMO has a couple of solvents in it, one specifically to softened and remove carbon based deposits from metal. It wouldn’t surprise me to find remnants as they are broken down.

 

[Bavafa]

MMO has a couple of solvents in it, one specifically to softened and remove carbon based deposits from metal. It wouldn’t surprise me to find remnants as they are broken down.

Thank you Bob for your info. I was very surprise to see this especially with so little time on the oil. The previous checks had not had 1/1000 of this but felt better once I knew they were not metal since I could crush them with my fingers.
Do you use MMO, any recommendation of keep using it or ?!?!?!?

Thanks again
Mehrdad

 

[rocketman1988]

Thank you Bob for your info. I was very surprise to see this especially with so little time on the oil. The previous checks had not had 1/1000 of this but felt better once I knew they were not metal since I could crush them with my fingers.
Do you use MMO, any recommendation of keep using it or ?!?!?!?

Thanks again
Mehrdad

The last time I used mmo was in a 67 Chevy belair that had stuck rings. Worked pretty good.

That said, I use camguard at each oil change…

 

[lr172]

MMO has a couple of solvents in it, one specifically to softened and remove carbon based deposits from metal. It wouldn’t surprise me to find remnants as they are broken down.

+1

Saved me typing

 

[dadjokes]

check your air filter. that looks like it could be silica; If you haven't already. you should consider sending an oil sample to blackstone or one of the other labs

 

[lr172]

My guess, the black stuff is carbon (i.e. coked oil)and the grey stuff is fuel additives (that grey white crust coating on piston top and cylinder head. This get stuck on the rings and piston. Some breaks free and squeezes through the ring gap and end up in the sump. Agree the mmo knocked more off than would normally happen.

 

[DanH]

MMO has a couple of solvents in it, one specifically to softened and remove carbon based deposits from metal. It wouldn’t surprise me to find remnants as they are broken down.

Two, if you count the mineral spirits. The o-Dichlorobenzene does break down some carbons, but the SDS says the quantity is tiny. Four oz of MMO in 10 gallons of gas puts the o-dichlorobenzene concentration at 0.01562 %...156 parts per million.

 

[rocketman1988]

View attachment 81649

Two, if you count the mineral spirits. The o-Dichlorobenzene does break down some carbons, but the SDS says the quantity is tiny. Four oz of MMO in 10 gallons of gas puts the o-dichlorobenzene concentration at 0.01562 %...156 parts per million.

True but that's 156ppm more than NOT having it in there! lol

Just relating my experience in an old chevy...lots of crap came out after the mmo. I don't use it in my aircraft, though.

 

[tom_AZ]

Have you called Lycoming? My experience has been that even if the engine is out of warranty, they may be willing to send it through their lab to identify what it is with certainty, and by extension perhaps where it’s coming from. Anything (larger pieces) in the suction screen?

 

[Bavafa]

Have you called Lycoming? My experience has been that even if the engine is out of warranty, they may be willing to send it through their lab to identify what it is with certainty, and by extension perhaps where it’s coming from. Anything (larger pieces) in the suction screen?

Suction screen was clean, nothing in it. I have kept a tiny bit of it but most of it has got disintegrate just trying to pull it out of the plastic cup by my fingers.

 

[Bavafa]

check your air filter. that looks like it could be silica; If you haven't already. you should consider sending an oil sample to blackstone or one of the other labs

The air filter was very clean, more than normal as I had recently replaced it. Unfortunately I don't have a clean sample but planning on sending one to Blackstone in about 15 hours of flying.

 

[Bavafa]

This is a sample of what inside the cylinders look like as of yesterday that I changed oil and sure the debris looks like what we see at top and around the piston.