Triumphrat

tr6tom

First off hello, im new here.I have a issue with a 1970 that i just bought. the guy says the engine was rebuilt but when it fires, oil(actual oil,not just smoke) comes from the left cylinder.Im thinking intake valve guide?engine runs great otherwise,no noise and lots of compression.any ideas?

Caulky

Oil is coming out from where, carburetor, exhaust, or head gasket?
Do a compression test on both cylinders.
They should be roughly equal...within 10psi-ish.

bias

I have the same problem on right cylinder. My head is getting new valve guides this week. I took off the head and delivered it to a machine shop that are specialists on cylinders and heads.They are also honing the cylinder for me. The plan was to replace the piston rings only, but since i thought the right cylinder was going to rich i have adjusted the carb lean on that side. I think thats why the right piston has a small "crater" on that side now. So i have to change the pistons too.
My was smoking on right side barrel, and the spark plug was wet and with sticky black oil mud on it. It has smoked some years, first now it has been so bad that i had to clean the plug for each 10 miles.

Dont take this as good fish :P
I have read hundreds of posts with same symptoms and other solutions.

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T140E 1978

tr6tom

compression is good,and even. this is actual liquid oil that comes out the exhaust, engine runs good, Im thinking intake guides .loose, with the vacuum of the intake stroke pulling it past.BTW this is a 1970 tr6r engine.

GrandPaulZ

You'd have to be losing oil AWFULLY fast...

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Snakeoil

I've been holding off commenting while I waited for a clarification on just where the oil was appearing. Liquid oil out the exhaust seems very strange to me for a normally running engine. As far as I'm concerned, if you have liquid oil coming out the exhaust, there is no way in Hell it is going thru the combustion chamber and the engine is "running good". If it is truly oil, my guess is that your exhaust had a pool of oil in it already from the rebuild and it is now blowing out. Why, is anybody's guess. But that's the only way I can see liquid oil coming out the exhaust and the engine still running good. Even if it were possible, it would be belching out a cloud of blue smoke like an industrial insect fogger.

Running good is a relative term, by the way. Are you sure it is running on both cylinders? Could be just running good on one. Untrained or unfamiliar ear my be your enemy. Put your hand on the left header pipe (carefully). Is it hot?

Are you sure this is not condensation from running the engine in very cold weather. I could see an unexperienced person thinking that black sooty condensation is oil dripping out the exhaust. Pull the spark plug on that cylinder. If it is clean, you either have an oil saturated muffler or perhaps it is even soaked with water from somebody shooting a hose up the exhaust on one side during a wash. Or it could just be condensate from the hot exhaust and a cold exhaust system.
Please let us know what you find. I'm betting your engine is fine and you don't have a problem or it's running on one cylinder and you have a major problem.

regards,
Rob

tr6tom

Thanks for the comments but Let me clarify my skill level, Im 43 yrs old, a 23yr veteran professional auto technician, and a lifelong motorcycle enthusiast.this is my second Triumph. Ive been more of a Norton guy the rest of the time, anyway, yes both pipes get hot,Im tearing off the head tommorow and ill be sure to post my findings thats for sure! and have a look. I bought this bike as is, the engine has been rebuilt, by whom i dont know,ive ruled out condensation,fuel and am kind of doubting rings.Im just wondering how sensitive the guides are on these engines.I know they dont use seals.has anyone on here had a guide fail?

P.S the exhaust is "open" short pipes no mufflers.

tr6tom

Just for the hell of it, this bike has been made into a chopper.with a Pacho oil tank,looking at the lubrication diagram,what would happen if the oil lines were REVERSED? it would push oil at full pressure into the rocker boxes, no?also wouldnt a oil pressure gauge drop to zero when running with reversed lines? just thinking.

gearhead

If both plugs are firing good the only way it could be blowing oil out the pipe like that is if you have a crack or a pin hole from the exhaust valve spring pocket into the exhaust port, if someone has tried opening up the ports on this thing and got too thin in this area that can happen. I have a head in my shop like that now. Gearhead

GrandPaulZ

If you reversed the oil lines, your engine is going to need a new engine.

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GrandPaulZ
Author of "Old Bikes"
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