Newly rebuilt 350 burning oil in cylinder 3

[bphillips87]

just bought a 97 vortec that was freshly rebuilt, heads were reworked. Installed a LT4 hotcam, heads were cut and running heavy springs. The motor was broken in and ran great and had no smoke for the first 60 miles. I shut it down at a show, and when I fired it back up it started blowing smoke, now it is getting a TON on oil in cylinder 3, pull the plug and its soaked. blowing wicked blue smoke... any ideas? hasnt changed the way it runs other than fouling the plug. Im hoping it could be stem seals but im afraid its something else. anyone have any ideas.

 

[72chevy2door]

Do a compression test in a couple cylinders and then the one blowing blue smoke to see if your piston rings are leaking. If it holds good and strong like the others then the only thing I think it could be is the valve stem seals. They sell stuff to change them with the heads on the engine. It allows you to add air from a compressor in the spark plug hole to keep the valves up (closed) while you pull the retainers and locks then change seals and put her back together.

 

[MadOgre]

Do you have baffles in your valve covers ?

 

[bphillips87]

I do have baffles, it's just the one cylinder, pull the plug and it's just soaked in oil, I'm going to do a compression test tomorrow and hope for the best, I'm hoping it's the seals, if not, I'm sure (I hope for what I paid) the guy who built it will fix it, just sucks I will have to pull it back out.

 

[MadOgre]

I ask about the baffles because I heard a story once about a guy who rebuilt a motor and put valve covers without baffles on and one of the rocker arm oil passages spit oil right up into the pcv intake and pushed all the oil down the carb. same thing, blue smoke fouled plugs and the guy ran it dry on oil and had to rebuild it before it was broken in the first time

 

[MadOgre]

I thought if you had it parked just right with the above mentioned scenario it could run down the runners into one particular cylinder

I just wanted to share that story. lol its probably not what your up against though.

 

[bphillips87]

Well, I did a compression test today, 150-160 psi in all cylinders except cylinder 3, no compression at all. Not good... Haven't had a chance to do a wet compression test, but I know the motor is gonna have to come back out,

 

[Driver4r]

For there to be zero compression is extremely odd, Even if rings failed, there would still be some compression that registers.

 

[BADAZ chevy guy]

I hate to even think it, but my guess would be a hole in the piston.