Source of metal shavings in my oil?

Hi all,

My 04 fs650e is showing me the signs of a serious failure (or something much more simple) and I'm hoping someone can shed some light on it before I go in blind.

The last oil drop (350ks) has shown a heaps of small, square, shiny metallic, non-magnetic flakes. They are too small to feel between the fingers. My sump plug has shown nothing out of the ordinary.

I've run the problem by orangeberg and he's suggested a possible mains failure with the average info I've given him, I've been a bit busy to follow up man but I'll give you a call soon!

So tonight I've removed the clutch, valve and ignition covers in the hopes of finding something with not much luck. My first thought was of the rocker shafts as the metal looks very similar (the same shiny colour), and the exhaust shaft looks slightly scored. I'm thinking that this scoring couldn't account for the amount of metal I've collected, although given the tiny flakes it could be possible.

I've been having recurring problems with my electric start and Sprague gear slipping and have opted to stop using it completely. I need to find a socket big enough to take the clutch basket off tomorrow to rule this out. I'm planning on just ripping all of the estart gear out.

Both main bearings are nj206s and have done around 100hrs, with the majority of that being pretty cruisy town hours. When I grab the flywheel, I can feel the slightest of radial movement, and I stress very slight. I don't have a dial gauge to give numbers yet.

The bike runs perfectly, and I've noticed no strange noises or loss in performance.

Any thoughts on the matter? I'm planning on overhauling the motor anyway, but it would be nice to know!

Thanks. Pictures should be attached.

EDIT: My cam follower bearings seem to be fine also, no radial play and a bit of side to side play, they turn fine with no wear marks on them.

If you can feel radial movement I think you should invest in new main bearings.

The metal shavings could be from main bearings and/or from a gear pitting.

KentJ had a similar issue. His problem was pitting on the cam lobes... and a broken ring on the piston.

I also have this problem, but I am collecting much more metal. Do not yet know the cause. Engine is halfway out of the frame... should be fully out tonight.

It may help you to test the flakes to see if they are magnetic. Not sure where it will point, but it could be of help.

Be sure to keep us updated with results.

LemoneyF said:

The last oil drop (350ks) has shown a heaps of small, square, shiny metallic, non-magnetic flakes. They are too small to feel between the fingers. My sump plug has shown nothing out of the ordinary.

Click to expand...

If the flakes are non-magnetic as you say, then maybe something is wearing on the case. Timing chain rubbing?

I'm assuming any bearings, rocker arms, cam lobes, piston rings, thrust washers etc getting chewd up would stick to a magnet (I'll test it myself later...).

My oil looked similar with aluminum/magnesium flakes in the oil, plus metal flakes and paste on the drain magnet. In my case it seems the piston, ring and liner were getting eaten up. Without any signs of ferrous metal on your drain magnet maybe it's not part of the rotating assembly?

I'm sure one of the guys who know something will chime in here (I'd like to know too).

See my post here: http://husaberg.org/mechanical/20178-worn-cam.html

If it is non magnetic... then it is aluminum. Likely the cam chain wearing right by the water jacket. Same thing happened on my 650. If you have the side cover off, it should be easy to see the wear.
I would think that mains would be showing as steel in your oil.

FWIW if you ever notice bronze flakes its probably the clutch pushrod bushing inside the gearbox input shaft

http://husaberg.org/mechanical/8921-bronze-flakes.html

Yeah some good info thanks guys. Gear pitting is something I'll look into. It's all non magnetic which is what made me think something was rubbing. I'm starting to think that the exhaust rocker shaft might be the source. I didn't notice it at first but you can feel a fair bit of wear on one side. Is it possible that the chrome coating that's been eaten away is non magnetic? Because the shaft itself is.