New Witte Owner

[buko]

Hello everyone just thought I would show everyone what I just hauled home. WOW what a piece of IRON!
Now the fun begins! So far  I know I'm needing an EX rocker arm, I have 2/3 of the broken one. Don't have the end with the lash adjuster.
I pulled the head and the valves and seats don't look to bad. Ex valve looks near new and guide doesn't feel worn at all. Intake valve doesn't look new but it's not bad, guide has wear but still servicable I believe I will give them a Lapping and call that good for now.
I have not pulled the piston and rod yet but all feels ok, one thing I noticed,
there is no oil slinger on the rod. I run a magnet around the crankcase sump but I found nothing with magnet. I did find some pieces of material that look like coal....bout the size of a thumb nail 1/4"-3/8" thick???
I haven't got a manual for it yet, fellow I bought the unit from said he has one and will send it soon as he finds it. I probably will not go much further with the teardown til I get one.
PLEASE advise me of any pitfalls you all can think of that I will or may encounter. Thanks
                                     PS hope I can get my pics to post!

[buko]

Try again!

[vdubnut62]

Congrads! I am assuming that you are the new owner of the unit that was posted here?

http://www.microcogen.info/index.php?topic=2263.0

If so I'm glad somebody here has it.
Ron

[flywheel]

Hello everyone just thought I would show everyone what I just hauled home. WOW what a piece of IRON!
Now the fun begins! So far  I know I'm needing an EX rocker arm, I have 2/3 of the broken one. Don't have the end with the lash adjuster.
I pulled the head and the valves and seats don't look to bad. Ex valve looks near new and guide doesn't feel worn at all. Intake valve doesn't look new but it's not bad, guide has wear but still servicable I believe I will give them a Lapping and call that good for now.
I have not pulled the piston and rod yet but all feels ok, one thing I noticed,
there is no oil slinger on the rod. I run a magnet around the crankcase sump but I found nothing with magnet. I did find some pieces of material that look like coal....bout the size of a thumb nail 1/4"-3/8" thick???
I haven't got a manual for it yet, fellow I bought the unit from said he has one and will send it soon as he finds it. I probably will not go much further with the teardown til I get one.
PLEASE advise me of any pitfalls you all can think of that I will or may encounter. Thanks
                                     PS hope I can get my pics to post!

Nice to have another 12hp Witte MD owner aboard - welcome.  

The nonmetalic coallike pieces you have found in the crankcase are probably coming from the underside of the piston.  You can check for a buildup there with a flashlight and maybe a small mirror.  Probe the area with a long screwdriver or similar to see if you can loosen some of it and compare it with what you have already found.   I would bet it will be the same.  I also found a few smaller chunks in my crankcase upon disassembly of my MD. There is mention of this buildup in the owners manal.

A owners manual on CD is available, send me a pm if you would be interested.  I covers more than just the MD model and does have a lot of info.

You can tell if your engine has/had a oil splasher by removing the bottom con rod nut and look to see if there is a machined out circle larger than the con rod bolt.  The MD uses a very stiff piece of wire for the splasher - at least mine does.  I believe I have also posted a pix of the oil splasher in my posts on the MD Diesectric.

Some nos and replacement parts are still available.

Is this engine the one from N. IN?  

I'm in N IL, where are you located?
                                                         flywheel

[LowGear]

The easiest place for parts and information is:

David Johnson
wittemania@cox.net

Casey

[LowGear]

Oh!

Congratulations on a great find. 

The air filter on the top suggests an older unit.  My BD is from the 50s and has enclosed push rods.   That 5 X 8 (bore X stroke) pencils out to 157 cubic inches - WOW!.  Not exactly square.

Are you going to open up the oil sump in the base?  10+ quarts storage.

What I like most about the BD manual is the Fuel Requirements being "Do not use crude." and nothing else.  I think the Made In USA is what actually pushed me over the edge.

Are you going to put him into service?  Doing what?

Casey

[buko]

Hey thanks for the replies and info. yes the unit did come from northern IN it has been there all its life till now and it is in west cental IN near Terre Haute.
I am going to restore the engine first, then I will see what can be done with the genhead, it is not complete as there was no excitation gen with it. I did get the voltage control unit though. I'm not sure if this gen being an 8kw 208/3 phase will be usefull to me for stand-by power for my home. I'm sure some one on here can advise me on that.
I also want play with some ideas for wast heat recover with this unit.
First things first though and I need some parts ie: exhaust rocker arm, Gaskets, and at least piston rings. I have not taken the fuel system apart yet, so I'm not sure what I got to work with there yet.
This old motor looks to be pretty easy to work on and very well made, that being said are there any areas that would require special attn?

[buko]

Hey lowgear
It's going to run some kind of genhead at some point. The sump may be already be in use for something. i will have to go look but I know there is a dipstick and there is a copper line and a valve of some sort coming out of it. I will let you know

[flywheel]

Hey lowgear
It's going to run some kind of genhead at some point. The sump may be already be in use for something. i will have to go look but I know there is a dipstick and there is a copper line and a valve of some sort coming out of it. I will let you know

The dipstick in the sump is where you check the engine oil, the MD has a sump in the base and one in the crankcase.
The crankcase sump overflows into the base sump.

That thing you call a valve on the side of the base sump with the copper line is the oil filter.  You turn the T handle to clean the filter/screen located inside the sump.  Not really much of a filter, you will probably find chunks from the underside of the piston in the lower sump.

Does the copper line go to oil pressure guage and then to the side cover on your engine? It appears you also have a filter mounted on top of your engine.

Attached is a pix of the filter/screen located in the base sump.
                                                                                                       flywheel

[LowGear]

Double sump huh.  I wondered if there was oil in the crankcase besides the base tank.

The BD filter is a bypass system like 55 Chevrolets.  Better than nothing - I think.

Casey

[flywheel]

Double sumps, there are two oil drain plugs/caps, one on the rear of the crankcase and the other on the base next to the oil filter.
              flywheel

[Carlb]

Double sump huh.  I wondered if there was oil in the crankcase besides the base tank.

The BD filter is a bypass system like 55 Chevrolets.  Better than nothing - I think.

Casey

If i remember correctly the original 55 chevy 265ci v8 did not have an oil filter.

[LowGear]

Hi Carl,

The first engine I slept with was my Chevrolet 265.  It had one of these bypass filters on it like the six cylinders.  In 56 when they brought out the 283 (which mine was when it went in to my ex-Idaho State Police car) had the filter receiver cast into the lower side of the block where it was the more modern kinda full flow system.

Fortunately I discouvered British machinery when I was 19 and haven't looked back to V8s since 1969.  Real Minis have 10 inch wheels!

Casey

[vdubnut62]

Double sump huh.  I wondered if there was oil in the crankcase besides the base tank.

The BD filter is a bypass system like 55 Chevrolets.  Better than nothing - I think.

Casey

If i remember correctly the original 55 chevy 265ci v8 did not have an oil filter.

Yes they did, at least on some of them. I could have been an option also. It was a canister type that bolted up on the intake manifold.
It could even have been the same housing used on the 216 and 235 sixes.
I have one down in the barn that eventually will end up on my Xing Dong at some point, I can post a pic if you want.
Ron

[buko]

This Witte engine is now running!
new injector
new intake valve
new valve springs and keepers
valve guide liners
valves ground
new rings
new rod bearing
rod journal welded and reground
new head gasket
new other gaskets
cobbled together exhaust rocker arm
remanufactured rocker shaft towers
some new paint