Magnetic Drain Plugs

[1slowS13]

This is a copy-paste article from jdm-insider.com

I thought it was a very interesting read. While searching for key words, I found some threads with people asking about them, so..

"Somebody forwarded this email to me today where this new company, Titek, was promoting their magnetic drain plugs for an engine’s oil pan. While the concept is somewhat novel, it’s application is kind of dumb. A magnetic drain plug (mdp) has its place in a transmission with steel gears or a rear end with steel gears and metallic clutches where bits of steel can actually float around in the oil. However, a mdp actually has no place in an engine’s crankcase if you really think about it. In the remote possibility that your engine’s cams are gear driven, an mdp might have a place, but chances are if you are reading this blog your engine does not have gear driven cams.
Let’s think about what’s inside of an engine block for a second here: a crankshaft, bearings, rods, pistons, wrist pins, pin clips, and piston rings. The crank, rods, and pins are all riding on films of oil. The pin clips hold the wrist pins in place and the piston rings are held in place by the piston’s ring lands and neither bits of clips or rings can come out unless a catastrophic failure occurs. In the head, you have cams, followers, springs,retainers, and locks. If any of these components fail, the last thing you need to be worrying about is catching bits of steel at the very bottom of an oil pan with a mdp.
So in a healthy engine, what’s the purpose of having a mdp? The only components that can wear are the bearings and at that point your engine has become unhealthy probably due to a cracked oil pump rotor, oil pickup tube, lack of oil or pump cavitation and is living on borrowed time anyway. Bearings consist of lead, tin, copper, and sometimes babbit and/or aluminum. The last time I checked, none of these elements were magnetic because they are non ferrous. If the steel components break (crank, rods, pins, clips, or rings) or chip, the last thing you need to be worry about again is catching bits of steel at the very bottom of the oil pan with a mdp. You will more likely be either on the side of the road or track with a hole in your engine block and waiting for a tow truck. No mdp no matter how strong it’s magnet is, is going to save the day.
While technically it cannot hurt to use an mdp on your engine’s oil pan, it has no merit either. I’m not bagging on Titek since I know nothing about their products and I’m sure there are other companies that make mdps. I’m just making a point that mdps are useless. Some companies like to make products to increase sales so you can spend your hard earned money. That’s ok, but spend it on something that’s worth a shit."

http://jdm-insider.com/Blogs/Eric/?p=889

[KiLLeR2001]

Hmm I don't know about you guys, but when I do an oil change theres usually a small cluster of metallic particles attached to my drain plug, so I consider it to be helpful.

[brokeAs240sx]

Hmm I don't know about you guys, but when I do an oil change theres usually a small cluster of metallic particles attached to my drain plug, so I consider it to be helpful.

Yup, first oil change w/ it was pretty nasty. I'd rather have it on the plug than floating around.

Subsequent oil changes almost nothing, but still tiny specs here & there.

[2Slow40]

Did you just straight copy this thread from NicoClub? lol

[1slowS13]

Did you just straight copy this thread from NicoClub? lol

Yes. I, too am on there.

[2Slow40]

Haha I'm just messing with you man.

[S14DB]

In the remote possibility that your engine’s cams are gear driven, an mdp might have a place, but chances are if you are reading this blog your engine does not have gear driven cams.
Honda blog?

Steel is the only ferrous metal? Damn, if those Iron sleeves in your block wear...

[Bigsyke]

I've noticed the magnetic drain plugs are more effective on your tranny.

Plus do NOT order the PWJDM ones. I bought 2 sets for my civics, and one set when I pulled apart the magnets, one of the magnets came out of the socket. (the 2 drain bolts attach themselves together in the packaging) Held on by a very thin elmers green colored goo.

I then pulled all of the magnets apart and JB welded them back in, let them dry for 2 days, sanded the jb weld down, applied another coat. Did that 3 times. Dont want a magnet walking up the crank

[alexander500]

So according to this email I am wasting my time with the oil filter too.[Sarcasm]

[Bigsyke]

So according to this email I am wasting my time with the oil filter too.[Sarcasm]


oil filter in general? or filter magnet? because those have been noted to do more harm.

[warpd]

Hmm I don't know about you guys, but when I do an oil change theres usually a small cluster of metallic particles attached to my drain plug, so I consider it to be helpful.

Ditto, every time I change my oil there are metal particles on the drain plug.

[Avante]

oil filter in general? or filter magnet? because those have been noted to do more harm.

filter magnets do harm?

please elaborate.

i have a power enterprise filter, and it comes with a magnet.

should i be worried?

:bite:

[blownmotor]

Your oil does pick up metal from wear on you engine. I've had a Project Kics Mag drain plug for two years now and every time I open it it has a very small residue on it(it's not oil either). So whatever magnetic particles it picks up it stays there instead of circulating around in your engine/turbo. Better safe than sorry IMO.

[!Zar!]

Damn negus. All this talk about an magnetic oil bolt?

I only care about one thing and that's that my oil isn't dark as a fuckin negus.

[alexander500]

oil filter in general? or filter magnet? because those have been noted to do more harm.

The theory in this email suggests that there is so little or no friction or wear in a "heathy" engine that there is no need for any sort of cleaning/trapping device.

I have one of these mdp's and when I change my oil there are metal particles stuck to it. Particles that would other wise be working their way around engine and possibly causing damage.

The point I am tring to make is; this email and it's content is misleading. The author sounds intellegent, but in fact his reasoning is weak:

-Transmissions need magnetic drain plugs because they have gears and gears on gears wear making metal debis.

-Engines don't have gears, so there is no wear, so no need for a magnetic drain plug

I am not saying that if you don't have one you are going to die, rather that they are not as usless as the OP seems to suggest

[Okinawandrifter87]

Plus it doesnt hurt to pay only $10 for a plug..its not like fuck i just spent a couple hundred and it doesnt even work..plus when I do an oil change..yup..metal particles are there a little bit..

[g6civcx]

My brand new GM crate engine is as "healthy" as a motor can be. Every time I take off the magnetic drain plug, I see a lot of metal particles accumulate on the magnet.

Every one of my car has a magnetic drain plug, and every time I pull the plug I see some kind of debris.

If they all come out clean then I would consider not buying magnetic plugs again, but based on my personal experience I will continue to use them.

[Bigsyke]

MDP are good if they are durable. FilterMAG's are bad. Some have been noted to affect the bypass depending on the filter used. Do NOT use a FilterMAG.

[wow-thats-a-cool-car]

dude the magnetic drain plug in my diff saved me when my welded diff exploded because the big pieces were caught so the magnetic drain plug can save you in a worst case scenario.

[g6civcx]

dude the magnetic drain plug in my diff saved me when my welded diff exploded because the big pieces were caught so the magnetic drain plug can save you in a worst case scenario.

Read this again.

A magnetic drain plug (mdp) has its place in... a rear end with steel gears and metallic clutches

Your comment is not germane to the discussion because we're discussing engine oil pan drain plugs, not diffs.

[drift into a curb]

Honestly there's lots of impurities floating around. From your engine to your engine oil. Yes your engine oil does contain some. It's not a perfect world but we can try to minimize the ill effects with some band aid fixes here and there. I would also like to know how filter magnets are creating problems?

Bigsyke, please provide some evidence of all these harmful claims/situations.

[Bigsyke]

Honestly there's lots of impurities floating around. From your engine to your engine oil. Yes your engine oil does contain some. It's not a perfect world but we can try to minimize the ill effects with some band aid fixes here and there. I would also like to know how filter magnets are creating problems?

Bigsyke, please provide some evidence of all these harmful claims/situations.

Cut open a filter and place filter mag near spring. Its enough to affect the bypass on smaller filters. Ive talked to some engineers about the filtermags being so strong they can possible magnetize particles, and having them cling on places you dont want.

A good quality MDP does the same thing everytime you turn the car off, and is $30 cheaper, and would no way affect bypass pressure. It catches the particles before they hit the pickup/filter further lengthening the life of a filter on initial start up.

[MELLO*SOS]

Every time I've ever pulled out a mdp, it has metal particles on it. It just grabs some of the bigger crap before the filter can get it. Who cares, they're super cheap and add marginal additional pre-filtering abilities...

[DALAZ_68]

i just like em because i dont have to fish for the plug in my drain pan...all i need is a wrench and no oil burn for me LOL

[g6civcx]

i just like em because i dont have to fish for the plug in my drain pan...all i need is a wrench and no oil burn for me LOL

Protip: when removing the drain plug with your fingers, push up so that the plug seals oil in the pan. When the plug is completely loose, take the plug away in one swift motion.

If you do it right, you should have no oil on your hand. It may also help if you hit the plug with some compressed air or brake cleaner before you touch it so you don't burn yourself.

Some people can do it just the socket and never having to touch the plug with their fingers, but that's too much manual dexterity for me :)

[Bigsyke]

why not get a pair of latex gloves on, and wait for things to cool down? I love the concept of a hot oil change, but what justifys building oil pressure quicker vs having a proper lb/ft reading and a good seal?

I think the moral is MDP's are great, dont do ANY harm ~ as long as it wont fall out of the drain plug.

[g6civcx]

why not get a pair of latex gloves on

I agree. Oil causes cancer.

wait for things to cool down? I love the concept of a hot oil change, but what justifys building oil pressure quicker vs having a proper lb/ft reading and a good seal?

I prefer the cold oil method for safety reasons as well.

I think the moral is MDP's are great, dont do ANY harm ~ as long as it wont fall out of the drain plug.

:bigok:

[drift into a curb]

Cut open a filter and place filter mag near spring. Its enough to affect the bypass on smaller filters. Ive talked to some engineers about the filtermags being so strong they can possible magnetize particles, and having them cling on places you dont want.

A good quality MDP does the same thing everytime you turn the car off, and is $30 cheaper, and would no way affect bypass pressure. It catches the particles before they hit the pickup/filter further lengthening the life of a filter on initial start up.

A "good" quality MDP still doesn't have much effect because it has to come in direct contact with the metallic particle. The MDP doesn't go searching out metallic particles in your oil... only the ones it comes in contact and it's highly unlike it'll see every bit of oil. And you don't do it to lengthen the life of the filter, but rather keep micro particle contaminants from causing wear and tear on your motor.

The filtermag would have to be pretty close. Less than an 1/8" away from the bypass spring... It's possible to worry if it was such a small filter, that the magnet surface area somehow the filter just took up the whole area.. or if the magnet moved around, but that actually doesn't happen. Once it's stuck on there, it shouldn't be attached anywhere near the bypass spring and it's stays put, but yeah, your claim is substantiated by anything other than assumptions. Just FYI, I have rebuilt a SR with a filter mag and haven't had issues as of yet and prior to this I had a rebuilt KA motor. I wouldn't go as far as badmouthing it without any actual experience.

http://www.synlube.com/images/OFc3r.jpg

[DALAZ_68]

Protip: when removing the drain plug with your fingers, push up so that the plug seals oil in the pan. When the plug is completely loose, take the plug away in one swift motion.

If you do it right, you should have no oil on your hand. It may also help if you hit the plug with some compressed air or brake cleaner before you touch it so you don't burn yourself.

Some people can do it just the socket and never having to touch the plug with their fingers, but that's too much manual dexterity for me :)
i know all that...but theres those times ur hands slip up an dit still falls inside, ask anyone...im lazy

[Bigsyke]

A "good" quality MDP still doesn't have much effect because it has to come in direct contact with the metallic particle. The MDP doesn't go searching out metallic particles in your oil... only the ones it comes in contact and it's highly unlike it'll see every bit of oil. And you don't do it to lengthen the life of the filter, but rather keep micro particle contaminants from causing wear and tear on your motor.

The filtermag would have to be pretty close. Less than an 1/8" away from the bypass spring... It's possible to worry if it was such a small filter, that the magnet surface area somehow the filter just took up the whole area.. or if the magnet moved around, but that actually doesn't happen. Once it's stuck on there, it shouldn't be attached anywhere near the bypass spring and it's stays put, but yeah, your claim is substantiated by anything other than assumptions. Just FYI, I have rebuilt a SR with a filter mag and haven't had issues as of yet and prior to this I had a rebuilt KA motor. I wouldn't go as far as badmouthing it without any actual experience.

http://www.synlube.com/images/OFc3r.jpg


Im saying I wouldnt myself get one for my own reasons. I change my filters enough to not have to worry about metal shavings in the filter. The price offset isnt worth any potential trouble it COULD make.

Myself am a believer that any metal shavings flowing across such a highly magnatized area could magnatize the particles themselves. I have an mfactory magnetic drain bolt. That thing could fish out particles in your oil like you couldnt imagine.

I tried putting some metal shavings in a bucket, the MDP does a fine job, and id rather opt for an amsoil Eao filter

[EDacIouSX]

why buy a magnetic drain plug when you can just magnatize your own???

just magnatize it like you magnatize normal screw drivers, take a big fat magnet and then hold it to the drain plug and VWALAH, instand magnetic drain plug.

[Bigsyke]

^^^theres no way you could convert a standard drain bolt to be on par with a rare earth magnet. I could pick up a 1/2 torque driver no problem with the PWJDM one. My autozone could barely hold a few paperclips.