2001 5.3.. Tons of metal in oil

I just did my 2nd oil change since owning my Tahoe.

First time, there was metal in it. It wasn’t too bad.

This time. It was literally full of metal. Oil had that metallic flake to it. It was scary.

I don’t know where it’s coming from. It doesn’t appear to be magnetic, and the engine runs absolutely flawlessly and has great oil pressure. Any help?

Confirm Is this motor oil or a differential (just don't want to assume just in case)? what interval between changes? What oil you using? Get a used oil analysis stat! Pics of oil? Nothing on the magnet?

Likely cam bearing or rocker arm roller is your glitter. Keep an eye on that oil pressure and listen for valve noise. Better plan on pulling the engine. They dont usually last long spitting glitter into the pan.

afpj said:

Confirm Is this motor oil or a differential (just don't want to assume just in case)? what interval between changes? What oil you using? Get a used oil analysis stat! Pics of oil? Nothing on the magnet?

Click to expand...

Nothing magnetic that I can tell. I couldn’t get any pics of the oil before i took recycled it but it’s bad. Bottom of the pan was covered in metal shavings and what looked to be very tiny blue RTV pieces.

rockola1971 said:

Likely cam bearing or rocker arm roller is your glitter. Keep an eye on that oil pressure and listen for valve noise. Better plan on pulling the engine. They dont usually last long spitting glitter into the pan.

Click to expand...

It’s been roughly 8K since this started. Oil pressure hasn’t been below 35-40psi hot unless it’s 117°F outside and it’s idling in the sun without the clutch fan being able to suck in much air.

Pulling the engine isn’t too big of a deal, i’m putting a new engine in my other truck in a couple weeks. Just curious though, how hard is a rocker arm roller to fix?

It’s as silent as a mouse from cold starts to hot starts and anything in between. Only thing i notice is what sounds like very quiet lifter tick that only lasts around a minute or 2 from when the engine is first cranked over to it warming up.

afpj said:

Confirm Is this motor oil or a differential (just don't want to assume just in case)? what interval between changes? What oil you using? Get a used oil analysis stat! Pics of oil? Nothing on the magnet?

Click to expand...

I went i believe around 3600mi on this oil change. Oil is pennzoil ultra platinum 5W-30.

Prepare for a 6.0L upgrade.

Send a sample of your used oil to Blackstone for an analysis.

My guess would be cam bearing material. I've read that the camshaft bore is sometimes line bored with the bearings in to true up the alignment, I suspect some core shift over time has messed that up and you have some accelerated bearing wear. A Blackstone analysis might pinpoint this. I'm some surprised the oil pressure is still normal.