Detroit 2-71

[mobile_bob]

GIII:

you are correct about the detroits, they can be a mess, they are very finicky about exhaust backpressure, low temp running, intake restriction and the list
goes on which all cause oil consumption and oil leaks

they are noisey at 1800 rpm, but tolerable at 1200 where most of the 2/71 gensets run.

they are also obsolete and getting harder to get parts for,,

and most of all a detroit has between 2 and 3 times the working parts of any other engine, the cylinder head of a 2/71 likely has more parts than a complete lister!

other issues are the blowers which leak when they get old, most are now old, and require specialized tooling and a good deal of experience to overhaul and have something that will live when you are done..

detroits are not for the DIY'er, i would not recommend one to someone that is going to work on it himself, unless he was a detroit mechanic to start with.

if you can get one cheap, and it run's well, doesnt leak alot, and is only going to be used intermittently then go ahead and get it.. but if you are looking at one that
is in need of work, eg. doesnt run cleanly and well, don't expect to repair or overhaul it yourself,, the tooling alone costs more than a lister!

for instance you cannot load a piston/ring assembly with a standard ring compressor, they have to be loaded from the bottom of the liner and the whole assembly installed in the block, the wrist pin retainers are snap disks and have a special tool to install them and they have to be vacuum checked to prevent leakage.

just running the overhead, eg setting valves is easy enough, but setting the injector heights requires a special pick tool and setting the govenor air gap requires a special or modified govenor cover and an accurate tachometer to get it right, get it wrong and you have no power!

don't get me wrong detroit 2 strokes are interesting and fascinating engines, but not for the shade tree mechanic, they truely were the ferrari of diesel engines when it came to needed experience and tooling if not for their performance.

be careful guys with these engines

bob g

[rcavictim]

I was picking through a previously unexplored area of my favorite scrapyard on Sunday and found an old DC welding machine that has a Detroit 2-71 in it.  From all that I have heard about these and because fuel economy is my number one concern in any diesel that I set up here for off-grid power generation, I didn`t even entertain the notion of acquiring this beast, not even for a femtosecond.  Like most of the treasure in this yard it has been sitting unmollested for decades and is likely stuck anyway.  Would probably need major restoration work.  I got my Petter froim this guy and it was a major project to bring back.  Siezed really good.  The most recent acquisition a Mercedes diesel iin a ThermoKing reefer also siezed with water in one cylinder.  That was a majorbummer.

What I did do is have a close look at the generator on the detroit since I am searching for a 1200 RPM alternator for my wind turbine project.  My faint hopes were quickly dashed when I discovered it was a welding generator.