FYI only - Blackstone oil report - 2003 Sierra 1500HD / 243K total mi.

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I had Blackstone Labs run an analysis on the Sierra, as I wanted to make sure the engine wasn't on its last legs from a wear standpoint before sinking a bunch of time and money on my planned 'freshening' of the top end of the motor.

Figured some of you who haven't seen one of these might find it interesting, or perhaps were interested in having one of these performed on your engine at some point. They cost $28 (and they do bulk discount, but you have to buy a lot of 'bulk' before you see any appreciable 'discount'.) No, I don't work for them.

If you request a free sample kit, and send it in, record the USPS tracking # on the prepaid label, so you know when they get it. I sent this to them on 8/15 or 16; the post office took a week to get it to them, and they ran it on 8/28. Didn't get the report until today, and that was because I sent them a note before the holiday noting that my card had been charged around that date, but didn't get the report.

Notes:
- The 'blend' they refer to was 5qt of the MaxLife, along with 1qt of Napa 5w-30 full synthetic. As I told them -- that was done for convenience, not to achieve a desired chemistry. And I tell them if I mix it, because they compare the additive packages in submitted samples to what they know it's 'supposed to be', and will flag if it varies appreciably.

- The mileage is listed as '23,400' on the report. While I'd love that to be the case, I told them in a follow-up note to correct this for future reports (this is the first one I've run for this truck, which had multiple owners before I bought it. Thankfully, by the looks of the report, (most of) the prior owners kept the oil changed, somewhat.

- If you're wondering, I'm fairly happy with what I see here, the comment about lead notwithstanding. Happy enough that I'm going to proceed with my build plans for this truck, and not dump it off & look for yet another. :wink:

And with that... here's the report. If you have questions about the metals / additives, let me know. I don't know *all* of them, but I do know a good portion from prior experience (and a decent amount of time spent on BITOG in the past):laugh:

BStone_1st - Edited_for_GMT.jpg
 

TollKeeper

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Those magnesium numbers seem AWFULLY high
 

Reprise

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Not sure if you're flagging that as a problem, but it's an additive. Yeah, there's a lot, compared to the average of all oils used for the GM 6.0, but given what it's for (cleaning / detergent), I'm not concerned. The reason I use Maxlife is b/c it's regarded to have a good additive pack, per the BITOG boys.
 
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Reprise

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Yes. It was a short interval, b/c when I had done the 1st oil change, I found the drain plug was loose, so I was suspect of how well it had been cared for. The previous owner had put some $ into the truck (more of it on the appearance end, I think); encountering that drain plug raised a red flag with me.

This is a dedicated tow vehicle; my Envoy sees more 'daily driver' usage. If I'd ran it for a full interval, it would take the better part of a year. It takes about 500mi minimum to get a decent read on engine oil, once it's in the motor.

I have a fresh set of 317 heads for this truck sitting on a shelf, along with a TBSS intake. Am going to install them, along with a tow cam & other associated goodies. Since it's getting late in the season, I may hold off on these until I get back to town in the spring (currently doing preventative maint to make sure it's tow-worthy; I'm making plans to be a snowbird this winter). Now, at least I have a sense of what the bottom end looks like, wear-wise. Luckily for me, the GM 6.0L is a pretty bulletproof motor.

Since we're talking oil, the next fill is going to be with M1 'high mileage extended performance'; I got a deal on some at a local store, and was impressed with Mobil's dog-n-pony on their website. Will use this as I'm pulling the trailer out west and back, and will probably stay with something like it in the future, given this truck's duty profile. The Envoy will continue to run the Maxlife; that's fine for what it sees (especially since it won't be driven over the winter.)
 
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