Is it safe to have a ball bearing turbo with a dry center section?


Are turbonetics center sections interchangeable between ball bearing and non? I mean just the bare bearing housings. Like if you had a dry center BB turbo and wanted to make it water cooled you could just get any "bigshaft" turbonetics center housing even if it were previously used with journal bearings?

 

On Garrett units it is not, so if it is Garrett based I would say no to all above.

-S-

 

it's a turbonetics single ceramic BB. A dry center T66

also are the BB center housing (empty bare housings) the same as the big shaft journal bearing housings? Like I could buy a new water cooled housing and swap everything in? Worth the effort? I'll be running full synthetic oil so I'm not worried about coking, but I'm ot sure how picky the BB is.

Thanks for any help you can give.
- Cody

 

I have no experience with the T-netics units. I wouldn't be able to give you correct answers and don't want to give you bad info. I do know back in the day ceramic BB's were prone to fail this was back in the early 90's though.

 

why don't you want to run coolant thru the turbo? 13B's are already equipped to do it

 

Having a wet housing might add a little complexity (or rather, retain it), but having the option for a water cooled turbo should be taken advantage of whenever possible. I would really suggest going for it if you can, unless you just plain don't need it.

 

I think you guys are misunderstanding. I'm going with a single turbo, and I knwo the advantages of a wet vs. dry housing. I'm saying I foudn a deal on a dry center BB turbo and wondering how everyone feels this will work out in the long run.

Thanks,
- Cody

 

I called Turbonetics, they said 95% of the turbos they sel are dry centers. They said it's fine for the BB. Also that the housings are totally different than the nonBB center sections because the actual BB is larger than the journal bearings (I should've known that).

Also FWIW they said a restrictor is not needed, that the little filter that they include in the oil feed adapter is sufficient. Also they recommended -3 feed and -10 drain. I'm using a 3/16" hard brake line (I cut off and tapped the stock banjo, which should also help as a restriction) and 5/8" rubber drain line (will replace with silicone soon). The drain ID is never less than 1/2".

 

Turbonetics mills out stock Garret CH's (or do they make their own now?) just to retrofit their bearings in them.
No, they are not interchangable with anything out there.


-Ted