EGT Probe tip lost in engine. Ideas?

[Tvardz]

Hi all, my nav started to sound a bit like a chaff cutter so when I got home I checked the manifold for leaks. Turns out the tip of my thermocouple from my crapo ebay pyro gauge has disappeared somewhere into the engine!

This is the gauge and I highly recommended not buying one http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/60mm-Whi...006115?hash=item2ee3014223:g:t2YAAOxyVaBSoqVB

the probe was installed pre turbo into an egr blanking plate.
I've pulled the turb and mani off and no sign of damage or the probe tip and no sign of debris caught up in the cat either.
my guess is its found its way into the cylinder bore?

Any ideas on tracking the little prick down without removing the head?

Also is there a chance that the tip is made of something brittle that has just disintegrated and blown out the exhaust?

Has this happened to anyone else on here? or am I just lucky?

Any advice would be much appreciated
cheers

 

[Leprechaun]

Most likely just melted away, I cant see anyway it could find its way back into the engine so if the turbo is OK, just replace the TC with a better quality one.

 

[Rabbid-chop]

As above^ or it fell out. If it fell in - if that was even possible - and I'm assuming you had it in the manifold - you would have known about it as the turbine would be FUBAR.
Try Auber Instruments for a cost effective replacement.

 

[happy john]

You might just be very lucky, if the chaff cutter noise was nothing other than the leak all may be good. No blue smoke?.

 

[Tvardz]

There was no blue smoke.
Sounds like I might have dodged a bullet, I'm feeln way less punchie now.
So chances of it making its way past the valves into the cylinder are by general consensus unlikely then?
Rabbid thanks for the suggestion, I almost went with auber but choose the stupid ebay gauges because they matched the stock gauges.
thanks for the input guys

 

[happy john]

The sad part is the item you chose to protect your investment could of forked it. The place of the probe is potential for trouble. But the readings obtained would be considered the most accurate. A simple probe in the dump is WAY safer.

 

[Rabbid-chop]

It should be physically impossible for the probe to fall in. If it can then dont use it.
Should be "L" shaped or bigger at the other end. Also, theoretically, if it did fall in, wouldn't it go through the turbo not the engine?

Dunno, but exhaust leak noise aside, if the engine starts and runs smooth then you are fine. Visual inspection of the turbine wheel will tell you whether it looks like its tried to make a EGT probe smoothy or not.

 

[Old.Tony]

The exhaust valves close before the piston (which is pushing the exhaust gas out) finishes rising to the top of the stroke and it does not open again as the piston is falling - that is the only thing that could cause the cylinder to suck something back in. Thus the flow is always out through the turbine. Your probe probably melted - the turbine is actually fairly sturdy and if the probe did melt and come loose, it would have struck the turbine at roughly the same speed as the gas that was flowing through the turbine anyway = no change of momentum = no damage.

Relax. The probe is probably sitting in the radiator of the Toymotor Hilux that was behind you at the time.