oil leak.. what does it mean?

[justinhenry]

I have a small amount of oil leaking from the breather on the front of the engine. i've only had the bike for a month or so, so i'm not too familiar with it or bikes in general. can anyone tell me what would cause this type of oil leak and how difficult it would be to fix?








My Bike

[Ken Talbot]

That little t!t on the front of the motor is the cam chain slack adjuster. Is is supposed to have a rubber plug in the end of it to keep the oil in. This is one of the most common problems with XS11s. You can still buy the plug new for pretty cheap. For even cheaper, you can use RTV sealant to glue in a shaped piece of cork.

[gareth]

When I went to my local chain autoparts store to buy replacement vacuum caps for the carb boots, they also had a 3/4" version called a "breather cap". I'm not sure what it is used for normally, but it fit tightly over the casting where your leak is and looks fine. I Take it off once in a while to clean it/ check leak rate. Worked for me..

YMMV,

Gareth

[justinhenry]

ok, so it's ok just to plug it? i honestly didn't even think of that because I assumed it was some sort of breather hole.

thanks

[olebiker]

Originally posted by Ken Talbot
That little t!t on the front of the motor is the cam chain slack adjuster. Is is supposed to have a rubber plug in the end of it to keep the oil in. This is one of the most common problems with XS11s. You can still buy the plug new for pretty cheap. For even cheaper, you can use RTV sealant to glue in a shaped piece of cork.

Just to add to what ken said you might want to use that adjuster. It is a very simple process.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey there Henry,

Glad to see you finally confirmed and got fully registered so you could post!

What concerns me is that it looks like you're missing a bolt on the top portion of the adjuster? You don't want it coming loose, that's for sure! I can see the head of the allen fitted bolt on the bottom, but it's not there on the top hole and the adjuster looks a little tilted as well! I wouldn't ride it until you got that other bolt in there, and then AFTER following the cam chain tensioning directions in the TECH TIPS TO THE LETTER! Otherwise, you could cause the chain to jump teeth, bend valves, and essentially kill the engine!

At this time, we invite you to browse thru ALL of the tech tips, scrolling down from the main forum page, not just the link in the left hand column, including the MISC section! Many of your upcoming questions will be answered there!
T.C.

[justinhenry]

i've tried to post a couple other times, but i guess i never activated my account and deleted the activation email. i finally just re-registered with a new name and made sure to activate it.

i have been able to browse the forums though. lots of good information.

i think all the bolts are there? here's a close-up picture.

[olebiker]

It does like like a bolt is there but they do like different. It appears that the bottom is longer than the top. I can't remember if mine looks like that. It looks like it has been a while since anyone adjusted the cam chain on it. I would encourage you to follow topcats advise and do it before you ride anymore.

[Ken Talbot]

Looks to me like everything is there, except of course for the rubber plug. TC - maybe you need new glasses? Or maybe a bigger monitor?

[TopCatGr58]

Great photo!

Okay Henry,

I'll delete your other pending username that's awaiting email confirmation!

I didn't realize/remember or notice that there is a more prominent shoulder to the lower mounting hole on the adjuster housing than the upper, and that's why it looked like it was missing the bolt!
T.C.

[petejw]

Does it look like the bottom bolt
isnt in far enuff?
hard to tell from the pic but it looks like
theres a gap between the bolt and housing, about
the thickness of a washer?

as the others have said, check ur timing chain tension,
the only time ive popped out the plug was when the
cam chain adj was loose, I also bent 4 intake valves. :-(

at least u have an easy fix for ur oil leak. :-)

[TADracer]

Hi Henry....nice pipes! No blue at all.

[justinhenry]

when i bought the bike it had been sitting in someone's garage for 15 years or so. the guy i bought it from got it from the garage guy, did some light maintenance, and sold it to me. here are some pictures if anyone's interested. it has 34k miles on it and is overall great shape. runs like a champ.

thanks for all the help.

pictures

[Radiation]

A washer?

It looks like there is a washer behind the bottom allen and none behind the top one. Just my $.02

[Radiation]

Cup holder?

Is that a cupholder on your handle bars on the left side?