Question about replacing the head gasket

[DJinNH]

I'm really trying to make due with the gasket I have in there now but it is leaking in the front.

I ordered a new head gasket and I am wondering, when or if I decided to try to replace it myself, will I have to pull the engine out of the frame or can it be done still mounted on the frame? Will there be enough clearance to get in there?

Don

[bikerphil]

head gasket

No, you don't have to pull the engine out of the frame. I just did my head gasket recently, there is plenty of room.

[mro]

leaking in the front

Guess can happen to the best of us...

Leaking what and do you have a manual?

Head is best removed while engine still in frame.
Just a note, if original head gasket in engine, will have a cam chain galley gasket too. This is not used anymore when gasket being replaced. If you try to reuse the old one you will damage head.

Most oil leaks in the front are from the cam chain tensioner and/or valve cover. Can be difficult to tell exactly where it's leaking from sometimes.


mro

[olebiker]

Why is the old gasket not used any more?

[trbig]

As stated, the head can be removed with the engine installed, but it is a bit of a tight squeeze. Some people find it easier to remove or move the reserve lighting unit under the tank. (Little square black box looking thing) Be careful not to scratch up the valve faces or combustion chamber on the tops of the studs. You'll have to raise the head up, then slide and tip it backwards before you can remove it... and all the while, the little studs for your cam caps will be trying to hang up on every wire and cable they can find. If you have an extra set of hands at this point it would be helpfull.

Have you ever re-torqued your head nuts? Don't forget the little 12mm nuts in the front and back of the motor.


Tod

[prometheus578]

Ole Biker....
The old gasket came in two pieces. The main head gasket, and a separate one that went by the cam chain gallery. There was a little lip on it, if I recall correctly, that went down into the gallery to protect it from the chain.
It's not really needed.
Yamaha did away with it quite early on... and aftermarket replacement gasket sets don't come with it... just the new head gasket.
If you try to reuse the cam galley gasket, you will break off a chunk of the cylinder above the cam chain tensioner... and then you'll have to goob it up with JBWeld which will hold for 5 or 6 years, but still leak oil a bit, which you'll then have to grind away the JBWeld and re touch it up once in a while....
Need I say more?

[DJinNH]

Not sure how this photo will come out from my sappy little cellphone cam but I'll give it a try.

Right in the middle of the photo, where there's a bolt on a thread that tightens up the front of the seal...or suppose to anyway.

I've tightened it up to the point where I am worried about snapping it. Because it's still leaking, I assume I need a new head gasket.

If you can make out some red coloring...that is a gasket sealer I tried to use. And no, it's not bubble gum.

Don

:

[trbig]

I'm not trying to patronize you, but are you SURE it's the head gasket? there isn't any pressure right there. What IS a common leak problem is the cam chain tensioner right below that point. Oil dripping there will get splashed up the motor from the wind and appear to be coming from different places.

Also, don't over-torque that nut. It would be better to let it leak a bit of oil. The head can easily crack there at that point if you aren't careful. As long as it isn't hot exhaust gasses blowing past (Which can cut through the metal like a blowtorch) and just oil... it's a mess, but you haven't broke anything.

Tod

[olebiker]

Originally posted by prometheus578
Ole Biker....
The old gasket came in two pieces. The main head gasket, and a separate one that went by the cam chain gallery. There was a little lip on it, if I recall correctly, that went down into the gallery to protect it from the chain.
It's not really needed.
Yamaha did away with it quite early on... and aftermarket replacement gasket sets don't come with it... just the new head gasket.
If you try to reuse the cam galley gasket, you will break off a chunk of the cylinder above the cam chain tensioner... and then you'll have to goob it up with JBWeld which will hold for 5 or 6 years, but still leak oil a bit, which you'll then have to grind away the JBWeld and re touch it up once in a while....
Need I say more?

Nope experience is a bitch ain't it. I am also now one of the guys who has to agree that removing the carbs with a stock air box is really not fun. Anybody ever figure out an easy way. I detached the airbox first then I could move it around some to get the carbs outta the boots and outta the bike. Nasty damn job.

[Ken Talbot]

I would bet a few beers that your leak is not coming from the head gasket. Most likely, and I have seen this lots of times, it is leaking valve cover gasket. If you take off the tank, you can look down onto the valve cover and see how many places there are in the inside of the "H" shape for a leak to develop. The oil runs forward because the slope on the top of the motor, it dribbles down through some drainage holes, and it finally collects right where you think the leak is.

One old trick is to clean all of that area with a pressure washer, dry it, then sprinkle it with talcum powder. Fire it up, let it run for a bit, then check for oil tracks through the powder. Chances are you find your leak, and your engine will smell real purty for a while.

[mro]

Nasty damn job.

Many moons ago I used to bitch about lame engineering on some of the equipment I'd service. Then one day realized if it were all easy I would not have a job


mro

[bikerphil]

airbox mod.

Olebiker, airbox comes out in a matter of seconds if you do what I did. First, whack the snorkel about 1 inch from the airbox & toss it. Second, get rid of the top airbox bracket, toss it, but put the screws back in (phillips head). Now after the bottom filter housing is removed, the airbox can easily be removed and then the carbs. Plus it breathes much better. I also have my airbox drilled for optimum airflow and carbs jetted with 45p/145m. Won't work with an XJ.

[olebiker]

That snorkel is certainly in the way. I wonder in a hard rain how much water you would end up with in the airbox.

[bikerphil]

rain in airbox

I've been caught in some heavy downpours, and have never experienced a problem. I'd bet pod filters would get pretty soaked, though. I liked this mod so much, both my XS's have it. Haven't had to take my carbs off for at least 2-3 years now, but next time I do, I know it'll be a snap. Also, it has that nice sound when hitting the throttle.

[trbig]

No more than with pod filters, and pod filters are just fine in the rain. It actually runs BETTER in the rain.

Tod