oil leak btwn the head & jugs

[QRFan]

Short version. Had rings put in my 1979 special. I haven't ridden it except to the garage from a car trailer & am tryin to work out some bugs . THE ONE who tried to change rings got on bike before i picked it up & ran the **** out of the bike thru his neighborhood until it blew smoke out the right exhaust.... Had trouble with that every since(once bike warms up) although doesn't seem to be happening this evening. My question. Should oil be in that area(btwn jugs& head) and leak when bikes running ? Could it be from the engine not having any miles with new rings? I am NOT a mechanic & have not even had engines 101. I briefly searched for a thread,any help would be appreciated.

[digitalsam]

Does it look like this?

I ran my bike hard on day last summer and it developed the leak in the photo. I used it as an excuse to rebuild my engine. Haven't had engine 101 either and I am just winging it.

I would be curious to know why the leak started. I figure it will go away when I rebuild the engine.

[QRFan]

mine was already apart once

Thats exactly where my leak is.....my bike has supposedly been machined & new rings installed,,,,,, .... trying not to revisit that part of my life still Makes me irate & I couldn't ride if I were in prison)))))) just trying to decide where i need to start ..

[digitalsam]

Prison = bad

I agree, do things that will keep you on this side of the bars.

[petejw]

head retension

Have you guys retorqued the head,
should be done after the bikes been run for the first time
and cooled down, also rechecked after 500m or so.
If retensioning the head, always readjust your cam chain.
hope this helps.

[QRFan]

I'll give it a shot

Was hoping that it might be something simple............. if i turn blue holding my breath someone kick me Thanks

[Ivan]

Does it smoke before or after it warms up?

If it smokes at first start up, there is a chance of having a valve stem seal leaking. It would have to be pretty horrendous to leak enough to seep out around the exhaust, but not unheard of.

If it warms up, then starts smoking, then I would say the chances are the mechanic got the oil ring spreader in improperly, which is an easy mistake to make on any engine. When the spreader isn't in correctly, the oil ring doesn't seal well and lets oil into the combustion chamber.

I am not sure about the head gasket being a source for an oil leak. On this engine, the only place the head gasket would seal oil is the top of the mating surface of the cylinder sleeves and the block. Oil would have to travel up the entire length of the sleeve and out to leak. Since there isn't any oil pressure to the bottom of the cylinder, only slinging, I would say its a pretty narrow chance, but I could be wrong. If it were the timing chain galley, I suspect the leak would be in the middle of the engine and more obvious as to why the leak.

The only other option is a cracked head, since oil flows on the top. This would most likely cause the engine to smoke all the time.

[Ken Talbot]

Thats exactly where my leak is.

I would be willing to place a small wager that that is where there is oil, but in fact the leak is coming from the cam cover gasket. When this gasket leaks, it is often on the inside of the "H" where you can't see it. The oil will build over time, run forward through the small drainage holes deep within the fins. It seeps its way down until it collects somewhere much lower. There's a thread or two on this that suggest giving the front of the engine a very good blast cleaning with a strong degreaser, letting it dry, then a sprinkling a light shot of baby powder all over the front of the engine. Ride for a while and wait for the oil to show up again. Most often, you'll see the tracks show up and know exactly where the leak is. You could also pull the tank, get a good light, and have a good look at the top of the head. If there'a any seepage there, it will eventually find its way down the front, or even sometimes the rear, of the engine.

BTW - if I'm wrong, you're invited to drop by to pick up your winnings. How about some of our local microbrew product?

[QRFan]

some good ideas......

Ok, I'll tinker with it again tomorrow after work. I'll check the torque & try the baby powder. I appreciate all the help . If I ever get these bugs worked out ,I'll invite everyone for a beer I am so glad this website is here !

[DGXSER]

Hey QR, what part of Ohio are you from/at? SW here.

[QRFan]

Chillicothe area

Not too far from you,if you are in Cinci.......

[DGXSER]

yep I am...there is a group of us from the area on here. Look for a Cincinnati thread in Members Lounge.

Good luck on your engine, sounds like these folks are getting you taken care of.

[petejw]

a good way to check whether its worn rings or valve guides,
hav someone ride behind u, ride the bike at a high rpm
say around 6000, run this for a distance, if rings are worn itll blow smoke.
To check valve guides/seals, after riding the above back the throttle right off, if it smokes on deccelleration the vacuum is sucking oil thru the stem guides/seals.
hope this helps.

Also agree with Ken re: the cam cover, mine was leaking and gave that same appearance of oil leaking from the base gasket.