is anyone near me that can help with a fix??

[redbone]

xjok.....yes, you have described mine to a tee. i am gonna try some of these other suggestions from these guys tho. i know my valve cover leaks near plug 4, but i can guaranty the cam chain tensioner is not. thansk for the info. i'll try to give update later.
thanka redbone

[petejw]

lol
You can put me in that group too,
anytime ive removed the head from an engine without removing the block,
I get a leak there, Ive done 3 heads in 3 engines in the past few months,
each one has leaked there, there was no leak prior.
retorquing doesnt help ive tried that.

[redbone]

nother update

my paper towl experiment was conclusive. the cylinder base gasket is leaking dead center in the rear.
so now i'm wondering if that stuff that Billy Mays [rest his soul] used to hawk on TV that would seal garden hoses and pipes and alll sorts of other things would work??? what the hell, i gotta try somethin rite!
any other suggestions......
thnax
redbone

[TopCatGr58]

Mighty Putty

Here's the specs:

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES:

COLOR: Disappearing green dye that cures white. WORKING LIFE (min.): 10 SHELF STABILITY: 6 months minimum @ 75°F SHORE D HARDNESS: 75-77 LAP SHEAR TENSILE STRENGTH ON STEEL (1” x 1” x 1/16” LBS.): 700 psi (GBS/GBS) TEMPERATURE LIMITATIONS: Dry: 250°F, Wet: 125°F COVERAGE/LB: 122 sq. in. @ 1/16”

CHEMICAL RESISTANCE: Resistant to hydrocarbons, ketones, alcohols, esters, halocarbons, aqueous salt solutions and dilute acids and bases. ELECTRICAL RESISTANCE: 30,000 megohms DIELECTRIC STRENGTH: 300 volts/mil SHRINKAGE: Less than 1% NON-VOLATILE CONTENT: 100% COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH: 12,000 psi FULL CURE: 24 hours Net Wt. 2 oz tubes

I would be concerned about the temp limitation, as well as the chemical resistance!?
T.C.

[XJOK2PLAY]

So does anybody have a good fix for this problem, short of a teardown?

Sounds like several of us may have this problem!

I'd REALLY like to figure a way to get mine stopped before Talimena...

We just had mine torn down back in Jan. this year and we put a new base gasket in, Bohn did the cleaning... torqued the head bolts properly, ran for 50 miles, then retorqued. Held up for a few months, now it's leaking again... same spot.

Surely somebody knows a shortcut repair...???
Thanks.

[petejw]

Dont know about a quick repair,
but out of curiosity did you also replace the 'o' rings
around the barrels?

[redbone]

topcat, i was also thinkin about that stuff billy mays hawked that came in an aerosol can, and you would just spray it on garden hoses, copper pipes, leaky boots etc,etc, can't remember all the things it could fix.
can't remember what it was called either.
anyone ever try it??
but yeah, like xjok said...a good permanent fix would be nice.
i'll be offline a couple days, back again mon.
hope to see lots of solutions by then.
thnax again
redbone

[XJOK2PLAY]

Pete,
I can't say for sure... there were 4 of us working on it at the time...
I had just got the bike, and knew nothing about it.

But the other guys were all members/owners...w/ lots of experience.

My main task was scraping, cleaning, and painting...

So I'll have to check and let you know... could be, but I doubt it.

I do believe, though if the Orings were in the gasket kit, they would've been swapped.

I'm beginning to believe this may be a more common issue, possibly from design...
Thanks, Pete

[trbig]

I have slept since then and don't honestly remember if we swapped out the orange O-rings.. but I THINK we did.

As far as milling... I guess it could be done, but you're talking a pretty good chore. The cylinders would have to have the sleeves removed since they stick way down past the gasket surface. On the engine mating surface, you'd have to split the cases since the rods stick up even after removing the pistons, and you would also have to remove all of the long studs that your head torques to... hoping one of those caked in things don't snap off in the case.

Once a gasket starts leaking, it acts like a wick and keeps sucking oil through even if you tighten it. Sometimes tightening will slow it to a small enough trickle that you can live with it until you're ready to deal with it.

I have stripped down these motors quite a few times and continue to learn about them. A couple of these have been at Bob's expense, unfortunately. I think with this base gasket.. which I never thought to be a problem since there's no oil pressure against it.. there needs to be something different done on assembly. I know for a fact that the mating gasket surfaces on XJOK's (Bob's) bike couldn't have been cleaner or more oil-free, yet there's still a problem. I think in the future... since it works so well on sealing the case halves, that I will just leave the base gasket off and put a good bead of Yamabond/Tri bond down. It would also make it MUCH nicer next time you had the motor apart. Any of you that have scraped and scraped on a stuck base gasket will know what I am talking about.

Another positive to this would be that with the gasket gone, it would end up moving the head slightly closer to the pistons' TDC.. having the same effect as a very slightly milled head... and actually bump compression up just a touch.


Tod

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Tod,

Aside from RTV I hadn't thought about using the Yamabond! It's good stuff. Not using a base gasket but using the Yamabond definitely would work, but one could also use the gasket AND the Yamabond when assembling.

As for Redbone, the Yamabond would be another type sealant that he could try to apply along the seam once it's all cleaned up. IT's very heat resistant, and oil resistant as well!
T.C.

[Lunatic]

gasket issues

my paper towl experiment was conclusive. the cylinder base gasket is leaking dead center in the rear.
so now i'm wondering if that stuff that Billy Mays [rest his soul] used to hawk on TV that would seal garden hoses and pipes and alll sorts of other things would work??? what the hell, i gotta try somethin rite!
any other suggestions......
thnax
redbone

I had to buy a complete gasket kit to get just the sidecover gaskets a few years ago, I have the base gasket, and head gasket, and assorted o rings and such still here. Interested? Cheap. Other than cam cover (which I already used) I would think it would be everything you need. Email me at Motopsycho@wat.midco.net if interested.

[redbone]

i think i'll try the yamabond. but anyway, my brother [a harley rider] asked a legit question regarding this issue. if this is a lo pressure area, the only pressure should be coming from the downstroke of the piston(s), and there should still be a crankcase vent somewhere right??? perhaps this is blocked and causing a greeat deal of pressure in the case causing the oil to be forced out of the weakest place?!?
he tells me this is a common prob with the harleys. i know these are not harleys, but it did get me thinkin. i have not had time to research this so i thought i'd ask you guys.
any info or thoughts appreciated.
redbone

[tarzan]

The crankcase vent is the big hose that goes up to the airbox.I think it would be hard to plug that up.Anything is possible though,I suppose.

[DGXSER]

You know, over the winter I rebuilt my carbs and played aorudn a bit getting them tuned back in correctly. Anyway, I did alot of short period idles and not much real running or getting the engine hot.

I found this milky looking stuff in the breather tube. When it warmed up a bit, I took the breather tube off and blew it out wiht compressed air, luckily I did not have it pointed at me. It was like a mayonaise gun!! Blob the size of a grape or two came out of there. I am sure it was enough to cause some pressure to build if left alone.

JAT

[redbone]

dgsxer,[and all] yeah, i'm gonna look into that. i finally have some time today. the p.o. of my bike did absolutly no maintenance, so there is no doubt [from past surprises i've found] that could be blocked. i'll try to update tomorrow.
redbone