frozen oil filter bolt

[bluesdog]

.. and it's rounded off, too.

Just got my new/old '81 XS-11 Venturer, and am attempting to winterize it.

PO had not changed the oil for some time, as when I managed to remove the over-tightened drain plug, some pretty ugly black stuff poured out, but the quantity appears far short of 3.5 litres. Ho hum.

A 12mm wrench slips quite freely on the rounded off, over-tight filter bolt, and so far the bolt has resisted a vice-grip.

I've sprayed some 3M 5-way penetrating lubricant on the thing, but it's so tight I have doubts it will do much.

I'll leave it alone for a day or so, but when I get back to it, should I try using a torch? If so, should I heat the bolt, or the surrounding area of the filter housing?

I've ordered a replacement fitting from the Yamaha dealer, but it likely won't arrive for a month or so, and I'd like to have some fresh oil in the crankcase over the winter.

So I'd really like to remove the bolt without damaging it much further, so I can at least use it to retain the oil for storage purposes.

Anyone have some hints or tips on how to safely remove the thing?

TIA

bd

[DGXSER]

Not exactly the cheap way..but...THESE could be a good option.

Otherwise, you could use a dremel tool to cut a nice screwdriver slot in the bolt head and try that method, or a good flat chisel on the edge of the bolt.

[Rasputin]

I know a search will show you many options for getting that bugger out from welding to hammering. What worries me a bit is why are you short 3.5 litres of oil? I am thinking maybe you have removed the wrong bolt and have drained your middle drive instead!!!.
I do not know how much you know of these bikes but there is a manual available on Catatonicbug's signature that will help you a lot if you do not have one.
Welcome and post pics as we all like them.

[bikerphil]

Maybe try hammering on a 12pt. 11MM or 7/16" socket, perhaps a worn out one would fit.

[bluesdog]

Hi friends

Thanks for the astonishingly quick reply.

First, I'm not really new to these bikes. I bought one off the showroom in '78, but circumstances forced me to sell it a couple of years later. I did all my own wrenching, just as I have done with every bike I've owned.

So yeah, I drained the oil from the crank. I have a couple of pdf xs-11 manuals, as well, thanks. Granted, the bike is on a bit of a slant, so I'm not sure all the oil is out, and I haven't actually measured the amount. But it was very nasty, and seemed far less than it should have been.

Once I get the filter off, and tilt the bike to absolute level, I'll measure the old oil amount. I wouldn't be surprised if the quantity was low, as I doubt the oil had been attended to in some time. Clues were the over tight drain bolt and the rounded/frozen oil filter housing bolt.

Anyhoo, I've just been on the phone to my local xs guru, who suggested the same sears tool, or simply cutting a slot. He has lots of spares on hand, so it doesn't matter if I destroy the thing during removal. I may get a set of those sears removal sockets anyway. They look useful.

~~

OT: How does one post images here?

[bluesdog]

Ah, about posting images.. NM, I've just read the sticky post on that very subject, and will be uploading some pics to my ISP web site eventually...

Like when the weather warms up a bit...

[natemoen]

Hope ya get her out! And IIRC is it not 3 liters and not 3.5. Says 3000cc next to the fill hole 1cc=1ml. JAT

[old_chopper]

I welded a nut on mine to get it out. Between the new nut to get a hold of plus the heat of welding it came right out.

[Larrym]

The Bolt from Down Under???

Maybe try hammering on a 12pt. 11MM or 7/16" socket, perhaps a worn out one would fit.

Yup. Ya gotta do what ya gotta do when the PO had an aversion to removing bolts and/or changing vital but messy fluids.

And after you get it out (fingers crossed for ya...) here's a video worth viewing:

http://www.youtube.com/user/Steptoex.../0/D_Ag5wvdeqI

Seems that these frozen/rounded off oil filter bolts are found world-wide.

[fredintoon]

- - - here's a video worth viewing:
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steptoex.../0/D_Ag5wvdeqI - - - -

Hi Larry,
yeah, Steptoe's file fix will work once you've got that stubborn bastard out of there.
But it don't fix the root problem, that the hex is too small in the first place, which is why it rounded off instead of coming out.
Mine has come out OK so far but my fix would be this:-
Turn the knackered hex into a round locating spigot and braze an at least 17mm a/f nut over it.

[cywelchjr]

Hope ya get her out! And IIRC is it not 3 liters and not 3.5. Says 3000cc next to the fill hole 1cc=1ml. JAT

Ok, not to be too anal about it, but 1000ml == 1 liter, so they are one and the same. The magic of the metric system is everything is based off each other.

[natemoen]

Ok, not to be too anal about it, but 1000ml == 1 liter, so they are one and the same. The magic of the metric system is everything is based off each other.

Yes 1000ml is one liter, my point was that 3 liters and 3.5 liters is different. .5 liter extra COULD (may not, never tried it) make a difference in a small crank case like these.

[cywelchjr]

Yes 1000ml is one liter, my point was that 3 liters and 3.5 liters is different. .5 liter extra COULD (may not, never tried it) make a difference in a small crank case like these.

Ok, but you said it was NOT 3 liters or 3.5 liters. I'm thinking at this point that is NOT what you meant to type.

[natemoen]

Ok, but you said it was NOT 3 liters or 3.5 liters. I'm thinking at this point that is NOT what you meant to type.

Ahhhh I get it now, no I did not mean to type that, now things are beginning to make more sense!

[KA1J]

I had this problem on my XJ650J and it was A SOB to deal with. I had a rounded bolt from a PO. What I ended up doing was buying the smallest pipe wrench I could find and then attached a long socket and extension to the end of it to make the pipe wrench into a breaker bar.

It came off with a LOT of pressure but ruined (even more rounded off) the nut end even more. To deal with what was left I used a file to restore a bit of geometry to the nut and then bought a large SS nut at the hardware store, one with an ID large enough to fit over the munged head of the bolt.

I put the SS nut over the reworked oil filter bolt's nut and filled the empty spaces with the slow drying JB weld. What this did was make a larger than original nut. I then drilled a hole through the SS nut which went through the munged head of the oil filter bolt and ran a clevis pin through it. I dremeled off the ends from the clevis and now have a solid as all get out 22mm oil filter bolt to easily remove.

Gary