1966 Kawasaki A1 Samurai restoration project

Kidkawie wrote: Yeah, that early they may still have been using straight pipes.

I found an article on the Kawasaki Triples talking about adding expansion chambers to boost performance. I'm guessing if they didn't have them, then the A1/A7's probably didn't either. I may still go with those straight mufflers I found (kinda like that side-exit look )

Alright. Got the crank cases just about ready to go back together, so I opened up my gasket kit to hunt down the crank gaskets. Wouldn't you know it...there aren't any! This thing has everything else...even exhaust gaskets. So...I need to use something, and was wondering what you guys thought about just a thin layer of red rtv as a gasket, rather than making a paper one?

I'm not a big fan of RTV in the crankcase.

I would use the rubberized gasket material. I think it's a little better than the plain paper stuff.

loudhvx wrote: I'm not a big fan of RTV in the crankcase.

I would use the rubberized gasket material. I think it's a little better than the plain paper stuff.

Is the RTV known to break down and cause problems? I was just leaning that way because it will be easier to make a gasket with that, than with the sheet gasket material (I admit, I'm a little lazy lol).

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Listed at Z1E:

www.z1enterprises.com/ThreeBond-Liquid-Gasket-1194-178.aspx

Good Fortune!

if you are talking about sealing the upper and lower case.
that only uses a sealer like the threebond patton linked to.

a paper gasket would not be a good deal there.the way the cases clamp the bearing races a gasket would affect the torque.

leon

Cool thanks for the info guys. This may seem like a silly question, but since this is my first crank case reassembly, I am unsure. Do I need to put the sealant only on the flat mating parts of the case, or also in the dips where the shaft bearings sit as well? Here's a pic with them circled (but the crankshaft is not...

only on the flat mating surfaces.

not in the bearing bores.

you just want a very thin coat of sealer.

think about when you tighten it down you don't want big globs oozing out inside where they can muck up stuff.

the nice thing about the threebond products is what does ooze out will bond inside the cases.where as silicone globs would be more apt to come loose and plug up something important.

leon

Ok. I had a feeling that would be a no, since I only found left over material on the flat parts. I tried to find three bond locally, but it looks like I will be ordering from Z1 since I had no luck. I will be working on cleaning up the engine covers until then. I started on one of the carb covers since I figured that would be the biggest PITA because of the kawasaki lettering stamped into them. The rest should be slightly easier, even though a couple are bigger.

I picked up some of that blue magic metal polish the other day and spent about 30 secs on a small section of one of the wheels. It looks like that stuff will do the trick for shining back up the wheels, spokes, brakes, and engine covers. I will hold off on using the polish until everything is back together, since I tend to get grease and grime on parts when reinstalling them.

Z1 Enterprises is on the ball (as usual). I got a shipping notification 25 minutes after placing my order today. If the mail runs smoothly (LOL), I should be putting the crankcase back together, and back in the bike Saturday!

How much did you pay for yours?