A Newbies Adventures in Maintenanceland!

Update: she runs! I finished the gas tank yesterday, hooked everything up and then double checked everything and started her up. Even with the straight through 4 into 1 it idled no problems and sounds like a freaking beast! Everything seemed fine so I went out for a little shakedown run. Around the block and back and she rides great, albeit LOUDLY! When I got back to the driveway I looked down on my left side when I was throwing out the side stand and noticed a giant puddle of oil! I shut it off and found that the top of the crankcase was completely covered in a stream of oil! WTF! I didn't have time to investigate but I will look today and hopefully find where it's coming from. I think it is coming from the oil pressure sensor, I took it off, and maybe didn't put it back right. I hope it's nothing big! I will also check my plugs to see if they are dry and if my valve seals are doing ok. Could the oil be somehow coming from the carbs? I assume that if it idles fine that the carbs are clean, and if at least one of the carbs was filling with oil it wouldn't idle right? Anyways, to rain on my parade even more I found that my new drag bars had put a nice gouge on either side of my brand new paintjob on my tank. I had gone from wetsanding and rubbing compound on the tank to 2 gouges in less than an hour...needless to say I chugged a few beers and smoked a few darts to calm down. Anyways, I will try to locate the leak and pray that it is something not major and catastrophic and post pics and better yet vids of yesterdays fun.

Did it leak oil during your initial engine run with a fan on the engine for no more than 5-10 minutes then shut her down for a complete cool down as mentioned to you?

Then next morning, re-torque all engine bolts Head and frame as mentioned.... This is important!

Is it leaking from the Tach drive or from the head gasket (base gasket)?

I forget, did you modify to the single head gasket and fill the rectangular top cylinder o-ring groove with RTV?

You did use a new head gasket right?

OMR

I did not do the initial startup with a fan, I did the first startup yesterday and went around the block to seat the rings. I put a regular 2 piece head gasket, and all new other gaskets, I don't have a tach drive, and it doesn't seem to be leaking from any of the gaskets I replaced. The oil is coming from either the crankcase breather (it looked to NOT be the culprit) the carbs as they are above the crankcase and could potentially somehow be leaking tons of oil down onto the case, or the oil pressure sensor. Like I said I will check it out likely in a bout 5 minutes when I drive over there ti look at it and I will post results. I am just paranoid that somehow I plugged up the oil passages and that the oil pressure is building up and pouring out the pressure sensor...we'll see! wish me luck

I will retorque everything today as well

"I did not do the initial start up with a fan,"... tsk-tsk-tsk....

9am53 wrote:

...top of the crankcase was completely covered in a stream of oil...will try to locate the leak and...post pics and better yet vids of yesterdays fun.

Would (1) thoroughly clean engine, (2) situate a fan blowing on the engine, (3) crank up and closely observe running engine to determine source of oil leakage.

A posted video of that exercise might be interesting.

Good Fortune!

Old Man Rock wrote:

"I did not do the initial start up with a fan,"... tsk-tsk-tsk....

I couldn't resist! I can't see how it did any harm to go maybe 1 kilometer around the block rather than rev the bike under no load in the garage to seat the rings.

Here are some pics that I have had backlogged for a couple days, first off the fairing.





not bad eh!

here is my tank after 1000 and 2000 grit paper:




Here is is after my 3M rubbing compound:




DUPLICOLOR YAY!

The color is actually a bit darker than the pics show...

Anyways, here is the finished product, after many many hours of work, and invaluable help from people on here I finally got to ride it, on the first day of spring no less!




I will get rid of the peter fonda bar once my gf gets a bike of her own, and will likely get a solo seat as well and install the ducktail that I started on and remove the rear fender to maintain the sleek descending towards the rear look of the bike - eventually...

I mentioned how my bars dinged my new tank...here are the dings...




That oil leak did come from the oil pressure sensor, here is what caused it:




that little o-ring around the bolt was chewed up and leaked. How does that unit work? what is there a seal around that bolt for anyways? I found a replacement in the orings I had amassed over the winter that fit perfectly, and put it together. I then started it up with a fan and ran it in the garage and watched as no oil leaked, problem solved!

I took a vid of the first fireup, and as I said, I couldn't resist, I had to take it out!



I think I am going to lower the rear shocks from 5 to maybe 3 to give it a big more of an aggressive stance...looks kind of frumpy with the rear up in the air like that

that came out nice....cant see the vid at work...have to check it out tonite....nice job.....

thanks man! Like I said, the paint ictually looks darker, but there are some holographic sparkles in it that make the pics look a bit lighter. When I discovered those tank dings I lost it, but what are you gonna do? Thanks god it was duplicolor and not some expensive pro job When I fixed the oil leak it started up great, it idles smoothly and rumbles like a 454 rat (well, almost).

I pulled the plugs and they are kind of black (not oily), I assumed this will clear up when I actually get to ride it. Are sooty plugs upon first startup common? 90% of the running on the plugs has been with the choke pulled with a cold motor...I figured it is just from running rich and not being hot enough...

I'll post some proper pics when I give her a wash and a polish (I am not polishing for a few weeks to let any residual solvents to outgas)

9am53 wrote:

thanks man! Like I said, the paint ictually looks darker, but there are some holographic sparkles in it that make the pics look a bit lighter. When I discovered those tank dings I lost it, but what are you gonna do? Thanks god it was duplicolor and not some expensive pro job When I fixed the oil leak it started up great, it idles smoothly and rumbles like a 454 rat (well, almost).

I pulled the plugs and they are kind of black (not oily), I assumed this will clear up when I actually get to ride it. Are sooty plugs upon first startup common? 90% of the running on the plugs has been with the choke pulled with a cold motor...I figured it is just from running rich and not being hot enough...

probably, put 50 miles or so and get it up to temp and recheck them...