Base gasket leaking on 1983 KZ1100 ltd....

In between cylinder block and head i believe

Rickman wrote:

natetru wrote:

wireman wrote: Remember to order the O-rings for base of 4 outside studs when you order the gaskets

yea...i learned that today!

Sorry to interrupt but I need to know more about this.
Wireman you're saying to put 4 o-rings under the cylinder block in addition to the ones on top of the cylinder block? I don't see these on the parts diagram... :huh:

Hi Rickman... its funny you got back on this because I've just located my parts here today in the UK for this job through a company called ZPower. The O-rings in question are part no : 92055-1148 and are £7 sterling or $10.7 dollars US each, so I'm seriously hoping there are only 4 needed :woohoo:

I've checked the parts book too and it does only show 4 of these under the cylinder head. Just maybe there's been some sort of mod concerning the base gasket. Would really like to know a little more. I've heard there are different base gasket materials available, perhaps extra O-rings are required with a different gasket???

By the way, thanks Patton for the link to ring compressors... very helpful indeed.

Thanks as always guys in anticipation... Dave

saxonpirate wrote: The O-rings in question are part no : 92055-1148 and are £7 sterling or $10.7 dollars US each

Oh, wow, that's insane. Isn't it a crime that the online parts diagram doesn't list the o-ring sizes? Some generic supplier would certainly be less expensive.
I get mine included in the Vesrah top end gasket set, so they're guaranteed to turn hard in 3 years -- just like the ones I'm now removing. :silly:

Rickman wrote:

saxonpirate wrote: The O-rings in question are part no : 92055-1148 and are £7 sterling or $10.7 dollars US each

Oh, wow, that's insane. Isn't it a crime that the online parts diagram doesn't list the o-ring sizes? Some generic supplier would certainly be less expensive.
I get mine included in the Vesrah top end gasket set, so they're guaranteed to turn hard in 3 years -- just like the ones I'm now removing. :silly:

Yeah, I've searched high and low for a generic equivalent, but no joy. They must be specials to Kawa. If I remember rightly they are not spherical, they have flattened faces. Still, I'll have to grin and bear the cost of em, hopefully with the knowledge they won't leak... :dry:

What I have done with good results for an oil leak from the cylinder base is I will remove the head, very carefully to insure not to disturb the cylinders any further. Go to your local auto parts store and purchase two o-rings that are 3mm thick and about 7mm in diameter. I use the green o-rings that are used for the power steering system. These o-rings will fit tightly over the front two studs on the top of the cylinder. They will replace the factory o-rings. Make sure when you get the o-rings they fit snuggly over the stud and the outside diameter is large enough to not go into the cylinder stud hole. What you are doing is sealing off the hole the stud goes through. That is the area where the oil runs down to the base. By doing this oil cannot flow down the cylinder stud passage which stops the leak.
Now I know what everyone is thinking at this point, "won't that stop the oil returning to the sump or won't that starve the head of oil." That won't happen. All the oil to the head comes from the rear of the cylinder base then travels up through the rear stud passageways to the head. Inside the head is a passageway that runs between the rear and front studs. The oil travels from the rear stud into the head lubing the intake cam. At the same time it also travel to the front stud then up into the head to lube the exhaust cams. All you are doing when you stop the oil from traveling to the lower front stud passages is just that stopping the oil. All the oil that goes down into the left and right front stud passageways gets trapped, thats it, it goes nowhere. The oil from the head returns to the sump via the center hole where the cam chain is.
Now this only works for leaks coming from the front left or right cylinder base. You cannot use this fix if the leak if coming from the base of the rear studs. That is where the oil supply for the head comes from. I have used this fix on quite a few Kawasaki 1000cc engines and it works every time.

Baldy, that's a great tip to have in the armoury, thank you very much for that.

I've decided to fit a new base gasket anyway now, but... I think when I refit the cylinder head I'll use that tip on the front two studs and just put the new OEM O-rings on the back two. Belt and braces so to speak...

Cheers... Dave

saxonpirate wrote:

Rickman wrote:

saxonpirate wrote: The O-rings in question are part no : 92055-1148 and are £7 sterling or $10.7 dollars US each

Oh, wow, that's insane. Isn't it a crime that the online parts diagram doesn't list the o-ring sizes? Some generic supplier would certainly be less expensive.
I get mine included in the Vesrah top end gasket set, so they're guaranteed to turn hard in 3 years -- just like the ones I'm now removing. :silly:

Yeah, I've searched high and low for a generic equivalent, but no joy. They must be specials to Kawa. If I remember rightly they are not spherical, they have flattened faces. Still, I'll have to grin and bear the cost of em, hopefully with the knowledge they won't leak... :dry:

Senior moment,forgot to take my pills or I would've posted part number! :woohoo:

saxonpirate wrote: Baldy, that's a great tip to have in the armoury, thank you very much for that.

I've decided to fit a new base gasket anyway now, but... I think when I refit the cylinder head I'll use that tip on the front two studs and just put the new OEM O-rings on the back two. Belt and braces so to speak...

Cheers... Dave

On the last 1100 engine I built that is exactly what I did just to avoid any possible leaks.

I use my fingers.

Make a couple of tuning fork shaped pieces of wood to hold the centre pistons straight.
I slip this piece of wood over the rods and rest them on the case-keeps the pistons vertical.

I start with the middle two pistons up and very gentle rest the head on the top rings.
Working on one piston at a time turn the ring so you can get the best squeeze on the ring and look for the barrel liner dropping over the ring - even a millimetre is enough - do not force it, it takes as long as it takes to get the knack first time.
Nip round the other side of the bike and do the other centre one. You should have a one ring off each piston in now.
Nip back round and start on the second ring of the first piston and stay cool and take your time.

Eventually you'll get the oil spreaders in and you can remove the wood steadiers I mentioned earlier - gently turn the crank to give yourself a bit of room and repeat the above with the outer two pistons.

Patience and a light touch is required here but I have found it easy enough and satisfying one you get the knack.
Bear I mind the rings are designed to compress and too much downward force will snap them, they are very brittle in this direction.

The rubber rings- I can't understand why zpower charge so much for these, I use aftermarket equivalents - you can buy a tray of 100's out of halfords for the price of a couple of these.

Don't forget to replace the copper washers on the outside studs also as they act as an oil seal. I use one of these and a steel washer on each of the outside studs. Avoid using any instant gasket anywhere as this can work into oil passages.

Torque it up to half spec then full. Run it for an hour or two and keep checking and torquing up over the next few runs until it holds torque. Don't strip them crankcases and look out for the head studs bottoming out on the nuts. You can get taller ones from Debben.

Best of luck.

Dave... Thank you very much for taking the time to write down all that information for me, and I hope others benefit too.

That's what I love about this forum, no-matter how good a mechanic you are there's always a lots more to learn from other peoples shared experiences. One big old Zed family...

Thanks again... Dave

Cheers Dave, likewise, these places are very helpful - it was only through the help available on places like this this forum that I felt confident to tackle the jobs I have and there's a lot of experienced people here.
Fantastic

Cheers
Dave

Will this base gasket fix also work on a 1982 1100 Spectre??? Please advise

Thanks a million