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Cracked Alternator Cover, how should I fix it? (GS1000)

  • Thread starter Thread starter Anonymous
  • Start date Start date
A

Anonymous

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The other day it was just pissing rain and windy as hell. When I was putting my bike away, I slipped on a little pile of wet leaves, lost my footing and dropped the bike.

Unfortunately the next day I noticed that I had cracked the bottom of the
alternator cover, and am now leaking oil.

How should I fix this? Should I try and find another part in good condition or should I weld the crack?

Thanks
 
Araldite applied on the inside will stop the leaking. Racers here used to do this to stop leaks whne the cases wore through on the track.
 
sounds a bit rough saaz we do it to get out of trouble as a tempory repair.they can be welded but are cheap on evil bay. ozman
 
Get yourself a set of battery cables.......



Don't pay any attention to that, it's an old joke around here.
 
I've had good luck using JB Weld. I fixed a crack in the clutch cove on my Sabre when I first got it with JB Weld and it help for 6 years and 89000 miles with out any problems.

When using it I clean the surface up really good then lightly sand the surfaces to rough them up. I put a heavy application on the inside of the cover and let it set up for about 48 hours then took a grinding stone on a dremel tool and shaped it. On the outside just because the crack showed so bad with missing metal chips making it look really bad a filled it with a light application of JB Weld let it set up and then sanded it down to match the surface of the clutch cover. It didn't look bad at all for the final repair.

Mike
 
I bought a product years ago called alumalloy, which claimed to be stronger than aluminum with a lower melting point so you could work it with a regular torch. I never tried it for an application like this, but according to the ads it would be perfect.

Assuming you don't have a gaping hole in your cover you would heat up the inside with a torch and then apply the alumalloy like solder until it pooled up and filled the crack while bonding to the aluminum. Then you grind down the excess and you have a "stronger than original repair," according to the ad.

The ads actually showed the product being used to recast broken mounting tabs on alternators and stuff like that. The results looked impressive. Has anyone else used this stuff, and if so what were the results. We originally purchased it to do some aluminum repairs on our boat, but never got around to it and eventually got rid of the boat. I still have the alumalloy.

Let me know if you want to buy a few rods from me (they are similar in length to welding rods) ... I'd be interested to know how it works out, and the cost would be five to ten bucks (as I recall the original bundle of rods was fifty bucks back in the day...

Good Luck!
 
I found a cover at a local parts dealer, it's used and he says there is a bit of road rash, but no cracks.

If I were to buy this, what should I look for before I do so. Are there any signs that tell me that dents have been pushed back and whatever, or do you think it'll be fine, and just bolt it on.

Also should I replace the gasket?
 
Planecrazy said:
Has anyone else used this stuff, and if so what were the results. We originally purchased it to do some aluminum repairs on our boat, but never got around to it and eventually got rid of the boat. I still have the alumalloy.
Click to expand...

It worked for me as advertised, I broke a head on my boxer motor running into post and was able to rebuild the missing part and weld up a crack from the intake valve runner to carb boss, it is harder than parent material, yet melts sooner.The part circled is completely rebuilt, the jagged line from carb bolt upward is where the crack was, this was repaired with head off and valve removed, repaired and refinished from inside the head. this repair is 3 yrs old and still works fine.No leaks either.
site1136.jpg
 
Billy Ricks said:
Get yourself a set of battery cables.......



Don't pay any attention to that, it's an old joke around here.
Click to expand...
Cant we just get along Billy??? ROTFLMAO :lol: :lol:
That was a good laugh that will last for hours. I needed that Thanks.
 
I also have had luch with JB weld. If tee crack extends to a mating/gasket surface than be extra sure that the mating/gasket surface is straight edge flat or you will induce another crack. Dont ask me why i said that please. :( :(
 
daveo said:
It worked for me as advertised, I broke a head on my boxer motor running into post and was able to rebuild the missing part and weld up a crack from the intake valve runner to carb boss, it is harder than parent material, yet melts sooner.The part circled is completely rebuilt, the jagged line from carb bolt upward is where the crack was, this was repaired with head off and valve removed, repaired and refinished from inside the head. this repair is 3 yrs old and still works fine.No leaks either.
site1136.jpg
Click to expand...

Very nice looking repair!! If I understand you correctly, you not only fixed the crack, but also rebuilt that fin? Sweet!
 
Planecrazy said:
Very nice looking repair!! If I understand you correctly, you not only fixed the crack, but also rebuilt that fin? Sweet!
Click to expand...

Thanks, That circled part was gone, I had the head off and laying on the valve cover surface then built a dam around the missing fin part and filled it in,cleaned it up with a file, good stuff!!! :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
Got some of that in my tool box, never used it though. County Fair purchase :lol:
 
Alumaweld is actually a type of solder from what I can tell about it. I have only used it once, an if you have no TIG machine, it's pretty handy...the museum has a REAL nice TIG, though!

As for the original question... get another one if you can. It'll cost you more to have someone TIG weld it than you can get another one for, and it'll never polish out perfectly. If you have never welded, I wouldn't recommend learning on thin cast aluminum, even with the magic rods. You're very likely to melt the part instead of fixing the crack (of course, I'd certainly give it a try on the cracked one if I already had a replacement!).The one you found may be usable, especially if you can get it cheap. If it's not an arm and a leg, I'd get that one and keep hunting for a clean one, unless the bike is a dog (like mine). If the bike isn't a show winner, just slap that one on and go. You won't feel so bad next time you drop it, since it will already be scratched :lol:
 
daveo said:
That circled part was gone, I had the head off and laying on the valve cover surface then built a dam around the missing fin part and filled it in,cleaned it up with a file, good stuff!!! :lol: :lol: :lol:
Click to expand...

Just out of curiosity, how exactly did you dam up the area you needed to build up and what did you use? I'm curious as to whether you had any problems with the Alumalloy sticking to the dam material and like that. Look forward to "Alumalloy 101" from someone who has successfully worked with it!

Thanks!
Steve 8)
 
Planecrazy said:
Just out of curiosity, how exactly did you dam up the area you needed to build up and what did you use? I'm curious as to whether you had any problems with the Alumalloy sticking to the dam material and like that. Look forward to "Alumalloy 101" from someone who has successfully worked with it!

Thanks!
Steve 8)
Click to expand...
Sure Steve,
First you'll notice the stainless steel brush they send with the rods, this is very important, you must first use it on the area to be repaired to open the grain in the AL and remove any burnishing, the alumalloy flows and works like solder, sticks much better to an open-grained surface, rather than smooth or shiny.In my case I laid the head down on a large steel plate, alumalloy won't stick to non-AL metals. I used a strip of galvanized sheet metal cut to about 1/2" high and arced to match the curve of the fin, for the dam and held it in place with a large C-clamp, then just filled it in and finished. I would imagine that steel is the way to go for any backing or damming you would need to do, as wood will ignite and cement can pop and explode from the water vapor in it heating up as you fill in with the alumalloy, get some scrap pieces of AL and practice a little before you try it for real, but, it's easy to work with. The hardest part, as always, is making the jigs or fixtures for holding the workpiece. Best of Luck in your Endeavor :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
i went and bought the other one I found for $50.00 CDN. The guy gave me a break on the price.

I examined and it looks as though it'll be fine. It does have some roadrash, but when I sell the bike next year, or whenever, I'll at least be able to exlain what happened, instead of showing a crappy weld.

Is there anything I should know before installing the new cover?

Thanks for all teh advice guys!
 
Hey Dave,

Unfortunately I did not receive a stainless steel wirebrush when I ordered ... just the rods.

Anyway, I get the idea and I'm sure when the time comes I'll be able to get around the wirebrush problem...

Thanks for the info!
Steve
 
Planecrazy said:
Hey Dave,

Unfortunately I did not receive a stainless steel wirebrush when I ordered ... just the rods.

Anyway, I get the idea and I'm sure when the time comes I'll be able to get around the wirebrush problem...

Thanks for the info!
Steve
Click to expand...

I think that using a (any) Stainless brush was important, probably something to do with not leaving a ferrous residue behind,as well as opening the grain, but I'm not exactly for sure
 
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