crazy smoke......

[turkeyroll60]

Ok.....I have been working on this 82 gs450 for about a month now. Valve clearances are all within spec. Even before that I have seen an excessive amount of smoke coming from the crankcase area and mainly the exhaust flanges near the engine. It really doesn't smell like engine oil but it is a white smoke. There is a lot of rust around the exhaust but I was able to take the bolts out and re-seat them without snapping any of them. Anyone have any ideas as to what the source of the smoke could be? I mead I warm the thing up in my garage and it is smokey in there after about 5 mins.

[Octain]

Sounds like leftover buildup burning off of the engine.
Does it have any oil leaks at the valve cover?

[chuck hahn]

I am with Todd on this..look way up in the center where the cam chain crosses the center of the engine. Seems many cam cover gaskets like to leak along that center tunnel area. Also around the Tach cable drive..theres an oring in there that likes to leak. And just a caution..remember its an air cooled engine..have a few fans on high speed blowing into the front of that engine so you dont overheat it. Did you scrub the engine with any degreaser? Did you rinse it well..could that be burning off???

[turkeyroll60]

Ok.....I went out and started it up and watched for the smoke and it seems to be originating from the tach cable area. More parts to order. The other areas are probably from the oil that I put on the valve cover gasket when I replaced it. I love this forum.....I am learning so much from all the experienced members. Thank you. Since I have your attention, My speedometer is making this crazy whinning noise and is good until about 45mph and then is fluctuates like crazy like I am in the twilight zone. Man this bike is a work in progress!

[chuck hahn]

Had a whiner before too. I sprayed some penetarting oil up into the bottom of the speedo where the cable goes in. Also take the cable out of the sheath and clean it and look for rubbed spots, kinks, etc. Get a lenght of wire and make a thing to drag some rag scraps thru the sheath to clean it out too..like cleaning a gun barrel. Liquid graphite for relube and see what happens.

[turkeyroll60]

Cool I will try it tomorrow.....I do not have to be at work until 2pm anyway and I have the whole morning to my self and the garage! There are so many little fixes with this bike I feel like I may never get it to where it needs to be....Carbs will be coming off this week for a good cleaning......this is a 30 year old bike that has seriously been neglected.

[tkent02]

I mead I warm the thing up in my garage and it is smokey in there after about 5 mins.

Here's an idea... Don't run it 5 minutes in the garage.

[cowboyup3371]

Here's an idea... Don't run it 5 minutes in the garage.

At least not without a fan on it