added an oil cooler

[GS1100ez]

picked up a gs1150 oil cooler/mounting bracket/lines/oil filter cover/banjos off epay

came in
i modded the bracket to work on the 1100 with the horn mounting holes
flushed the cooler and lines with oil and compressed air

painted everything up real nice

put it on
started it up
let it run for a little while, added some more oil

took it for a short ride to warm up
turned it off
let sit for 1 min
looked at oil sight window and added more oil

good

now when it has been sitting for a while all the oil flows out of the cooler and into the block so now my sight window is completely covered with oil

just want to make sure this is normal

[Nessism]

There is no check valve holding the oil up in the cooler, so when you turn the engine off all that extra oil is going to flow back down into the crankcase and show a high level on the sightglass. You might want to calibrate your eyeballs as to what level the oil should be right after you turn off the engine, before all the oil in the cooler drains back. Keep in mind that oil expands when it gets hot so you should check oil with the engine cold.

Something like this should work...

Start cold engine and run for 1 min. with bike on center stand. Shut down and judge oil level after 15 seconds (before all the oil drains back into the crankcase). It would be helpful to know what the level would be like at this point without the oil cooler attached. If you baseline with no oil cooler, and you set the level the same as with the the cooler, I think you would get the proper running level. I think you are going to want to be near the bottom of the sightglass.

[Griffin]

The next time you change your oil (or you could do it now if you don't mind removing the oil filter cover and cooler tehn installing again), invert the cooler on your work bench (with the lines on it), and slowly pour oil into on of the lines, allowing air to escape through the other one.

Once oil starts coming out of the other line, everything is full. Now drain all of the oil out of the assembly into a measuring cup. Once the oil is drained out, you will now have a reading of how much "extra" oil to put in during an oil change.

[sedelen]

That is a very clean machine I must say, make me want to go out and wash mine, even washed mine won't ever look that good.

I have a oil cooler on my GS1000, came with the bike. I was going to take it off to have true stocker, but I decided oh well. I never had your problems, I just check the sight glass for the proper level. But several things are different on my cooler and routing. First my cooler has the nipples on top therefore it doesn't drain completely with the engine off, maybe just what's in the hoses. Second, my hoses connect to an aftermarket oil pressure switch cover, and now thinking about it when the oil pressure switch closes probably acts as a check valve shutting off the flow of oil back into the crankcase.
Could it be possible that the oil cooler you have is mounted upside down?
If it had the nipples on top it would hold most of the oil in it when your engine shuts off I would think.

[koolaid_kid]

He has the full 1150 setup, and it is right side up. Plus, the lines go into the stock oil inlets, so they do not interfere with the oil filter cover.

[sedelen]

He has the full 1150 setup, and it is right side up. Plus, the lines go into the stock oil inlets, so they do not interfere with the oil filter cover.

My 1100 I believe had an oil cooler at one time, I believe this to be because it has the oil filter cover with the added ports plugged off.
If I do get an oil cooler I'll make sure I get one with nipples at the top,
otherwise that's alot of oil coming and going, and I'd always be second guessing as to whether I have too much or not enough oil in it.

[GS1100ez]

any such thing as an inline checkvalve?

[koolaid_kid]

My 1100 I believe had an oil cooler at one time, I believe this to be because it has the oil filter cover with the added ports plugged off.
If I do get an oil cooler I'll make sure I get one with nipples at the top,
otherwise that's alot of oil coming and going, and I'd always be second guessing as to whether I have too much or not enough oil in it.

If you purchase an aftermarket cooler all you have to do is turn it upside down. You'll want to figure out how to make the 180 degree turns to head down to the oil filter cover. If you make your own stainless steel lines with Earl's fittings there are most likely some that will fit the bill, similar to this: 180 degree fitting or this: 90 degree fitting You will want to size them correctly, of course.
The down side of turning it upside down is that you will leave dirty oil in the system unless you remove it each time and empty it.

[Larry D]

Awww, c'mon George...there's nothing wrong with a little "dirty" oil....

http://www.break.com/cute-girls/oil-wrestlers.html

[koolaid_kid]

Awww, c'mon George...there's nothing wrong with a little "dirty" oil....

http://www.break.com/cute-girls/oil-wrestlers.html

I stand (double entendre' intended) corrected.

[sedelen]

Thanks for the tip!
A little dirty oil wouldn't bother me, no oil would though.
When I change my 1000's oil, what's in the cooler stays in the cooler.
Soon I'll be adding a oil filter cover on that bike from a '78 that has a drain plug on it, (the '79's didn't) and I'll be able to drain my oil from the filter
without having to remove the oil filter cover.
For the amount of riding I do, which is not enough, my oil will probably stay pretty clean for the most part.
And for the 1000 I use "genuine" synthetic (how do you like that oxy moron?) so there's really no appreciable wear anyway.