1978 gs1000e cylinder head gasket

[Guest]

Finding more things to do to this bike I purchased a couple weeks back for $1000 bucks , but im determined to have this bike certified and on the road soon!!
Bike sat for a few yrs when I got it .. since then I have got the bike running pretty good ( goes like stink ) compared to my 650 ...
Bike idles and starts up right away ..
But after degreasing the engine I noticed the valve gasket and the gasket below the valve cover , which I believe is called the cylinder head gasket is also leaking , so I want to get them both done ....
Ok so my bike mechanic is telling me he would charge between $600 -$800 to replace both gaskets , which sounds a little costly !!
So im thinking of taking this project on myself ..
So heres my question on a rating of 1-10 how difficuky is this job ??
I am a newby but I have always been good at taking things appart cleaning them up and putting things back together .. up till now I have done a few fork seals job , rebuilt a few carbs , removed rear and front tires andbalanced tire and tire changes .. just never realy got Iinto the inside of an engine !!
Ok so disconnect wires and tach cable , remove valve cover, removed cams and chain , then remove cylinder head ... clean surfaces Iinstall gaskets torque as per specs , I guess the tricky part is installing cams and lining up timing chain corectly , then setting cam chain tensioner again ???
Any info would be appreciated , and or if anyone can suggest a link to step by step , that would be awsome !! I couldnt find on the bikecliff site ..

Thanks in advance

[srg]

Removing valve cover: Easy. Basically disconnect some wires/hoses, take off breather cover, take off valve cover. Replace gasket. Done.

No need to take off the cam shafts, cam chain, or tensioner.

Head gasket: Not so sure. From looking at my own bike, the bolts are pretty rusty and haven't been touched in many many years. I probably wouldn't attempt this on my own (personally...) because I'm not sure I have the tools/experience to get the bolts off without destroying them.

The OEM valve cover gasket is like $16.

[Nessism]

You should plan on replacing all the gaskets and seals down to the cylinder base gasket, including the valve stem seals. This is not difficult work, you just need to be organized and research before starting. OEM Suzuki gaskets are best and the green Athena gaskets are pure evil.

[1_v8_merc]

Try not to drop the cam chain down into the engine.
Don't lose the order of the Valve Shims and Buckets...just leave them in there during tear-down process.


Oh yeah, you'll need ATV/Bike piston ring compressors(two of them), this makes life WAY easier, and it's good to have a second set of hands during re-assembly of the cylinder jug. Be very gentle and inch the head back down carefully, just use your eyes and rubber mallet, and you'll be fine.(oil up the ring compressor before fitting it onto the pistons) Turn the engine until pistons 2 and 3 are sticking up high, place a 2x4 wood under them to keep pistons from moving downward, then compress rings and carefully lower cylinder Jug down over the pistons, if you feel resistance,STOP, raise head up again and check, sometimes compressor slips off the top ring, it will take a couple tries sometimes. You can also use small vise-grips to clamp the head Studs gently, it will keep the Jug from falling down or moving. Once you get 2 and 3 in the cylinders, lower the Jug more, and slowly continue to Rotate the motor clockwise- to where you can now insert pistons 1 and 4 as they are sticking up(sort of find the happy spot, where 1 and 4 are sticking up Enough to get the ring compressors on, then lower the jug down to the Base Gasket/Engine Block...just remember when 1 and 4 are coming Up, 2 and 3 are going DOWN, so be careful not to rotate too far, or 2 and 3 might slip back out as you're doing 1/4.)
It's actually pretty straight forward, just play around with it and you'll see how it works, I just tried to type it in Detail for you. Oh yeah, make SURE the cam chain is being suspended and it can rotate as you crank the engine, hook it on a thick metal wire or something.

[Big T]

Before going to all that work, I'd confirm exactly where the oil is coming from

If your bike runs well, it's unlikely the head gasket is blown

More likely the valve cover gasket or the tach cable

Get some spray foot powder, degrease the bike, spray on the foot powder and start the motor. See where the oil comes from

As for a guide, did you download the factory service manual from BassCliff's site?

[lrgguy]

Thx all for you suggestions and input ..
And its not the head gasket !! Its the valve cover gasket and the gasket below that ... not the gasket between the crankcase and head .. the gasket that goes on top of the cylender head .. and I dont need to do the foot powder test , already degreased the engine , scrubbed it spotless , I can clearly see the valve cover leak and the leak at the front of the engine , the oil drips off the front of the engine and lands right on #3 exhaust pipe . And as soon as the engine gets hot . Well we know what happens from there ( smoke ) ...
Thinking im gunna just pay my motorcycle mechanic the $600 backs to replace both gaskets and $350 for the 2 new tires installed .. bought bije for $1000 and I should have a oretty damn good bike for $1000 dropped into it !! There is only 31 000km on the bike ... one owner , some old man he sais he had an incident that scared the crap out of him and he parked the bike and never rode it again ...

[lrgguy]

Its this gasket thats leaking and the valve cover gasket ...

[srg]

#1 in that diagram is the head gasket.

[lrgguy]

Isnt this the head gasket ? This is the gasket right above the crankcase ..

[steveb922]

No, that's the cylinder base gasket. srg is correct re the head gasket.

[srg]

Valve cover gasket (or "cam cover gasket") is the top-most gasket. The breather gasket is on top of the valve cover, the small T-shaped piece with the hose.

Then the head gasket (which has a steel plate in it, afaik), is below that.

Then the base gasket is at the bottom.

[JTGS850GL]

If you need to replace the head gasket, then your looking at 4 gaskets that may need to be replaced. Two for sure (head and base gaskets) and possibly two others (valve cover and breather cover gaskets). Most times you can reuse the breather cover and it's a 50/50 on the valve cover gasket. If you were quoted $600 to $800 make sure it includes all the gaskets as well and that the head gasket is OEM. There are some very poor quality aftermarket gaskets out there. Make VERY sure that they plan to replace the base gasket as well. Only replacing the head gasket will most likely cause the base gasket to begin to leak soon after the "repair".

[lrgguy]

So I guess its the valve cover gasket and the head gasket I need to replace then ... cuzz oils leaking from both areas .. the valve cover is leaking oil on the top of theengine and it leaks down and begins to fill up where number 4 plug is .. thehead gasket leaks at the front of the engine and drips onto #3 pipe .... thx all forsorting that out for me ...