Slightly off-centre oil draing plug

[Barneycanoe]

1979 GS425E. Previous owner had mangled oil drain bolt and put in helicoil. This works fine, except it is not in straight. I have been using one standard Suzuki crush washer with one of the washers that has a rubber inner piece bonded to a steel washer.

I don't like the pressure I have to apply to get everything sealed. This last oil change I used two of the rubber/steel washers with a crush washer between.

Does anyone have any ideas of what might be better? A nylon washer? Copper? Fiber? A whacking big o-ring? I need something that compresses fairly easily to take up the gap on one side of the drain plug when it is screwed in.

Anyone had to do something similar?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Dave

[rustybronco]

Does anyone have any ideas of what might be better? A nylon washer? Copper? Fiber? A whacking big o-ring?

Anyone had to do something similar?

I would suggest you use a nylon washer, or replace the oil pan.

Yep... a customers 1978 CB750F that some 'hack' had worked on before I was asked to get it running properly.

[Barneycanoe]

Unfortunately the beautiful GS425E does not have a separate oil pan...

[rustybronco]

Well in that case, find a used engine case and start swapping parts.

[bwringer]

You could use an oversize thread insert (yes, they make these -- Helicoils fail or get badly installed pretty regularly) or just add one or two fiber or nylon washers.

There's also an expanding rubber drain plug that might be a good option if things are really chewed up.

[Seana23]

Hi babes....
Wana bodge.it instead iv swapping engines.....?

Use some inner tube... Wrap round end ov thread... Tighten bolt... Or several disks ov rubber sanwiched between.nylon washers and screw it tight.

Sorry to all the purists... Im a rat-biker after all!

Good.luck.
X

[BassCliff]

Hi,

This is what I did for mine, until I get around to finding/installing a new oil pan.

Stripped Oil Drain Plug Repair (PDF file)


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[The_Flash]

This sounds almost identical to mine. The bike got taken to a shop for an oil change years ago and they cross threaded/stripped the drain plug. So the previous owner drilled and tapped the hole for an oversized drain plug but sadly it goes into the hole at about an 87 degree angle instead of 90 so the flange on the plug hits the pan/washer/gasket sooner on one side than the other so that when you tighten it down and then take it apart and look at the washer it's paper thin on one side and 1mm on the other. The only thing that seemed to work so far for me was a copper crushable washer. But last time I went to Napa for one they didn't have any the right size so I used a solid one instead and now it has a slow leak all the time.