Where is the oil going?

[flyingace]

My 83 850 eats a little more than a quart every thousand miles. Compression readings range from 145 to 127 - not so bad as to explain the oil use. The bike runs like a champ and the plugs are all light tan.

I see no obvious leaks. Is it possible that this much oil is going down the valve stems because of bad seals? They have never been replaced.

Thanks in advance.

[TheCafeKid]

how many miles on the bike? Its possible that you're burning a bit on start up till the bike is warm every day thru the seals, but a quart less than every 1000 miles seems a little excessive. You sure you have no leaks around the oil pan gasket/shifter shaft/drainplug/filter cap? Small leaks here will generally cling to the underside of the motor, and you may never SEE it lose a drop. Both my 1100G and my 1100ES have had slight leaks such as these, yet never a drop visible on the ground. Take a look at the underside of the bike, and you may find some oil here and there. Usually the leak is slow and oil gets blown off while in motion, but never leaks fast enough to leave a puddle...

[flyingace]

Thanks for the info Kid. The bike has almost 47K, but only about 10K on these rings.

It is kind of gunky down there by the oil pan, so I'll clean that up and see if I can spot a leak. That would explain the loss better than valve-stem seals since I don't see any white smoke at start-up.

[flyingace]

Back again. If my math is right, I'm going thru an ounce of oil every 32 or so miles. I just degreased and pressure washed the engine and rode it for 100 miles. Nothing external is leaking oil at that rate.

So, where the heck is my oil going?

[SqDancerLynn1]

Were the valves checked & seales replaced ?? If they were Its probably time for a rebore?? Did you measure things when it was apart ? Has the motor been hot?
If it was mine Just keep an eye on the oil level and ride it!!!

[chef1366]

Check your airbox for oil. Ring blow by would be my guess.

[TheCafeKid]

Thats a quart every 1024 miles by your math...thats not completely unreasonable for a motor, especially if ridden relatively hard. My 1100G had no leaks that I ever found after i fixed the cam end plugs, and I used about 3/4 of a quart on our WV trip, which was over 1000 miles that weekend. Mind you it wasnt ridden like a demon, but it was ridden well, and did alot of hill climbing at speed. It also burnt just a touch on start up if it had been sitting on the side stand for a day or so. Likely the valve seals were starting to wear a bit, but sealed up when they got hot. At your present rate of consumption, I wouldnt really worry about it yet. Ride it, mind your level, and change it every 2K. If it increases the amount it uses pretty quickly, THEN I'd start looking to re-ring, and change the valve seals.

[flyingace]

I ride very conservatively. The rings are fairly new and the compression is pettty good (145 - 127). Since the valve stem seals have never been replaced, I think they must be the culprit. The other possibility is I installed the oil control rings incorrerctly, and they are allowing too much oil into the chamber. I kind of doubt I did this, however.

I'm just going to ride it and let it eat oil. I have a new set of valve stem seals ready, but I'm not going to dismantle the engine just for that unless it gets lot worse.

Thanks for your replys everybody.

[skidMarkNZ]

So hang on, you want an answer, but you arnt going to do anything about it...

i will keep my opinion on the problem to myself then...

[p_s]

You can do the valve seals without pulling the head, but I think you'd have to pull the engine to get at the valve keepers. I'd probably shell out for another head gasket and pull the head though (or not worry about it).

[TheCafeKid]

You can do the valve seals without pulling the head, but I think you'd have to pull the engine to get at the valve keepers. I'd probably shell out for another head gasket and pull the head though (or not worry about it).

You MAY be able to replace the seals with out pulling the head, but it will be MUCH MUCH more of a PITA, in my opinion. You need to compress the valve springs to get the keepers off, and to do that you need a spring compressor, which pretty much looks like a C clamp. I am not sure howd youd compress the valve springs otherwise, but pretty much count on haveing to pull the head to to this job. You do NOT need to pull the motor from the bike, however. A complete valve seal job, start to finish, should really only take you 3 hours, if you're slow, and still learning. Its NOT as tough as it sounds.

[p_s]

You MAY be able to replace the seals with out pulling the head, but it will be MUCH MUCH more of a PITA, in my opinion. You need to compress the valve springs to get the keepers off, and to do that you need a spring compressor, which pretty much looks like a C clamp.

I tapped on a big socket to get the keepers off and used my thumbs to put them back on. I tried using a c-clamp and a pvc spacer with a window in it, but it was far more of a pain in the ass. I'm sure with the right valve spring compressor it's easier but I don't plan on doing another top-end job for a long time.

[psyguy]

so, when replacing the valve seals without taking the head off, what do you do to hold the valves in position to put the keepers back on?

[Billy Ricks]

so, when replacing the valve seals without taking the head off, what do you do to hold the valves in position to put the keepers back on?

It can be done with compressed air injected through the spark plug hole to keep the valves seated. Leak down testers utilize fittings that screw into the spark plug threads in the head. I've also heard of people running a piece of rope into the cylinder then raise the piston in the cylinder so the rope contacts the valves to keep them from dropping.

[SqDancerLynn1]

The rope methoud works real well !!!