Oil question

[a747freak]

Hey everyone. Quick question: What effect would having too much oil in the case have on performance/starting/anything in general? I've had my GS250 for less than a week and have not changed the oil yet, but I checked it and it looks like there is way too much in the case. Answers appreciated. Thanks.

P.S. I did a quick search on the forum and didn't see anything, so forgive me if I missed something that was already there.

[BassCliff]

Hi,

If you have too much oil in the crankcase it could start spewing out of your airbox.

What I would worry about more is that there may seem to be too much oil because gas has leaked into your crankcase via a bad petcock and/or float valve seals in the carbs. Drain a little oil out or stick your nose in the fill hole and see if the oil smells like gas.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[Billy Ricks]

Remove the oil filler cap and see if you smell gas in the crankcase. Sounds like you might have leaky carbs or petcock leaking into the crankcase. The PO may have overfilled the crankcase with oil but you need to make sure the oil doesn't smell like gas.

Edit: Cliff beat me to it.

[a747freak]

Hm, the petcock is a little drippy..I'll run out to the garage and let you know what I find. Thanks.

[Billy Ricks]

Pull the vacuum line off and see if there is fuel in it. If so the diaphram in it is shot. Make sure you're not leaving it on prime. If left on prime and you have bad o-rings on the float seats or poorly sealing float needles fuel will continue to flow and overflow into the crankcase.

[a747freak]

Well there was definately a smell coming from the oil, not sure if i would immediately call it a gasoline smell though. Can't really describe it. Petcock has been set on reserve lately, because I only have a small amount of gas in the tank (once i get all the paperwork done my first trip will be to the gas station). I am planning on taking the carbs off and cleaning them this weekend. Now if the petcock is bad, do I need to spend the $80 on bikebandit to get the new assembly, or can I just replace the o-rings and be good with it? Thanks.

Also: Aside from being a pain in the butt to start, and having bad smelling exhaust, there is no smoke or anything coming from the pipes. Maybe relevant? idk. Im a newb.

[GS ace]

Fuel in Crankcase

In most cases, it's a bad diaphragm in the petcock. I've had it happen to two GSs and as well as two 2-stroke Suzukis. On my 1100E, I was lucky and a mechanic that worked on my Goldwing replaced it without me having to order anything. He told me tht he had some "material" that would be perfect for it. It cost me 40 bucks. The others required me to visit salvage yards.

[Billy Ricks]

Well there was definately a smell coming from the oil, not sure if i would immediately call it a gasoline smell though. Can't really describe it. Petcock has been set on reserve lately, because I only have a small amount of gas in the tank (once i get all the paperwork done my first trip will be to the gas station). I am planning on taking the carbs off and cleaning them this weekend. Now if the petcock is bad, do I need to spend the $80 on bikebandit to get the new assembly, or can I just replace the o-rings and be good with it? Thanks.

Also: Aside from being a pain in the butt to start, and having bad smelling exhaust, there is no smoke or anything coming from the pipes. Maybe relevant? idk. Im a newb.

Z1 Enterprises has replacement petcocks. It won't be o-rings, it will be a holed or torn diaphram.

[a747freak]

Thanks for the tip about Z1, they are a lot more reasonable than the OEM kit from Bikebandit. My only question with them is they don't list my bike. I assume it would fit anyway, aren't most GS petcocks about the same? I'm talking about the replacement petcocks as well as the repair kits they offer (not sure which I would pick..leaning toward replacement if I can guarantee it would fit).

[Billy Ricks]

Thanks for the tip about Z1, they are a lot more reasonable than the OEM kit from Bikebandit. My only question with them is they don't list my bike. I assume it would fit anyway, aren't most GS petcocks about the same? I'm talking about the replacement petcocks as well as the repair kits they offer (not sure which I would pick..leaning toward replacement if I can guarantee it would fit).

Bolt spacing is what counts the most. Measure that and Z1 can help you.

[a747freak]

So today I took the tank off to clean the carbs and I took a closer look at the petcock. It seems to be functioning find, just leaking a little. I pulled the fuel line off with it set to reserve and no gas came out (thats good right? because it uses a vacuum?), and the vacuum line was fine. I'll be changing the oil soon too, and that will give me a better foundation to see if there is something going on with the petcock or otherwise. Thanks for your help everyone.

Oh and here's what my carbs looked like when I got to them:



It actually looked worse in person..when i drained the carbs, the liquid that came out was dark rust-red, and chunky...yeah it was bad.

[BassCliff]

Hi,

Just leaking a little?

Is it the petcock or the petcock O-ring that seals it to the tank? You really don't want your petcock leaking at all.

Yes, if it's set for "RES" or "ON" there should be no fuel released when the engine is off because there is no vacuum being applied to the petcock. The "PRI" setting will release fuel via gravity. Normally you won't leave your petcock on "PRI" for more than a minute or so, long enough to fill the float bowls. Here's a little more info: Where Do These Hoses Go?

Speaking of which, if your float bowls look that bad, I would encourage you to completely disassemble your carbs and dip the carb bodies in Berryman's or other parts cleaner for 24 hours each, following the Carb Cleaning Series.

Keep up the good work. And keep us informed.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[a747freak]

Its probably the o-ring, not the petcock itself now that I look at it again. I did a complete teardown and cleaning of the carbs, they look all nice and purdy now but i can't seem to get them back on the intake boots. I used a little bit of oil on the boots but they still won't go on I decided to walk away before i damage something. (either on me or the bike).

Edit: Answered my own question about the intake boots, they're old and stiff and need to be replaced (though I doubt they are original because one of the phillips screws was replaced with a hex fastener...only one though.) I'm putting together an order through Babbitts that'll go out early next week and get me all kinds of new little parts to put here and there