Cracked Alternator Cover, how should I fix it? (GS1000)

[Planecrazy]

That circled part was gone, I had the head off and laying on the valve cover surface then built a dam around the missing fin part and filled it in,cleaned it up with a file, good stuff!!!

Just out of curiosity, how exactly did you dam up the area you needed to build up and what did you use? I'm curious as to whether you had any problems with the Alumalloy sticking to the dam material and like that. Look forward to "Alumalloy 101" from someone who has successfully worked with it!

Thanks!
Steve 8)

[daveo]

Just out of curiosity, how exactly did you dam up the area you needed to build up and what did you use? I'm curious as to whether you had any problems with the Alumalloy sticking to the dam material and like that. Look forward to "Alumalloy 101" from someone who has successfully worked with it!

Thanks!
Steve 8)

Sure Steve,
First you'll notice the stainless steel brush they send with the rods, this is very important, you must first use it on the area to be repaired to open the grain in the AL and remove any burnishing, the alumalloy flows and works like solder, sticks much better to an open-grained surface, rather than smooth or shiny.In my case I laid the head down on a large steel plate, alumalloy won't stick to non-AL metals. I used a strip of galvanized sheet metal cut to about 1/2" high and arced to match the curve of the fin, for the dam and held it in place with a large C-clamp, then just filled it in and finished. I would imagine that steel is the way to go for any backing or damming you would need to do, as wood will ignite and cement can pop and explode from the water vapor in it heating up as you fill in with the alumalloy, get some scrap pieces of AL and practice a little before you try it for real, but, it's easy to work with. The hardest part, as always, is making the jigs or fixtures for holding the workpiece. Best of Luck in your Endeavor

[Anonymous]

i went and bought the other one I found for $50.00 CDN. The guy gave me a break on the price.

I examined and it looks as though it'll be fine. It does have some roadrash, but when I sell the bike next year, or whenever, I'll at least be able to exlain what happened, instead of showing a crappy weld.

Is there anything I should know before installing the new cover?

Thanks for all teh advice guys!

[Planecrazy]

Hey Dave,

Unfortunately I did not receive a stainless steel wirebrush when I ordered ... just the rods.

Anyway, I get the idea and I'm sure when the time comes I'll be able to get around the wirebrush problem...

Thanks for the info!
Steve

[daveo]

Hey Dave,

Unfortunately I did not receive a stainless steel wirebrush when I ordered ... just the rods.

Anyway, I get the idea and I'm sure when the time comes I'll be able to get around the wirebrush problem...

Thanks for the info!
Steve

I think that using a (any) Stainless brush was important, probably something to do with not leaving a ferrous residue behind,as well as opening the grain, but I'm not exactly for sure

[Planecrazy]

I think that using a (any) Stainless brush was important, probably something to do with not leaving a ferrous residue behind,as well as opening the grain, but I'm not exactly for sure

I will keep my eyes peeled for a stainless steel wire brush, but if I don't find one if and when I need one I think I can probably get around the problem by roughing up the surface (with a regular wirebrush) and then using rubbing alcohol to get all the residue off the work area. Obviously I'll have to wait extra long before applying the torch or this might happen -- (and the red face won't come from embarassment!)

Anyway, thanks again for the pointers!

[Anonymous]

DO NOT USE A CARBON STEEL WIRE BRUSH!!! You will contaminate the parent metal with steel particles and neither alcohol or anything else can fix it. This will probably cause the magic sticks not to grab (note dave used steel to form up his repair for this exact reason). It will also INEVITABLY cause galvanic corrosion due to disimilar metals being in intimate contact with each other. You can get a small stainless steel brush at Harbor Freight or any welding supply house for about $1-2. Don't attempt to use anything else on aluminum for ANY reason. Scotchbrite works well, but it isn't abrasive enough for this application.

[Planecrazy]

DO NOT USE A CARBON STEEL WIRE BRUSH!!! You will contaminate the parent metal with steel particles and neither alcohol or anything else can fix it. This will probably cause the magic sticks not to grab (note dave used steel to form up his repair for this exact reason). It will also INEVITABLY cause galvanic corrosion due to disimilar metals being in intimate contact with each other. You can get a small stainless steel brush at Harbor Freight or any welding supply house for about $1-2. Don't attempt to use anything else on aluminum for ANY reason. Scotchbrite works well, but it isn't abrasive enough for this application.

Thanks for the heads-up Mike! As it turns out, there's a Harbor Freight ten minutes from my home so I'll pick one up there.

Regards,
Steve 8)

[lehrin]

i went and bought the other one I found for $50.00 CDN. The guy gave me a break on the price.

I examined and it looks as though it'll be fine. It does have some roadrash, but when I sell the bike next year, or whenever, I'll at least be able to exlain what happened, instead of showing a crappy weld.

Is there anything I should know before installing the new cover?

Thanks for all teh advice guys!

You asked a few posts ago if you should install a new gasket, and I didn't see anyone reply... Yes, you should. You can never take old pieces of metal apart and use an old gasket (even if it doesn't break) and expect it not to leak.

[Anonymous]

Good call lehrin. The gasket should indeed be new, or you might use black RTV, if you think you will put another better cover on soon. Just make sure to clean the mating surfaces spotlessly (stainless brush again), and wipe them with laquer thinner or alcohol to remove all oil residue. If you use RTV, don't tighten the bolts completely. Run them down in a criss-crossing "star" pattern using only your fingers until the RTV just starts to mash out equally. Wait overnight and then torque to specs. Otherwise, you squeeze all the RTV out and cause leaks.

The stainless brush thing was something I learned from the airplane restoration guys. Another big NO-NO is marking aluminum with a pencil. The graphite will cause corrosion, too. My favorite aluminum marker is a Sharpie or other permanent marker (a big "El Marko" is handy in the machine shop as a really fast version of Dykem layout fluid, no waiting and no mess). Don't scribe with a steel scribe, use carbide. Lastly, don't scribe Alclad at all. Alclad is an alloy that is covered on either side with a thin layer of pure aluminum. The pure aluminum is VERY corrosion resistant, so it protects the inner alloy (usually a high-strength copper alloy, which is far more susceptible to corrosion). Scribing it cuts the protective covering and exposes the less corrosion-resistant alloy underneath. Markers only on that stuff. I only mention this in case anybody decides to make some brackets or such out of scrap aircraft aluminum.

[mdole]

Alumalloy sounds like a pretty good product. I think it might be good for me to get some, as there were times I couldn't do anything with JB weld or find a good cheap replacement part. It sounds like it would have been just the thing when I was fixing a master cylinder leak a while back. JB weld doesn't stand up to brake fluid that well.

Thanks for the info.

Mike

[jimcor]

I've had good luck using JB Weld. I fixed a crack in the clutch cove on my Sabre when I first got it with JB Weld and it help for 6 years and 89000 miles with out any problems.

When using it I clean the surface up really good then lightly sand the surfaces to rough them up. I put a heavy application on the inside of the cover and let it set up for about 48 hours then took a grinding stone on a dremel tool and shaped it. On the outside just because the crack showed so bad with missing metal chips making it look really bad a filled it with a light application of JB Weld let it set up and then sanded it down to match the surface of the clutch cover. It didn't look bad at all for the final repair.

Mike

Don't trash it JB Weld it. Stuff is wonderful.

[Planecrazy]

Since this thread was just resurrected from the dead, I thought I'd update you on the material you SHOULD use if you go this route ... Alumalloy and similar "first generation" products tend to be difficult to work with, BUT HTS-2000 is a second generation version of the rod that is MUCH more forgiving and superior for repairing aluminum. Check out THEIR website for more info and a video showing various different repairs.

www.aluminumrepair.com

Regards,

[SPARKSS]

For the alternator cover, of a GS1000, I'd recommend removing it and taking out the stator (fairly easy job). You said it's cracked and that'd be easily TIG welded at your local welding shop. The main thing about this sort of repair (and really, many other solutions) is to ensure the gasket sealing surface is also true afterwards.

Tip here......If you don't have a new or suitable gasket......DON'T use silicone sealant here but DO use Anaerobic sealer such as Permatex 51817.

[Jaguarjoe]

Permatex 518 is great stuff.