Some suggestions to do while replacing base gasket...

[brs127s]

I was wondering if anyone could give me some suggestions. I have an 83 GS850GLD. It lookes like it has an oil seepage around the base gasket of the head. I was thinking of buying a Vesrah engine gasket set and replace all the head gaskets(crap, I just did the valves a few monthes ago). I believe the kit comes with all the gaskets, seals, and orings, so I will replace everything from the base gasket up.

I assume since I will have the head off, that this would be a good time to do some other stuff(check all the piston/ring/bore specs, valves, etc.). If everything is okay, should I just put everything back together, or put new rings in, etc. What have most of you done?

Any and all help would be greatly appreciated.

P.S. I think I will probably wait till winter and do this in my basement, unless the oil seep gets very bad.

[Hap Call]

Re: Some suggestions to do while replacing base gasket...

I was wondering if anyone could give me some suggestions. I have an 83 GS850GLD. It lookes like it has an oil seepage around the base gasket of the head. I was thinking of buying a Vesrah engine gasket set and replace all the head gaskets(crap, I just did the valves a few monthes ago). I believe the kit comes with all the gaskets, seals, and orings, so I will replace everything from the base gasket up.

I assume since I will have the head off, that this would be a good time to do some other stuff(check all the piston/ring/bore specs, valves, etc.). If everything is okay, should I just put everything back together, or put new rings in, etc. What have most of you done?

Any and all help would be greatly appreciated.

P.S. I think I will probably wait till winter and do this in my basement, unless the oil seep gets very bad.

How many miles do you have on the rings?

Hap

[focus frenzy]

Have you tried retorqing all the head bolts and nuts, the service manual states to retorque head fasteners every 4000 miles or 12 months.

due to vibration and heat cycling the head nuts will loosen up some and the engine will start seeping oil.
so before you tear into it, I would sujest torqing everything to specs, and see if that stops the leak, it could save you a bundle.

[brs127s]

Hap,
According to what I was told when I bought the bike, the engine has never been touched, except for the normal maintenance. Therefore the rings now have 30,000 miles on them.

Focus,
I retorqued the head bolts when I first got the bike. I will definitely check them again.

[Hap Call]

I would do a compression test on the motor and see if the all of the cylinders are close together on compression. If they are I would leave the rings alone...you could go another 50,000 miles with no problems. Some of these motors really don’t hit their stride until 30,000 miles if they are being taken care of (which I am sure is the case here). It sound like the head was done recently since you did the valves a few months ago so I would not worry about them unless you are getting some strange noises or there appears to be oil being lost past the valves guides.

Of course, with the head off, it is a good time to do a visual inspection and clean stuff up a bit, especially the combustion chamber and piston tops. When putting everything together, make sure that you can rotate the engine through at least two revolutions with nothing binding. If you do find it binding the least little bit, tear it back down and find out what is wrong.

Hap

[Don Lobacz]

I agree with Hap on the compression test - if you get readings above 120 and they are all fairly close to each other, then I would skip the rings. If you do go with the rings, then of course you need a good hone job and you need to take the time to break the rings in properly. The top end of the motor is very durable, and the one weak link would be the valve seals. Did you have new valve seals put in when you had your valves done? When you had the valves done, did you just clean the valves and seats with a wire wheel or did someone cut the valves and seats?

Take your time when scraping that base gasket. I use a single sided razor (pull it instead of push it for the final pass) followed by a fiber scouring pad. Stuff clean rags around the rods. Stuff tissues into the holes around the head studs, especially the ones with the teardrop o-rings: these feed oil to the topend and will send any dirt straight up to your cams. Replace the big o-rings around the bottom of the cylinder sleeves, too.

For reassembly, get a couple friends to help make sure that no rings are damaged. Stagger the rings gaps according to the manual, and take a little extra time to make sure that the middle oil ring is end-to-end and not overlapped. A dab of oil around the rings and on the piston skirt is all you should need. Do cylinders 2 & 3 first. You and a friend should be able to squeeze the rings with your fingers while the 3rd person gently lowers the cylinders true and straight. It should slide on easily, perhaps taking a little rocking of the cylinders or pistons to get them started. Continue squeezing and feeding the rings in as it goes down. If it seems stuck, DO NOT let someone start beating on it with a rubber hammer! With 3 people it should go on like buttah. If rocking the cylinder or piston won't get it moving, then it's probably not going on straight. Back it off a little, make it straight and try it again. The most pressure
you should need is light tapping from your fist. After 2 & 3 are started, 1 & 4 will come up nicely to continue.

PS. Make sure that you have the base gasket and o-rings on before you slide the cylinders on....

[brs127s]

Thanks for the information Don.

As info, I had recently ran a dry compression test after letting the bike warm up. The highest was 152 and the lowest was 140/141, with the remaining cylinders inbetween the two limits. I didn't run a wet compression test, because I thought this was okay. I hadn't ran a compression test on this bike, and I thought I had been getting excessive engine noises, so I ran the check to make sure the compression was okay. I think what I have been hearing is just cam float. I know with overhead cams, an engine is definitely noiser.
I am planning to get the gaskets/seals/o-rings, and replace everything this winter. Any way, thanks again for you help.
Brandon

[Don Lobacz]

What exactly was done when you "did the valves a few months ago"? Did you put in new valve seals? Was it just a clean and lap?

[brs127s]

Sorry if my statment was misleading. I just adjusted the valves. So they pretty much have never been touched, as far as I know. I realize with that when taking the head off, it would be a good time to check the valves to make sure they are with specs, and also replace the valve seals.

[Don Lobacz]

You need to disassemble the head, decarbon the valves (bench wire brush), decarbon the combustion chambers and seats (small wire brushes on a drill/Dremel - don't gouge the head gasket area), change the valve seals (heat with a propane torch for easy removal), and lap in the valves. Keep all pieces (valves, buckets, shims, and springs) in their original locations and you shouldn't have to do much valve adjustment after it's all back together. Before disassembly and after reassembly, do a solvent test and see if you notice much difference - you should have no 'leakers' after reassembly. I usually clean up the ports quickly when I have a head apart (remove rough castings). I always decarbon the pistons before removing the cylinders - bring a pair of pistons up to the top and use the small wire brushes that you use in the head. If you are not removing the cylinders, just rinse the grit away with brake cleaner or carb cleaner.