Katana 650 Engine Rebuild

[Guest]

Hi all,

I'm in the midst of a ground up rebuild on an 83' Katana. Spoken to a few people about needing to crack the case or not. Most have said don't do it if you have no leakes and compression is good, engine actually is pretty fine. Only done about 30,000 miles. Just chasing some advise from some GS gurus. Local shops don't really know these bikes anymore so they haven't really been able to give me any info. Also have just rebuilt the carbs. Thanks in advance.

J

[ShadowFocus603]

If you only have 30k on it I wouldn't do anything but check the valves and re-torque the head then call it a day. That's just past break-in mileage for these motors.

[therefinery]

Sounds like a plan. Can I ask to what extent for re-torquing the head? I've got the engine out at present as the frame is being treated and powder coated.

J.

[ShadowFocus603]

When I did mine I just loosened all the bolts half a turn then torqued them back to factory spec +5lbs to ensure a good clamp. Make sure you follow the recommended order of tightening in the service manual.

[therefinery]

Thanks will do. One issue I'm having at the moment is removing the side covers. Stator and Clutch. The only thing I can think of is heat so that they let go. They're really on there.

Thanks again. J.

[ShadowFocus603]

Impact screw driver is your best bet. That's how I did mine.

[tkent02]

Thanks will do. One issue I'm having at the moment is removing the side covers. Stator and Clutch. The only thing I can think of is heat so that they let go. They're really on there.

Thanks again. J.

Removing the covers or removing the screws? Covers, they have those round steel collars that keep the cover straight on a few of the bolts. Heating the area around them may help.
The stator cover has a very strong magnetic attraction making it a lot harder to pull too. Whatever you do go easy.

And yeah, I wouldn't take anything other than the valve cover apart that wasn't leaking unless it had 230,000 miles or so, or had a definite problem like low compression or high oil usage.

[therefinery]

The stator cover I have removed all screws. Tapped on the cover gently with a pad and a mallet. Left the engine out in the sun all day yesterday as it is a black factory painted engine I thought this would warm things up nicely. Damn stator cover will not budge. I think it's on there with some gasket gunk. The gasket is still intact as I could see glimpses from taking the starter motor out. I think a heat gun and patience will be my only friend here.

J