small oil leak

[my00forest]

i had a oil leak coming from the cover that holds the filter on after i did my last oil and filter change. my first question is... i know that the cover is not the same all over, there is a small circle thingy on the front of the cover and when i looked at how it was installed in my manual it showed the circle to the right ( when looking at it head on). does it matter which way the cover is situated on there.
my second question is do you guys use any kind of gasket goo on that cover. halomar or any other kind of applied gasket or is that unnessary or even bad to do.
thanks, shane

[my00forest]

anybody? guess i'll just have to put it back together and see if a good cleaning and some halomar does the trick

[natedawg120]

not sure about the direction of the plate.  However I know that if it is directional the holes probably will not line up quite right when you put it back on.  I have changed my oil twice now and never had a problem with it.  Oh and I don't use any goo, just change the gasket every time.

[Chuck]

Yeah, just make sure the mating surfaces are clean, and the gasket is in good physical condition.  You shouldn't need any silly goop if the cover and case are undamaged.

[Kerry]

I bet the O-ring gasket came slightly out of place when you put the filter cover back on, and got pinched between the cover and the mating surface on the engine block.

I have ridden 30+ thousand miles, have changed my oil 10 or 11 times, and am probably on my 4th or 5th O-ring gasket.  If it looks undamaged and not too squished, feel free to reuse it.  But if you get a new O-ring with every filter, you may as well change it every time ... after saving one new one aside just in case.

[my00forest]

sounds good, i was looking at it and it seemed as though there was some road grime under the plate on the top. that little space is great for catching small rocks and stuff

[Kerry]

That actually sounds more likely.  A pinched O-ring usually causes a not-so-small leak.  :x