uhhhhhhh what the hell is this noise?? **update with audio**

[vsboxerboy]

so i guess i should just take it to the dealership or what?

[vsboxerboy]

Okay so I strained the oil through a paper towel.  There are a few small little particles of metal with a brassish appearance in the oil.  Not alot by any means but when I held the paper towel up to the light you can see where they were and they shine bronze/brass in the light.

[GeeP]

I would expect to see a small particle or two under 1/100", but not more than that.  What does the oil itself look like?  When stirred up does it have a sheen like metallic paint?

Diagnosing your problem from a thousand miles away is difficult.  If your oil has a metallic sheen to it you probably have a rod bearing wearing, especially considering the sound.  Journal bearings rarely fail on their own.  Normally oil contamination from other metallic particles is to blame.

The few particles you have won't worry me if you don't have metallic oil.   If you don't, I suspect what you have been hearing is detonation or "pinging".  On a high-speed engine like the GS, it can sound like a coffee can full of washers.  Detonation will cause power loss and is usually pronounced at high throttle angles.  You might try running premium gas to see if the sound goes away.

That's all I can think of at the moment. 

[vsboxerboy]

I stirred the oil, it looked normal didnt have a sheen to it at all just dark and brown.  It had a typical of old oil mirror like surface but didnt have a seen like metallic paint.

Ever since I got the bike, I've been filling up with premium (91 cali gas).  I'm just scared to  see how my tearing the bike apart and putting it back together has affected the problem because I dont wanna be riding around on a hurt engine any more than need be.

Thanks for all the reponses though

[vsboxerboy]

so went on another ride, it just sounds like a second exhaust note.  The problem seemed a little better for a little while then when I started to use more throttle I noticed it to be the same.  It doesnt make noise when I'm feathering it below 4k but once i get above that it sounds like i have a second exhaust with a hole in it or semething.  I'll try to make a sound clip tomorrow if I can, friday at the latest.

How much power loss would I have from a leak in my exhaust? what about a leak at the cam cover?  or is this totally the wrong direction, I'm just confused becasue wouldn't bearing/rod/whatever trouble make noise all the time rather than just above 4k?

[phire]

Just so you know, and not to de-rail this thread, but "premium" is a waste in your GS500. It isn't any cleaner of a fuel than "regular." The words premium and regular are poor choices of naming, but it's clever enough to trick people into thinking premium is somehow "better." Afterall, we all want the best, right? In short, "regular", or 87 octane is easier to combust due to its lower octane level. It requires the least compression of the 3 choices to combust properly. Now, "premium" fuel or, 91-93 octane requires more compression to combust. In higher performance motors, "premium" is often called for because they're high compression motors (10:1 or higher). Our little GS is about as low as you can get in compression, 9.0:1, which happens to take about 87 octane to combust properly.

Who cares, you might ask?  Well, for one thing, you're not getting more performance out of it since the engine isn't designed for a higher octane fuel so in effect, your money is being wasted. More often than not, you're getting LESS performance because when the fuel is compressed and ignited, it isn't burning completely, leaving both buildup and your money inside the combustion chamber. Negative side effects are less noticable when using a high octane fuel in a low compression engine as opposed to a low octane fuel in a high compression engine. In a high compression engine without knock sensors, the engine would ping (pre-detonate) like crazy because the engine is compressing the fuel alot more than it's suppose to be, thus causing it to ignite itself before it's suppose to.

Anyways, I just hate to see people waste their money and fall into the "I just want the best" category, because I too am one of those guys. If it's better for my equipment, I'll spend the extra couple of bucks. I used to believe the "premium means more power/is cleaner" myth. Sometimes it does, however, in modern cars with knock sensors. The knock sensor will advance the timing of the engine to avoid pinging, which usually will give you a slight performance boost, but the real cost vs performance just isn't there. Or for high compression engines that are forced to use a low octane fuel, the KS will retard the timing, thus giving the illusion that it's the FUEL when really you're just not using what the manufacturers recommend in the manual. Also, it's a good thing to note that all of the gas we fill up with, no matter what gas station it is, all comes from the same handful of refineries.

Basic rule of thumb if you don't know the exact compression ratio of the engine is to ride a couple tanks of each grade and note how the engine is effected. Try not to bias your opinion from the deceptive labelling of the fuel grades. You should always use the lowest possible octane you can use without pinging.

[vsboxerboy]

Yeah, I have heard that argument before.  Well if it is of any matter, the "premium" we get in california is cat pee to other states that get 93, so I'm really using only one octane rating up from the "regular" of the 49 states, if I am not mistaken.  But yes, valid point nonetheless.

[sledge]

Consider getting a sample of the engine oil analysed. The report will tell you if there is an issue with the engine and its cheaper and easier than dismantling and inspecting.
http://www.blackstone-labs.com/motorcycle.html

[vsboxerboy]

I think I may have a problem with getting the oil analyzed as I strained most all of it through paper towels

[phire]

I think I may have a problem with getting the oil analyzed as I strained most all of it through paper towels

Hrm, I bet that would propose a bit of a problem. I'd e-mail them and ask if it would be a problem though and on your report, you could just ignore the extreme high bits of paper that are in your oil. I doubt paper towels are woven tight enough to filter out anything significant. But, again I don't know... best odds are to just ask them how it would effect your test result. They're pretty honest guys.

[GeeP]

Oil filters are paper.  It won't affect your test result.   

I'm interested to hear what this engine sounds like.

[coyotee]

when i dropped my rod bearing it started out sounding like an exhaust leak, when i got on the gas it got louder. then i knew i was done, pulled over cought a ride and rebuilt her that winter

here is my advice. change your oil (if you havnt already) see if that helps. if not you might be better off tearing the motor apart and seeing what is wrong iwth it.

[phire]

Oil filters are paper.  It won't affect your test result.   

Yeah, they are, but paper towels are so loose knit that it could cause an excess of debris to show up in the test.

[sledge]

An excess of debris will mean nothing and wont affect the result of an oil analysis, in fact its a good thing in that it makes the test easier to conduct. The results are based on average PPM (parts per million) sampling so the more contamination there is both in terms of quantity and differing metals the easier it will be to formulate a result. The analysis will identify the makeup of the metalic elements in the oil and from this its possible to identify which parts are failing. Its a common technique used extensively in industry to monitor the condition of hydraulic and oil-lubricated rotating machinery, particularly where unscheduled downtime can cost tens of thousands per hour.

[vsboxerboy]

Alright so I took out the digital camera, put it in my pocket and went for a spin.  The bike was warmed up first.  The way I was riding wasn't quite normal as I was going very light on the throttle.  You can hear the noise of the exhaust then you can hear when I get above 4k the second noise which sounds like crap.  I didn't know how to extract the audio from the video so it is youtubed for your pleaseure:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0zQzEwJ7ds

[vsboxerboy]

oh and my problem with sending the oil in to be tested was that because I sent the oil through the filter, wouldnt it show less particle matter than there was before the test, which would make the test inaccurate becaseu alot of the particle matter is on the paper towel, not in the oil

[phire]

oh and my problem with sending the oil in to be tested was that because I sent the oil through the filter, wouldnt it show less particle matter than there was before the test, which would make the test inaccurate becaseu alot of the particle matter is on the paper towel, not in the oil

Not really.. A paper towel isn't going to filter very much of particulate that small. If a paper towel were as tight as an oil filter, you would not be able to run your oil through it very easily. The filters are made to withstand oil being constantly pumped through them.. if you tried to stuff paper towels in your bike, they'd disintigrate very quickly. 

[vsboxerboy]

shameless bump

[vsboxerboy]

So I was reading WildBlue's thread about his engine noise and his upcoming engine rebuild.  Does this sound like the same problem that he was having?  His noise sounds fairly similar, but somethings are off such as mine doesnt make the noise while idle but it does get louder when I hit the gas...

[vsboxerboy]

are you guys able to see the video??