Replacing Right side case gasket and oil pan gasket. anything I need to know?

[mattress]

I have one HECK of an oil leak on my bike right now.  It's hard to tell where the oil is coming from.  Right now, oil is leaking all over the bottom of the engine on the right side, and dripping onto the exhaust pipe.

It smokes really bad when I ride because the oil leaking on the pipe.  It leaks when I ride, and it leaks while sitting.

I'm going to the dealer tomorrow to buy these 2 gaskets + sealer.  What all do I need to do?

The right side looks easy enough... drain oil, remove oil dipstick... remove the 10 or so bolts holding the case on...  remove cover, scrape both sides clean (gently, not to damage the mating surfaces!).  apply gasket sealer, stick gasket to cover, and reapply the cover to the engine, threading the bolts in a criss-cross fashion, not over torquing.

Does that sound right?

How about the oil pan gasket?  Do I need to remove the exhaust/headers in order to drop the pan?  Is it the same process as above, just remove the pan, clean the surfaces, apply sealant, apply gasket, and reinstall pan?


Thanks for all the help guys!!  I'm trying hard to learn all of this, I'm very newbish!

[Wrecent_Wryder]

Might want to read this:

http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=35837.0

I REALLY wouldn't want to tackle either one unnecessarily... I'd go to some pains to locate the leak.

Removing the side cover is a bit more involved- you need to remove the ignition rotor and the sensor plate, and there are two bolts underneath that that have to be removed. All in all, removing it is not a big deal. Getting the baked-on gasket off IS a big deal. Also, you'll want a decent torque wrench, preferably one of the inch/lb models.

[Dan02GS]

yeah listen to wrench, I ended up taking mine to a mechanic...it is still there. Now I am waiting for a signal generator seal. My leak was from that area. It would pay to really isolate where the leak is coming from. Good luck and let us know how everything is going.

[Wrecent_Wryder]

... I ended up taking mine to a mechanic...it is still there. Now I am waiting for a signal generator seal. My leak was from that area...

We were just looking for that seal in the exploded parts diagrams the other day... I don't see it. It's like it might only come as part of the side cover...

[mattress]

thanks for the tips!  After work tomorrow, I'll powder clean up and powder the bottom end, and see if I can track down this leak.  I'm pretty sure it's going to be case cover, the PO "let it fall over", so there's a little scuffing, etc, on that side of the cover.

Have you got your bike back to working order yet, Wrecent_Wryder?

[jiggersplat]

don't be scared of replacing either of the side cover gaskets.  neither of them are terrible if you are somewhat handy.

[Wrecent_Wryder]

thanks for the tips!  After work tomorrow, I'll powder clean up and powder the bottom end, and see if I can track down this leak.  I'm pretty sure it's going to be case cover, the PO "let it fall over", so there's a little scuffing, etc, on that side of the cover.

Have you got your bike back to working order yet, Wrecent_Wryder?

Not only working, but better than ever.. finally got the jetting sorted out (I'm really picky), which hadn't been "perfect" since I changed exhaust. I'd gotten it to the point where it was riding "perfectly" once warmed up, but warmup was lousy, and... like I said, I'm really picky, that wasn't good enough, so I started messing with it yet again. Warms up well now, and pulls smooth and steady through the whole range.

I had one mishap with a split fuel line after that, and since those two incidents I've been working on re-establishing full confidence in the bike, which may take a little while.. but it's doing great, thanks.

The big bugaboo for me on the clutch cover was the gasket removal. There's this foam/spray gasket remover which is not only evilly toxic, but it's amazingly hard to keep it from "running" past the gasket surface, where it damages the paint instantly. Even using that in combination with a lot of scraping, it took hours of hard work to get the surface really clean. Some just re-use it, but my gasket was torn, I didn't have a choice. To be honest, if I had to do it again tomorrow, I might just buy a new cover rather than dealing with that.

Best new tip, if you're going to tackle it.. I've worked on machines off and on for some decades, and tried a bunch of methods to keep track of bolts, labeling, muffin tins, notes, etc., but I only read about the cardboard trick here. I took a pizza box out of the recycle bin, took 15 seconds to trace the new gasket onto it with a sharpie, and punched the bolt holes with a number 1 Phillips screw driver, and shoved each bolt in the appropriate hole in the cardboard as it was removed. There are 13 bolts around the perimeter, 12 the same (I think, but some holding wire clamps) and one unique, and then two different bolts under the sensor plate, and three screws holding the plate on... the "cardboard" technique REALLY made it a lot faster and easier, and there was never any doubt about where a bolt went. When I tackled the other side I did the same, but drew it freehand and scaled it down, it didn't need to be 1/1.