Yep, that same ol' base gasket leak.

What's taking me so long is that I'm being meticulus; I'm brass brushing and using Nevr-Dul on each bolt that has rust on it, and cleaning areas that are revealed to me as I'm disassembling.  I should be finished by Sunday.

It was kinda late last night...didn't think to tap it with the mallet.  Thanks!

I'll be ordering those nuts tonight.  Thanks, again!

Well, as it turns out I can take the head out with the motor in the frame, I just had to remove all four engine mounting bolts!  For some reason, my $#it is tight in there.

Now in just getting the head loose, I had to use a chisel to spin these copper washers off of the studs:

This is the space  have to work in:


The head's off!

Choke on too long!

Choke on way too long!

This side too!

You can't see it, but the crosshatch is perfect.  I'm so pleased! 35,488miles 

And now, I have this ring of carbon around my cylinders.

The best way to remove this stuff without damaging the cylinder walls is to use a wooden scraper or soft brass bristle brush.

Look at that crosshatch!  Belissimo!  Beautiful!

Cylinder art?

What are you going to use to clean off the pistons?

The same brass bristle brush.  Most of the big stuff just flakes off, but I will have to use the wood handle of the brush to scrape away the harder stuff.  Note: the pistons will be removed to better facilitate scraping.

Quote from: scratch on November 24, 2006, 07:40:55 PM
The same brass bristle brush.  Most of the big stuff just flakes off, but I will have to use the wood handle of the brush to scrape away the harder stuff.  Note: the pistons will be removed to better facilitate scraping.

Do you think you could post a picture of the brush so that I can get an idea of what to look for at the store?  I'll be doing this myself pretty soon.

Thanks

Loctite "Chisel" gasket remover spray does a good job of softening up the carbon deposits.  I tried all kinds of different chemicals and that one worked the best.

+1 on the Loctite Chisel. I have used it many times and always had excellent results. Essentially its foamy paintstripper in an earosol so dont get it any polished/painted sufaces and WEAR GOGGLES if you use it.....It will blind you if you get enough in your eyes. I "borrow" the odd can from work  but there are plenty of similar proprietry brands available that do the same thing.

http://68.72.74.113/PRODUCTS/790.htm

Quote from: facepants on November 27, 2006, 05:37:42 PM

Quote from: scratch on November 24, 2006, 07:40:55 PM
The same brass bristle brush.  Most of the big stuff just flakes off, but I will have to use the wood handle of the brush to scrape away the harder stuff.  Note: the pistons will be removed to better facilitate scraping.

Do you think you could post a picture of the brush so that I can get an idea of what to look for at the store?  I'll be doing this myself pretty soon.

Thanks

Sure! (that's a nickle):

Those brushes worked like magic

How did you clean off the bottom of the head where the valves are?  Can you just use the same brushes?

Thanks

Yes, you can use the same brushes.

First, I flip the head over (make sure the shims and buckets don't come out, or at least remember which shim and bucket came out of which cavity), and fill the combustion area with kerosene and leave it for at least a half hour to see if the valves are leaking (the kerosene should puddle under the head).

Then with the kerosene still in there (means no leaky valve seats, and the valves are seating correctly, and properly, all the way around) scrub with the brushes.

Flush with kero, and then let air dry for an hour (or longer).

Why an hour?  Because the carbon will absorb the kero and as it evaporates the carbon will flake up, making it easier to lift up with the brush.

Brush again.  I like my valves to shine.

Great tips.  Thanks

In that savage I also have the crosshatch visible and that carbon ring is barely feelable. There is no metal ridge like thing in there??
I am thinking of leaving the carbon in there, I aint too crazy about scraping the thing. I got enough metal shavings and abrasive dust by welding the cam chain trench and grinding it back to almost flush ... I could live without the extra excitement.
I pretty much hand splattered 1/2 a gallon of gasoline, 1 hand full at a time on the lower end with te bike hung leaning right ... and got the thing cleaned up.
I think I'll leave this thing as is. But you have a ridge of sorts under than carbon - your carbon is much worse than mine really.

Quote from: scratch on December 19, 2006, 02:22:10 PMand fill the combustion area with kerosene

Do the chemical properties of kerosene make it better than other things for removing carbon buildup?

Does it have to be kerosene or would something like acetone work just as well?  (Having some trouble finding pure kerosene)

In the past I have used GOJO hand cleaner (non pumice) to remove carbon from tiny,hard to reach places. It melts the carbon right out. Might be worth a try.

Finally got my hands on some kerosene.

So when I fill up the combustion chambers with kerosene, none of it should leak out at all?  I filled it up the first time and it was leaking like crazy.  I scrubbed, then flushed it out and refilled and it didn't leak after that.  Does that sound okay?

Hmm...it would be okay if you cleaned away an obstructing particle that was keeping the valve open.

If it doesn't leak now, I'd say its allright.

Oh no ... it should leak like a sieve. In fact, kerosene will eat cylinders. Yea, its like that experiment 626 (Lilo and stitch - funniest movie I have ever seen in a while) ...
Cool.
Srinath.

Quote from: seshadri_srinath on January 03, 2007, 01:59:42 PM
Oh no ... it should leak like a sieve. In fact, kerosene will eat cylinders. Yea, its like that experiment 626 (Lilo and stitch - funniest movie I have ever seen in a while) ...
Cool.
Srinath.

Uhh... what?  Lilo and stitch?

So are you saying it's a bad thing to use kerosene to clean valves, or are you just reliving scenes from cartoons?

It's not bad, he's just going on a tangent.