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Valve Stem Seal Replacement Without Removing Head


leener
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Errm .. Have you determined that the head can be removed with the engine in the frame ? Most workshop manuals will tell you what you can and can't do at the start of the engine section. Good luck with this undertaking. I've done this job once before on a GSXR 1100 L . A few tips, write notes , bag and label everything, take lots of pictures and if your not in the right frame of mind walk away before you bugger it up :thumb:

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Ive got mine ready for head off now


wheels off (so dont have to take clutch cover/front sprocket off and makes room to work on head)

Oil drained

Coolant drained

Oil cooler off

Radiator off

Exhaust off

Throttle bodies off

Tank bungee strapped back

&

Engine tilted forward so its accessible


head and barrels coming off this weekend

parts ordered


god its hours of work :shock:

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Oh, dear... After reading a lot of this and seeing the pic above, I am now having to have a rethink. I am going on the expectation to be able to just get the head off, with the engine sat in the frame.


I have no centre stand and it's going to be done outside. This weekend was a total no-go because we had a flooding amount of rain, so maybe next weekend.


This is going to be a nightmare.


And what's this 170-228 psi, I read? Mine is the triple engine, and got something like 170 | 190 | 170...

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Oh, dear... After reading a lot of this and seeing the pic above, I am now having to have a rethink. I am going on the expectation to be able to just get the head off, with the engine sat in the frame.


I have no centre stand and it's going to be done outside. This weekend was a total no-go because we had a flooding amount of rain, so maybe next weekend.


This is going to be a nightmare.


And what's this 170-228 psi, I read? Mine is the triple engine, and got something like 170 | 190 | 170...

 

All I can say is this is the procedure for my hayabusa, (ive done it a few times on busa's) your bike may not need to be practically stripped to the bone ...although I doubt it :cry: (the woes of liquid cooled multi cylinder bikes)


Its a fairly simple job compounded by all the work needed to just get to the block/head


"171-228 PSI" is the range a Busa engine needs to run, anything below or above will result in either bad running or "possibly" detonation

Your bike will be a different range


Does it take special sockets to remove engine bolts too? mine does


You will at least need a rear paddock stand


Ask yourself this.........is it really burning oil that bad?

If your answer is not really..........save yourself days in the garden freezing and wishing you had never started

Edited by SlowBusa
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It's not a nightmare, its an adventure ! Unfortunately this is the nature of liquid cooled sports bikes . If I want to change a spark plug I begin by removing the passenger grab rail on my GSXR. That said , if the goal of doing all this work is to get the best sale price then I can understand your reservations.

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It has to be done. If I could sell it on as it is and still got a good price, I would feel too bad for whomever is the new owner. I couldn't sell it without disclosing the full picture, so would never get a decent price.


So, eventually, the rain will stop and I will go out into the wilderness, armed with my toolkit.


By the end of the "dry" day, I hope to have all this done:

[list=]Seat off.

Battery disconnected and out.

Rear fairing off.

Tank disconnected and off.

Front side fairings off.

Coolant drained.

Oil drained.

Oil filter removed.

Radiator disconnected and moved out of the way.

Belly fairing off.

Exhaust off and gaskets thrown away.

Coolant pipes removed.

Electrics disconnected.

Rear wheel loosened and brought forward, to slacken the chain.

Front sprocket cover off.

Chain removed from sprocket.

Spark plugs out.

Fuel rail disconnected and removed.

Throttle body removed.

Checked clearance around top of engine to see if possible to remove head while in frame, and probably decided 'nope'.

Engine support bolts loosened.

Jack positioned underneath and lowered engine down.

Removed rocker cover.

Removed head bolts.

Removed head and carried into the kitchen.

Convinced mother-in-law that it won't be there long...

Cleaned up around bike and put the bike parts away, safely.

 

Baring in mind that this will all be done on a driveway, behind two cars, out in the open, on a bike with only a side stand.


This is going to be a hell of an adventure. At least I can gain some experience from it and say that I have actually changed a head gasket, lapped valves, and changed stem seals. And if it goes wrong, sell the parts.

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I hope that my lovely lady will be so kind as to take the pics for me, as my hands will be greased up bad.


The first lot of stripping down will be easy and only takes me about 10 minutes to get the seat, tank, and airbox off. Plugs take a couple of minutes, taking fairings off will be about 10 minutes, so that lot is pretty simple. I've already had it apart enough times to do it blind folded.


It's when I get down to the messy stuff, like getting coolant drained, removing the rad, taking the exhaust off, and getting the engine out, that the progress starts to slow down.


I will more than likely need to take the whole engine out. I should replace all of the bolts around the stator cover, because a couple sheared when I replaced it a few months ago.


No idea where I'm going to keep all the bits...

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Dude - top tip:


Check the rear engine mounts - you might be able to undo the front ones and pivot the engine on the rear mounts if they are in-line. That'll save you all kinds of precariously balanced arse ache.


Also, those little magnetic trays are really handy for keeping bits together. I think Screwfix do them as well as Halfords.

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Dude - top tip:


Check the rear engine mounts - you might be able to undo the front ones and pivot the engine on the rear mounts if they are in-line. That'll save you all kinds of precariously balanced arse ache.

 

 

Yep Thats what Ive done


They are Heavy lumps to try and manhandle

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I'm liking the tips.


I will first try to remove, or see if it is possible to remove the head while in the frame. But, if I can tilt it down then I will go for that. Hopefully it won't be too obstructed by the forks, or the wheel.


I have the valve extractor kit but no head gasket, yet. Still awaiting delivery.


Counting down to the 27th, but the nearer we get, the more the weather report changes to say that there is likely chance of rain.


I plan to try and video the work so I can document it on here for everyone to see.

That way, as I am not a trained mechanic (all my knowledge comes from here and YouTube), I want to show other people with no skill that they can save a few quid (or thousand) by getting their hands a little bit dirty.

And, hopefully it will be a success!

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Why don't you buy a clamshell cover or summat that you can work under? At least have a bike cover, then you can do some work and if it starts to rain, cover the dismantled bike up. You don't have to do all the work in one day.

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I will first try to remove, or see if it is possible to remove the head while in the frame. But, if I can tilt it down then I will go for that. Hopefully it won't be too obstructed by the forks, or the wheel.


I plan to try and video the work so I can document it on here for everyone to see.

That way, as I am not a trained mechanic (all my knowledge comes from here and YouTube), I want to show other people with no skill that they can save a few quid (or thousand) by getting their hands a little bit dirty.

And, hopefully it will be a success!

I The front wheel on is going to compound things .......but your going to be doing this all on the side stand


Front and rear stands arnt that expensive anymore but I understand when your budget is stretched


 

Why don't you buy a clamshell cover or summat that you can work under? At least have a bike cover, then you can do some work and if it starts to rain, cover the dismantled bike up. You don't have to do all the work in one day.

[mention]megawatt[/mention] is right you WILL need a cover.......you will need a break and it will take more than one day because you will realize no


matter how organized you are that you need something else not factored into the job.....then your gonna have to wait for that bit to turn up........its the

nature of the job in hand

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Jack positioned underneath and lowered engine down

 

Im not patronising you and It sounds really silly to mention and obvious but "just" in case you havnt thought of it......use wood between the jack and engine


Never know....you have so much going on in your head ATM you may have not thought of it

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