leaking head

last year i had the valve cover gasket replaced due to it leaking and spraying all over both pant legs. now i'm getting getting oil on my left leg. this time its leaking from the head gasket.
is there a way to stop it without removing the head?

 

Maybe you try re-torquing down the Head.
You could get lucky.

But, you probably wont!
Don't let having to Pull the Cylinder Head to replace a failed Gasket cause you to lose a lot of sleep.

With the proper tools and a warm garage you can have the Head OFF THE BIKE inside of two hours time ... working without Compressed Air Tools.

Throw-in a Compressor and Air Tools and you save a lot of Ratcheting Time.

One nice Tool to have if you are going to be taking-off a Head or Splitting Cases to go after chunks or slipping gears is a 3/8th Drive Speed Handle.

Here's what a Speed Handle looks like:

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/d ... mber=95992

 

crap, i was hoping but not counting on some other suggestion. anyways how many bolts and where are they? will i have to pull the yics cover? oh and do i have to have a real gasket or can i use the silicon stuff?

 

You need a REAL Gasket.

Depending on the CLOSE Examination of the one you have ... you might be able to re-use that one.

It's a No-no. But, sometimes you roll the dice.
The one you got has got to fall-off and be perfectly flattened.

 

Two things, wait make that three. One: Rick is right on both counts. Two: Are you 100% sure the oil is actually leaking from the head gasket or is it maybe coming from somewhere else and ending up there so that's where you think its coming from? Three: If you're going to all the trouble to pull the head, use a new gasket. The only thing more fun than pulling the head on a DOHC motor is doing it twice. OOPS a fourth thing: You WILL need a service manual to successfully remove/reinstall the head/cams. And a good torque wrench.

 

oh ok. it will be easier to buy chaps and let it leak.

 

i'm pretty sure its the head. its not leaking from the yics cover. there is no oil that high on the motor. its leaking from the front of the motor from the next gasket down from the yics cover. i guess thats the head gasket.

 

You sure it's not a front fork seal leaking and the oil is blowing back onto that part of the motor? Wipe the whole area down with a rag soaked in mineral spirits or BrakeKleen so it's clean and dry, and go for a short ride and watch closely. Take some pics and post 'em.

 

Mine leaks a small bit from the cam chain tunnel gasket. Not too serious. I have known many people with in-line fours that chase leaks and give up because some people say "it's the nature of the beast". I don't buy that theory so over the winter, i'll be changing my head gasket and tunnel gaskets.

 

i'm 99 percent sure it's not the forks. the forks are not wet. and the oil comes about the middle of engine. and i'll do the pic thing tonight.

 

We are going to have to pull the Head off this Bike sooner of later.

What you have to decide is:

When you pull the Head there are other jobs you can do while the Head is off.
De-Carbon
Reface Valves and Seats
Valve Seals
**Special Tuning:
Additional Porting and Polishing of the Combustion Chambers
Porting and Polishing the Intake and Exhaust Ports.
(Yamaha actually does a very good job --> Porting <-- Both sides. So, that just leaves you some sore fingers for a little while away from Silky-smooth Intakes and Exhausts)
Piston Crown De-Carbon
Piston Crown Polish

Provided, of course ... that we KNOW the Head is coming-off and are not afraid to remove the Intake Manifold Cap Screws.

Think of it as a nice winter project where you save yourself some big dough getting a new Head Gasket with all the trimmings done before Easter!!!

 

you could always leave the intake manifolds in place while you remove the head, if you thought the bolts might snap.

 

With the Head OFF ... I'd be drilling those things out of there just to be rid of them.

 

lol you are funny. i love the bike but i can't bring myself to do all that. i know myself and my luck, so if i were to make any attempt to try any of that something WILL go wrong. i've done enough on this bike. i'll either ride it as is or will have to give her to someone that can care for her more than i.

 

here are the pics for ya.. if you need diff angles let me know. thanks for your help

http://www.xjbikes.com/coppermine/thumb ... =1020.html

 

What is, drilling those things out mean?

 

Hi grm' what Rick means is the cap screws that secure the rubber manifolds (carb boots) to the head, which have a nasty habit of snapping while being removed. That is why I suggested that if "mopp3ry" wanted to get back riding fast, he need not remove them to remove the head.

 

Those pictures tell the story.
The Head Gasket is leaking.

Looking at the pictures tells me it ain't gunna be a fun time at Camp pulling that Head.
It looks like the last time those Exhaust Header Nuts got sprayed with any oil or rust prevention product ... was, ... never!

See if you can hit those fasteners with a shot of Penetrating Oil.
One of these days you might need to either tighten or loosen some of 'em ... and, it would really be something if they weren't rusted solid.

Boy, that's going to make pulling that old Head off there something less than "Routine".
Painful comes to mind.
So does excruciatingly.

But, the silver lining is ... it don't matter if each and every one of the Intake and Exhaust Manifolds and Collar's fasteners break off while you are taking-off the Head.

Drilling them out is a Piece-'O-Cake with the Head off and using a Drill Press.

 

now you know why i think i'll leave it. wish you all lived up here to either help me/pay you to work on it or sell it to you. but oh well...its still a blast to ride. i'm still thinking a cheap pair of chaps will be the fix.

 

An oil leak of that magnitude is a precursor to bigger problems, you should fix it.

 

You'll be pulling that Head.
That leak has got to go.

Maybe if I found-out about this problem a little earlier in the season, I'd have made the trip to help do the Gasket.
I ain't coming there, now!
I know better.

I spent several years in that part of New York, back in the late 70's, when I was a student at Syracuse University.
I know about ... "Lake Effect"!
Been there. Done that.

It can be a nice, cool, Fall day ... with the sun out and not a cloud in the sky.
So pleasant.
Suddenly, the wind shifts. The temperature drops. A cold wind comes-in off that Lake and you have snow up to your ear lobes inside of 45-minutes!

I hate when that happens!

 

so don't i. if i was educated i would be able to move from the taxes and cold. actually the cold don't bother me to much, but i hate snow more than you could know. and i just got it inspected last week so i haven't riden it all summer. thats when i found out about the leak.