83 XS650S Spitting Oil and Smoking out of Cam Seal?

[Jim]

There's precious little room between the top of the head and the cam lobes. Not even enough for a valve adjuster nut. My guess is that's what you'll find when you remove the valve covers... a missing adjuster nut. It won't be the first time one's cracked a head. Bummer.

Heads are readily available on Ebay. If you go that route, make sure you get the rocker box with it as a matching set. They won't work if the serial numbers don't match.
As far as just getting another bike? That's a question only you can answer.

 

[hermoistbox]

There's precious little room between the top of the head and the cam lobes. Not even enough for a valve adjuster nut. My guess is that's what you'll find when you remove the valve covers... a missing adjuster nut. It won't be the first time one's cracked a head. Bummer.

Heads are readily available on Ebay. If you go that route, make sure you get the rocker box with it as a matching set. They won't work if the serial numbers don't match.
As far as just getting another bike? That's a question only you can answer.

Okay I'll get the research going to find the matching set. Thank you for helping me start the fix on the correct foot.

 

[Raymond]

Good move. But, if it wuz me, I'd want to investigate inside to see what has failed and caused the mechanical mayhem. That's going to require engine out - got to come out anyway to fit replacement.

You said in your intro you are new and inexperienced? Maybe give some thought to how to lift the engine out. It's a heavy lump so you will need one or more strong friends to assist, or you can invest in a chain & pulley system. That's what I did and the Chinese pulley I bought has been a worthwhile investment. And you need to think where you are going to put the engine down once it's out.

There's a lot of help on this forum in the form of other people's experience when it comes to lifting the engine out. Might be a daunting prospect but I would say it's a major job but not difficult.

 

[gggGary]

Piling on but yeah the only head "bust outs" I've seen have been when someone didn't tighten a tappet locknut...
sorry

 

[Paj]

Hey everyone, so the problem ended up being much much larger than I initially thought. I saw oil leaking from around the cam seal so I thought that was the cause and immediately got to work but as you can see in the pictures below, I believe it's the cylinder head that ruptured. Does anyone know where I can find what I should replace..or alternatively if it's a better idea to just get a new bike? I don't want to part ways with my first bike if possible but I just discovered this about 30 minutes ago so I'm trying to make the smartest decision here and would like some more expierienced insight.

Yes this is a late reply, but I was looking for something else in here and found this. That definitely looks like a piece broken away above and to the right of the sparkplug. The gap below the spark plug is on most of those heads.
If that is in fact a hole visibly blowing oil, yes it sucks but not the end of the bike. The head is only one part. Its a good chance to get some experience and to know your bike better. Yes its new to you, but it has also been around forty years. Tear it down, get to the heart of it, fix it and you'll feel a lot better about riding that bike. You can pick up a head for cheap searching the old intergoogle. With a little help from all these experienced guys in here you'll be back on the road before you know it.
New bikes are good, but they break down once in a while too.

 

[Kevin Werner]

Hi, what should we call you?

The importance of selecting a signature shines through...

 

[Paj]

Yeah Raymond, while it is important it shouldn't make or break what I have to say or not say I can give it some thought.. As gggGary states, its finding and using the power of your voice that matters some