Base and Head gasket

[kvanderploeg]

OK, so I probably made a mistake some months back. I was getting the engine ready and thought I probably better inspect the front cam chain guide. I pulled the cam cover and visually inspected the guide. It looked good, so I left it in place. Put the cam cover back on and re-torqued the head per the manual specs. Painted the engine, and there it sat. Fast forward to now and the bike has been put back together. Took the bike out for a bit of a spin and the head and base gasket both appear to be leaking profusely.

So, I'm planning on torquing the head bolts again, but how likely is it that I'll need to just pull the engine and replace both the base and head gaskets? How much of a pain is that to do? In my mind the process is like this:
Pull the engine
Pull the cam cover
Pull the head
Pull the cylinders
Replace base gasket
Using ring compressor, put the pistons back up into the cylinders
Replace head gasket
Place the head
Place the cam cover with new sealant
Torque head
Is the only specialty tool I'll need a ring compressor? Thanks for the help and suggestions!

Kent

 

[5twins]

Most of the lower leak may be from that front oil feed line. There's supposed to be a copper sealing washer under the lower nut where it meets the block. Maybe it's there but I don't see it in your vid. Have you watched the motor at idle and can you actually see any of the leak points? I would wipe it down and do that.

 

[jefft]

Great advice there. I was all but sure I had a base gasket leak. I had retorqued several times. I finally cleaned everything off real good and got down real close so I could better trace the oils pathway towards the left side of the motor where it seemed like it was coming from. Sure enough it was that oil feed line. Mine just needed a slight tightening. I was getting close to pulling the engine.
jefft

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[kvanderploeg]

Yeah, I definitely don't have a washer between the block and the lower nut. At idle it didn't seem to be puking much. I may need to watch it a bit more closely and have someone else rev it for me. Measuring the banjo on the oil tube looks like I need a 14mm ID and ~18mm OD. Can anyone else confirm this? Is there supposed to be a washer between the lower fitting and the fitting on the oil tube as well? Thanks for the help, guys!

Kent

 

[5twins]

There is no sealing washer of any sort between the two fittings. They seal together like a metal brake line would. The oil pipe has a nipple on the end and the lower fitting is dimpled or concave. You should have those two parts separated. The oil pipe should be removed, then the lower fitting. Install is the reverse - install the lower fitting then the oil pipe to it and the top of the head. You should use two 22mm wrenches as well, one on each nut. In a pinch, maybe a spark plug washer will work?

 

[kvanderploeg]

Thanks, I pulled my spare oil tube apart and quickly realized there would be no washer between the two. Do you by chance know how thick that washer needs to be?

Kent