cracked.....

Mihylo33

Mihylo33

OK... As some of you know I'm extremely meticulous with my bikes. Everything gets torqued, double checked, re torqued and cleaned... Well since my son hasnt ridden his 85 very much its only up for its 2nd oil change. He did the first one under supervision. and we torqued the drain bolt to 16ftlbs as stated in the manual. He changed the oil today under my supervision and set the torque wrench up to 16 ftlbs.. I watch him thread the bolt in very gingerly and snug it up with his fingers and then he starts ratcheting the torque wrench.... I'm like "WHOA STOP!" after a few turns. He looks at me and asks whats wrong. I tell him it shouldnt turn that much without bein torqued already so I kneel down and look. Sure enough its cracked! :foul: I investigated a little more and I notice its been cracked a while, like the previous owner cracked it or something... it isnt bad cause it still snugs up but its gonna need some JB weld or an aluminum weld to fix it... I will probably dab som JB on it to keep it good for now but either replace the cases or weld it permanently later on....
Metal is super thin there too...:rant:
Oh well.
 
SRAD97750

SRAD97750

Moderator
Staff member
Oh yeah... If you can't spend the cash on the cases, I would recommend "Qwik-steel." Qwik Steel is water/oil proof, bonds to all metals. You can drill it, tap it, torque it, sand it, and file it. Inexpensive and sets quickly. I have repaired a few drain plugs by filling the hole, drilling and tapping back to the original threads. If you need to change drain plug size, Auto-zone has 10-15 sizes of replacement drain plugs and gaskets.

I have seen a universal drain plug sold there in two sizes that would get you back on the trail and to the truck if anything were to ever happen. Pretty cool, but I wouldn't trust it as my main drainplug... -BIG DAN:thumb:
 
Mihylo33

Mihylo33

SRAD97750:
Oh yeah... If you can't spend the cash on the cases, I would recommend "Qwik-steel." Qwik Steel is water/oil proof, bonds to all metals. You can drill it, tap it, torque it, sand it, and file it. Inexpensive and sets quickly. I have repaired a few drain plugs by filling the hole, drilling and tapping back to the original threads. If you need to change drain plug size, Auto-zone has 10-15 sizes of replacement drain plugs and gaskets.

I have seen a universal drain plug sold there in two sizes that would get you back on the trail and to the truck if anything were to ever happen. Pretty cool, but I wouldn't trust it as my main drainplug... -BIG DAN:thumb:
Click to expand...

thanks Srad! :thumb:
Its a hair crack so I will probably clamp it lightly, qwiksteel it and then smear it aound the outside to thicken the case in that area. Smooth it out with a file and Viola!
 
James

James

Staff member
Damn that sucks. :bonk:

I'm a pretty strong advocate of torque wrenches, however the oil drain plug is one thing I won't "torque". I make it "snug" (a tad tighter than finger tight) and call it good.
 
Travace

Travace

James:
Damn that sucks. :bonk:

I'm a pretty strong advocate of torque wrenches, however the oil drain plug is one thing I won't "torque". I make it "snug" (a tad tighter than finger tight) and call it good.
Click to expand...


yea ive never heard of using a toque wrench for oil plugs myself. Good to know... i wont ever use one
 
Y

yamadogyz

James:
Damn that sucks. :bonk:

I'm a pretty strong advocate of torque wrenches, however the oil drain plug is one thing I won't "torque". I make it "snug" (a tad tighter than finger tight) and call it good.
Click to expand...

Both oil plugs are 3 sizes larger than normal for me. I stripped those things a half dozen times.
 
Mihylo33

Mihylo33

James:
Damn that sucks. :bonk:

I'm a pretty strong advocate of torque wrenches, however the oil drain plug is one thing I won't "torque". I make it "snug" (a tad tighter than finger tight) and call it good.
Click to expand...

its only 16ft lbs... you can do that with a 1/4 inch ratchet easy...... I was really shocked to say the least especially when pressure plate bolts are 8ftlbs.
 
Mihylo33

Mihylo33

Travace:
maybe the torque wrench is off ?
Click to expand...


Nah, I'm pretty good at keeping tools to spec as well.
Its just really thin there and I think the previous owner cracked it since I can see dirt inside the crack. It still torques down but I want to fix it before it breaks.
 
2smoke

2smoke

I second Big Dans suggestion of the quick steel. We used it to repair a crack in my buddies jeep block while out off roading a few years back. He still drives it that way and it hasnt leaked either.
 
Rolls

Rolls

James:
Damn that sucks. :bonk:

I'm a pretty strong advocate of torque wrenches, however the oil drain plug is one thing I won't "torque". I make it "snug" (a tad tighter than finger tight) and call it good.
Click to expand...

I've found out the hard way, not to use a torque wrench on drain bolts. It's a good way to strip threads. I think that the oil gets onto the threads and gives a false torque. That drian bolt is tight, but the oil reduces friction enough to let the wrench over tighten before it "clicks".
The Clymer manual for my bike calls out to oil threads for some torque specs, and for other bolts to be torqued dry. It seems that drain bolt torque specs aren't specified to be lubed or not. I'm thinking it's "not".
 
Mihylo33

Mihylo33

couldnt find any qwik steel but Napa had "Cold Weld".. same stuff I guess...
Then I stopped by my local shop to drop off my shock for servicing.. I asked them if they could weld it... he said they send it out to a guy who does fast and really good work... :thumb:
 
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