Another oil leak :-( Or removing cyclinder head protectors

RSavage

RSavage

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Managed an embarrassing <5mph drop on a very muddy stage of the South West Peninsular Spring Rally at the beginning of April and have slightly crushed the O/S rocker cover protector on my R1200GSA. Much to my astonishment I was able to right the bike despite being only 28 miles into a full tank of fuel! I've noticed that there is a slight weep of oil from around the rocker cover retaining bolts visible after/during a run. The suggestion is that I loosen said bolts and re-tighten them to their puny low torque of 10Nm because the landing may have jolted them out of alignment or loosened them. Before I do so I wish to remove the protector so that I can 'persuade' it back into shape. Is there anything to watch out for when removing it? I can see no other oil leaks.

Oh, and in my left wobble, recover, right wobble, drop experience I managed to slightly bend the gear selector inwards. Crazy things these bikes.


Cheers

Richard
 
Whip the cover off and check it's all ok. As you say its probably just shifted slightly on the rubber gaskets.
 
If it's a BMW alloy cover the fixings can bend on a drop so the cover may need some attention before it fits properly.
 
Greenman14 said:
If it's a BMW alloy cover the fixings can bend on a drop so the cover may need some attention before it fits properly.
Click to expand...

Yep, OEM cover so will need attention. Is there a more robust version? The issue there would be that any force would bear more heavily on the mounts for the cover . . . .

R
 
The actual rocker cover has a seal under each screw, another around the spark plug tunnel and of course the main gasket. Plenty to leak if the cover get's shifted in a bump.
 
Bendy toy said:
The actual rocker cover has a seal under each screw, another around the spark plug tunnel and of course the main gasket. Plenty to leak if the cover get's shifted in a bump.
Click to expand...


Yep, but it seems only to be leaking from under the seals around the screws. Maybe I've slightly crushed the rocker cover ;-)
 
If you hit the cover hard enough it will crack - ask me how I know :( The damage is obvious.

Any screw can be over tightened but the rocker covers screws have a stop ring so they can't over compress the rubber seals/gaskets.

If the old seals have gone hard they could well leak if disturbed - such as when the cover gets thumped.

I used a bit of Loctite 518 on my seals but TBH thats a bit of a bodge or at least a temporary fix. Worth the try as it cures only under the joint faces leaving nothing nasty to get carried into the oil. Unlike silicone it's non slippery so soft gaskets wont slip out of place.

New seals is the correct way to go.
 
Bendy toy said:
If you hit the cover hard enough it will crack - ask me how I know :( The damage is obvious.

Any screw can be over tightened but the rocker covers screws have a stop ring so they can't over compress the rubber seals/gaskets.

If the old seals have gone hard they could well leak if disturbed - such as when the cover gets thumped.

I used a bit of Loctite 518 on my seals but TBH thats a bit of a bodge or at least a temporary fix. Worth the try as it cures only under the joint faces leaving nothing nasty to get carried into the oil. Unlike silicone it's non slippery so soft gaskets wont slip out of place.

New seals is the correct way to go.
Click to expand...


Hopefully it's just disturbed bolt seals. But knowing my luck . . . I'm convinced that the slight bend I put in the gear lever has done something vital to the gearbox - but that's just my paranoia.
 
RSavage said:
Hopefully it's just disturbed bolt seals. But knowing my luck . . . I'm convinced that the slight bend I put in the gear lever has done something vital to the gearbox - but that's just my paranoia.
Click to expand...

The gear lever took the hit. No worries. Be more concerned if it had not bent. I've got a Touratech farkle folding gear lever. Silly money new but bought from here for not much. :)
 
Bendy toy said:
The gear lever took the hit. No worries. Be more concerned if it had not bent. I've got a Touratech farkle folding gear lever. Silly money new but bought from here for not much. :)
Click to expand...

Yep, got the TT unit too. The reason it's odd that it bent is that I dropped the bike on the off side. I did a "swerve to the left and a drop to the right" but the nearside was just a muddy bank so I have no idea what bent it. I did, eventually, have a lovely bruise on the inside of my left knee so, perhaps, I bent the gear lever by applying loads of sideways boot pressure against it at the same time as applying ditto knee pressure to the tank in an effort to stop the bike tipping to the left.

Bit of post-lift back ache was replaced on Thursday - nearly 10 days after the off - by excruciating morning pain in my abdomen and lower left back. I mean REALLY bad pain not unlike a bruised/ruptured kidney. No blood in pee according to A+E so fingers crossed it's just a badly pulled muscle but why it should appear so long after the event puzzles/worries me.
 
Possible engine bars

Thanks for the engine bar suggestions. They appear to replace the OEM bars without protecting the tank (AltRider) or fit in place of the lower OEM section (Rockfox). Any views on which is preferable? I note that the AltRider versions must be removed to allow valve adjustment which is a bit dissapointing when considering that they are assembled with Loctite on every bolt.

These: http://www.advdesigns.com/r1gsaenguex.html also appear on search results but have an astounding shipping cost. Why??

TIA

Richard
 
When I tested my BMW plastic cylinder head protectors they were completely destroyed and the rocker cover was scratched but intact. Also, one of the rocker cover bolts was bent and this caused a small oil leak.
 
Greenman14 said:
When I tested my BMW plastic cylinder head protectors they were completely destroyed and the rocker cover was scratched but intact. Also, one of the rocker cover bolts was bent and this caused a small oil leak.
Click to expand...


Yes the OEM bars do seem rather fragile. Having just finished 'persauding' the rocker-cover cover to fit, I noticed that the lower section of the bar is slightly bent. Pretty much rubbish overall! There has been a fair debate over the years about engine bars that cause more damage than would be caused by their absence.

The AltRider bars seem to be most robust, but at a horendous price for only the lower section.

. .. .sorry, don't know where I got the idea that you were writing about the engine bars!
 
Greenman14 said:
When I tested my BMW plastic cylinder head protectors they were completely destroyed and the rocker cover was scratched but intact. Also, one of the rocker cover bolts was bent and this caused a small oil leak.
Click to expand...

Interesting that you mention bent bolts. I was surprised that mine seem less than straight. Will be testing the re-seated bolts on the Welsh National Rally in a couple of weeks so will see if they still leak. :-(

Going to northern Spain in mid-June - hopefully without a leaking rocker cover.
 
RSavage said:
Yep, got the TT unit too. The reason it's odd that it bent is that I dropped the bike on the off side. I did a "swerve to the left and a drop to the right" but the nearside was just a muddy bank so I have no idea what bent it. I did, eventually, have a lovely bruise on the inside of my left knee so, perhaps, I bent the gear lever by applying loads of sideways boot pressure against it at the same time as applying ditto knee pressure to the tank in an effort to stop the bike tipping to the left.

Bit of post-lift back ache was replaced on Thursday - nearly 10 days after the off - by excruciating morning pain in my abdomen and lower left back. I mean REALLY bad pain not unlike a bruised/ruptured kidney. No blood in pee according to A+E so fingers crossed it's just a badly pulled muscle but why it should appear so long after the event puzzles/worries me.
Click to expand...

I'm a McTimoney chiropractor. I regularly see people with really bad low back and groin pain. Its usually down to the pelvic joints. Sacro-Iliac (SIJ) at the back and pubic symphysis at the front. Logic says that one joint of a close-by pair (SIJ) going stiff should make no real difference. But in reality it often does. I mobilise and adjust the stiff joint and the patient quickly feels better. Regular adjustments keep them heading the right way to health.

The pubic symphysis is rarely an issue (unless you had a tough baby delivery or are a high kicking sportsman). But a bike crash will apply all sorts of unusual forces so best to get it all checked out.

On top of all this the low back and abdominal muscles may well have been upset. Pain a day or two after the crash suggests that might be the issue.

Lowest cost option do nothing and wait.

Next option see the GP and get pumped up with anti inflammatory drugs and pain killers. Check out the side effects on these.

Best option ( I would say this of course) get checked out by a specialist in re aligning spinal joints. The pain will self resolve and in the long run you have less risk of a relapse. I used McTimoney Chiropractic techniques as a first line followed by more aggressive twist and click methods if they are indicated.
 
I have just removed my Touratech cylinder had cover protectors to replace them with Machine Art X-Head covers which cover a wider area and being polycarbonate should have a bit more flexibility.

The TT cover on left was useless when the cylinder head hit a kerb (nasty road camber and not enough revs).

The TT cover on the right got chewed when I spun the back wheel on a greasy salted road surface. Cold tyres, turning right and bad luck. No other harm done.

When I took the covers off , two of the three M6 mounting screws on each side were bent. These were little more than driveway tumbles but any more force would have surely have cracked the cylinder head itself which carries the mounting lugs.

The BMW Off Road School does and don't use any head protectors. Used covers are not silly money so maybe we are better off not trying to protect the rocker covers.
 
Bendy toy said:
I'm a McTimoney chiropractor. I regularly see people with really bad low back and groin pain. Its usually down to the pelvic joints. Sacro-Iliac (SIJ) at the back and pubic symphysis at the front. Logic says that one joint of a close-by pair (SIJ) going stiff should make no real difference. But in reality it often does. I mobilise and adjust the stiff joint and the patient quickly feels better. Regular adjustments keep them heading the right way to health.

The pubic symphysis is rarely an issue (unless you had a tough baby delivery or are a high kicking sportsman). But a bike crash will apply all sorts of unusual forces so best to get it all checked out.

On top of all this the low back and abdominal muscles may well have been upset. Pain a day or two after the crash suggests that might be the issue.

Lowest cost option do nothing and wait.

Next option see the GP and get pumped up with anti inflammatory drugs and pain killers. Check out the side effects on these.

Best option ( I would say this of course) get checked out by a specialist in re aligning spinal joints. The pain will self resolve and in the long run you have less risk of a relapse. I used McTimoney Chiropractic techniques as a first line followed by more aggressive twist and click methods if they are indicated.
Click to expand...

Thanks Dave

Big doses of Naproxen from A+E bod have had no effect and I re-visited a GP last Wednesday who has requested ultrasound examination - what I expected A+E to do but I was sidelined to the non-urgent stream. She wants to rule out the possibility of kidney stone(s), i.e. a purely coincidental event nothing to do with the bike drop.

Cheers

Richard
 
Bendy toy said:
I have just removed my Touratech cylinder had cover protectors to replace them with Machine Art X-Head covers which cover a wider area and being polycarbonate should have a bit more flexibility.

The TT cover on left was useless when the cylinder head hit a kerb (nasty road camber and not enough revs).

The TT cover on the right got chewed when I spun the back wheel on a greasy salted road surface. Cold tyres, turning right and bad luck. No other harm done.

When I took the covers off , two of the three M6 mounting screws on each side were bent. These were little more than driveway tumbles but any more force would have surely have cracked the cylinder head itself which carries the mounting lugs.

The BMW Off Road School does and don't use any head protectors. Used covers are not silly money so maybe we are better off not trying to protect the rocker covers.
Click to expand...


Maybe decent rocker-cover covers is the way forward. Only the AltRider bars seems to be constructed with proper thought to their function. All the others - including the OEM bars - are tubes welded to plates which bolt to the frame/engine and which are therefore susceptible to bending. I must say that I am very dissapointed that the OEM bars allowed the head protectors to touch the ground and bent.

Does your GSA have OEM bars?
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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