MT Riders Club

Hi, I am now knee deep in my MT 350 restoration and have removed the engine from the frame. My engine had an oil leak which I think was down to the NRV sticking open because the frame oil drained too. My question is now the engine is out, which engine oil seals should I change as a matter of course? Plus any other tips it advice would be appreciated.
Thanks, Mark.

To be absolutely confident, it's best to change all the oil seals if possible (crankshaft, kickstart, gearchange, etc) along with the neoprene seals on the rocker covers, cam belt cover, etc, and any sealing washers (engine drain screw, frame drain screw, etc).

Not absolutely sure why a sticking NRV should result in an oil leak unless it is due to a defective seal?

hi mark

i have replied to your message

cheers

George

Hi George, thanks for the reply, Imbin a caravan in Devon and my internet is sporadic to say the least. Van you tell me how much its going to cost for all of the seals that can be replaced without splitting the cases?
Thanks, Mark.

hi mark

i have sent you a pm, with what i think you may need.

cheers

George

Hi Mark

I see that your in Oxford. If you have already taken the engine out why not take it for a check up by Gary at Sportax. Your less than 20 miles away, just down the A420.

Cheers
Will

Hi Will, the engine was running great before I started the strip down, apart from the oil leak. Plus I want to do as much of the mechanicals myself if I can. The engine is out primarily to get it repainted as its corroded and a bit tatty. While its out I wanted to replace any seals that I can to future proof it. I'm struggling to find somewhere locally to strip and paint it though.
Cheers, Mark.

Hi George, I got the message but was wandering whether you could supply them to me and if so how much would it be?
Cheers, Mark

Hi Mark

Going a bit off topic here (apologies to the mods) but in answer to your question about engine prep and local companies. For my rebuilds I have used Oxford Fine Finishing for the frame and steel parts, but when I took some rear shock springs in for blasting and powder coating a few weeks ago, the owner Jack (top bloke) has sold the business and its now linked to a car body repair shop and I put the service I got down to a management transition. They do a lot of industrial stuff and tend to use a hard blast medium so I have never risked an engine after the first time I got them to blast and coat the lower part of the front forks and yokes. Kev (Moose) used a place down in Newbury but again just for the frame for his desert 500.
As far as the engines go I have either stripped them down and sent them to a specialist in Bristol, via Sportax, to be powder coated as separate parts. They use the correct medium for the soft alloy cases, blank the surfaces and do a great job, but not the cheapest option. This should take you to one of my rebuild links so you can get an idea of the work needed for this option

http://www.mtridersclub.co.uk/viewtopic ... it=Therapy

I once bought a 350 engine that had been blasted and powder coated in its entirety from a show bike that was being broken. That was stripped and a lot of blast media had found its way inside and the act of separating the parts cracked and ruined the coating, glad I didn't pay much for it, but whatever you do dont let anybody blast the entire lump. Sounds obvious but I have the proof that somebody did it.

On some of the bikes I have done, if you dont want to strip the engine into its component parts stick with de greasing, various sizes of wire brushes and lots of elbow grease. Lots of paint options available that claim to be high temp etc. I have had good success with specialist brake caliper paint as this is rated to about 150C and is reasonably chemical resistant once fully cured (several days). If you use the forum search facility there is a lot of discussion about engine paint options.

Drop me a PM with you contact details and we can have a chat

Cheers
Will

I had my 604 engine overhauled by Minter and it is a work of art. He used a company that vapour blast and powder coat at a very reasonable rate. My engine is like brand new and I had a custom Sportax "Works" colour scheme on it. You can see see the before and after on my last restoration thread.