[newuser]

Hey guys, I've had a small oil leak out of the front right corner of the clutch side cover. It was pretty consistent (about one drip every minute, and dripped more when engine was running), so I opened up the cover this morning to see if the gasket was torn or if there was a nick in the case that could have caused the leak. Here are some pictures of the area in question with and without the gasket. Is the oil filter screen rubber supposed to overhang the crankcase this much?

More info: the leak started after I changed the clutch plates a couple weeks ago. I replaced the gasket with one from dime city cycles and closed it up. I did not use sealant or grease when I installed the gasket if that might have been a potential problem. The gasket had oil all over it when I removed it from the cover. In addition, some of the bolts may have been installed incorrectly as a couple of them would not tighten down no matter how much they were turned. But the bolts in the area of the leak could be completely tightened so I didn't think that was the issue.
I purchased another gasket from David silver spares, some gasket sealant, and a new set of bolts for the cover. Will this probably fix the leak? Any words of advice?

Thanks guys!

 

[NewGuy]

The clutch cover bolts may vary in length, consult a manual or parts list for which ones go where.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[newuser]

Will do NewGuy. Does it not make a difference if the bolts in the whole bottom side of the clutch were screwed down tight? The loose ones were on top of the case, so I didn't really think they were related to the leak.

 

[phil71]

use a little ultra grey when you reassemble it. Dry the gasket off good, apply a light film to both sides of the gasket and let it cure for about 20 mins. Sometimes these aftermarket gaskets aren't perfect.

 

[newuser]

Ok. Thanks guys I'll give that a try. So there isn't a visible problem with that area that could cause the leak? I felt the surface and couldn't find any nicks in the casing.

 

[jensen]

Hi,

Please replace the right oil pump bolt lock washer for a new one before assembling.
The gasket was mis-aligned during installation, don't know if it caused the issue, but there a good chance it did.
I also see a lot of dirt in the pictures, at least not clean, this won't help either.

Jensen

 

[TOOLS1]

Yes, loose bolts at the top will cause a leak. Even at the bottom. I would say your bolts being in the wrong positions, and bottoming out was the caus of your leak. I would just replace the gasket, and install the bolts in their proper positions. If you do feel the need to use gasket sealer, only put it on the cover side, and not the case side. If you ever have to change the gasket again, you will be so glad you did not glue it to the case.
TOOLS
P.S. Do not!!! use RTV gasket sealer!!!!!!! Use three bond, Honda bond, or Yama bond.

 

[Mydlyfkryzis]

Repeat, do not use RTV of any kind. The excess will bead up on the inside and break off. this will block oil passages.

Also, you cover and crankcase may not be flat. Overtightening will cause the side case/crank case to bulge a little. Check the gasket mating surfaces for flatness. Use a trusted flat edge. Carefully remove high spots.

A flat surface will not need any sealant to make a good seal. The gasket is the sealant.

 

[Yendor]

Your pictures show LOCKING Tabs for the Bolts that hold the Oil Pump in place not being bent up into place to prevent the Oil Pump from becoming loose.

Fix that before your re-assbemble anlong with the other comments from other posters.

 

[newuser]

Hey guys, thanks for the advice. Unfortunately the tabs on the left washer broke off when I was bending them to remove the pump and I didn't want that to happen to the ones on the right washer. Would this be terribly detrimental to leave it unbent?
Also this is the sealant I bought the other day:

Would this be acceptable to use on the gasket (if any)?

Thanks

 

[dgallagher]

As stated before do not use atv, clean up all the sludge in your engine and clean both mating surfaces of the engine and cover, if there level and not damaged in any way coat your gasket with grease and bolt it up. If my memory is correct there are two screws that are longer than the rest and they go on the front and back were the alignment pins were located. For your oil pump it is NOT ok to go with out lock washers of some type. The bend over type are NLA and the Honda dealers I spoke to were providing standard lock washers. The link below goes to a post that shows the ones I made, scroll down to the middle of the first page. I just used sheet metal similar to what you could get at a hardware store, I used the original as a pattern and heat treated the final product for a little more strength. Good luck


http://www.hondatwins.net/forums/55-engine-discussion/24969-2nd-gear-pop-out-finally-fixed.html

 

[frogman79]

There's no reason to use any type of glue or RTV on a gasket. Like tools said all that will do is make you wish later on down the road that you hadn't. I grease my gaskets buts that's it. Clean all of the surfaces very well, maybe even flush that engine out a bit as it looks NASTY. Then inspect all the metal gasket surfaces for nicks or damage.

The bolts once put in their holes should all have about the same distance sticking out once put in the correct holes. Push the cover on tight, then insert the bolts into the holes making notice that some will be sticking out further and some will not. Pull the bolts that are short and replace them with the ones that are long. Distances will even out. Then gently tighten them all, using a criss/cross pattern.

Next time you pull the cover take a piece of cardboard and draw a rough pattern of the case cover on it. Then SHOVE the bolts through the card board at approximately their placing. Now you have good record of where they go and you have a holder to keep them safe.