My '81 GS850G and '82 GS1100G -- gaskets

[Bill Lloyd]

I have a mechanic about 25 miles north of me who cannot seem to do a base gasket and head gasket replacement on these bikes and get it right. They inevitably start leaking again soon after the "work." Does anyone know of something this guy is overlooking? Yup, I did get him to use Suzuki replacement gaskets. ????

-- Bill

[resjudicata]

Is he using new o-rings with the new gaskets?

Chris

[bwringer]

Where, exactly, is it leaking from? If you care to reveal this information, it would help a lot to pinpoint the problem. There are lots of ways to screw this up.

He may not be spending the hours and hours and hours and hours it takes to get all the old gaskets off without damaging the surface. I don't see how you could actually do this right if you're paid by the hour.

The hardest part if you're just doing the top end is getting the old base gasket off the bottom end -- you can't use a Roloc or surfacing disk because the abrasive will go down into the engine, and the pistons and studs are constantly in the way.

Or, if you're not very careful with a Roloc or surfacing disk, you can remove too much aluminum.

When it's time to reinstall the block, it can be very difficult to do this without damaging the base gasket. Another common mistake is slopping some sort of sealer on the gaskets. They go on dry, but some people have habits that are hard to break...

It's also possible to leave out the locating pins at the corners of the block and/or head, or leave out the o-rings at the rear corners of the base gasket, or leave out the seals at the corners of the head gasket.

[Redman]

Reference:

[Graham]

Stud stretch? I've seen it on honda bikes with cap nuts.

[bwringer]

OP seems to have vanished...

[ddaniels]

[QUOTE=bwringer;1304302]
It's also possible to leave out the locating pins at the corners of the block QUOTE]
This is one problem I am way too familiar with....It is extremely aggravating to get the whole thing back together only to look over and see those dowels sitting on the workbence. Grrrrrrr!

[850 Combat]

[QUOTE=ddaniels;1309228]

It's also possible to leave out the locating pins at the corners of the block QUOTE]
This is one problem I am way too familiar with....It is extremely aggravating to get the whole thing back together only to look over and see those dowels sitting on the workbence. Grrrrrrr!

That is the kind of situation where the parts book is as valuable as the manual for reassembly. This is a job I need to take up eventually, and I'm not looking forward too it either. I'm told that OEM gaskets are the best. I think a whole OEM top end gasket set is close to a hundred bucks.

[ddaniels]

Biggest expense is the head gasket. Last time I bought one, which was probably about 12 years ago, it was around $50.

[7981GS]

This is one problem I am way too familiar with....It is extremely aggravating to get the whole thing back together only to look over and see those dowels sitting on the workbence. Grrrrrrr!

NOOOO! Say it isn't so!