Should I put a dab of oil on it ??? O-ring, that is...

[GregM.]

Have you rebuilt a stock fuel petcock?? If so, I'd appreciate your advice.

I just got a K&L rebuild kit to fix a slow leak through the fuel valve, on my '80 850 G and I haven't done this before... So, any tips on how to do this with the least hassle would be awesome.

In addition, on the 4 items that are in the kit... should I put : a dab of oil, or, silicon spray, or, WD-40, or, Armor protectant, or, anything else... on any of these rubber parts??

For example, will the valve handle that you move between "reserve", "on" and "prime"... move any smoother if you put some lubricant on the o-ring??
Or, will the gaskets last any longer, or work better if you use something on them??

I only want to do this once... I don't want to tear into this again, any time soon, to make some slight correction that I could do now.

As usual, I really appreciate all of you, that have learned before me...
Thanks

[LW_Icarus]

there are two little wafers that go on the bolts that hold the petcock to the tank, without these replaced or some type of sealant on the bolts they will seep gas.

remember anything you put on those rubber pieces will end up in the gas, and then in the carbs. maybe a bit of two stroke oil or something might help, and certainly wouldnt hurt anything.

[KEITH KRAUSE]

I'm a fan of silicone spray myself.
Used in the correct/sensible amount, it does wonders for making rubber last. I use it on all rubber, including under the cars.

[GregM.]

Thanks!

A couple good tips... maybe a little silicone spray or 2-stroke oil.

I don't know about the wafers you mention??? In my kit there is a long, oblong, o-ring kind of gasket piece. I'm pretty sure, from the pictures that I've seen, that this is the piece that goes between the petcock and the tank.

Is this enough of a seal?
Do I need to seal the bolts with something else to keep them from seeping gas??
What would I use for that?

Any other tips to give a beginner for this project?? To me, each step is a brand new adventure. Thanks for the help

[DaveDanger]

Take into consideration that any kind of oil, silicone etc will be soon dissolved by the fuel flowing through the valve, and that's not a problem... it's just not going to stay there very long. If nothing else however, it will help the assembly of the parts to coat the o-rings with at least oil. Any type will work, even a dab of bearing grease won't hurt. The amount you're going to get on an o-ring will be so small that the worry of contaminating your fuel is negligible. I personally use a silicone grease on any o-ring I install anywhere. Dow Corning makes some great stuff under the product name of Dow-4?. Comes in a toothpaste type tube and lasts forever for o-ring lubrication. It will help the o-ring stay in a groove while you're assembling, it will help the o-ring slide over a shaft without rolling or twisting, and if the assembly is not carrying fuel immediately past the o-ring, the o-ring will stay flexible for a lot longer if its coated with silicone grease. This works as well with fork seals, brake seals, intake seals, drain plugs, etc. But like mentioned already, any kind of oil or light grease make a difference. There are a very few instances where an o-ring is supposed to be installed dry. A service manual will always make that distinction.

[GregM.]

LW_Icaarus mentioned replacing the wafers on the 2 bolts that hold the petcock to the tank. He said if you don't, it could leak.

I didn't know what he was talking about till I took the petcock off today.

Is he talking about the 2 rubber washers that are stuck to the petcock when I unscrewed the bolts holding it to the tank??
I haven't pryed them off the petcock yet.
Are they called wafers??
They look like gaskets, or o-rings, or rubber washers to me... But I'm a rookie and just learning the correct names for all these little pieces.

How come these didn't come in the rebuild kit?
Where will I get a suitable : wafer, o-ring, gasket, washer??
Will the correct size rubber washer from the hardware store work properly?? I don't want ANY leaks

Thanks for your tips............

[DaveDanger]

The parts manual for my 81 GS850GLX calls out a gasket, P/N: 09168-06010 for those bolts. I can't tell from the photo/illustration if that is a plain o-ring, a special gasket or a washer with an o-ring crimped in place. You can bet anything from a hardware store will be rated to handle water and not much else.

[snowbeard]

my "wafers" were a fiber type of thing, just at the head of the bolt, to keep the gas from weeping out there. I left them off my recent rebuild and will have to try it again sooner than later... :roll:

I will try to use the fiber gasket board I got for the carb bowls, seems to have held for the last three years, just gotta cut it out right.

[GregM.]

Yes THANKS!! Dave and Snowbeard... and all you teachers.

I've now completely disassembled the '80 850 petcock, and cleaned it. I've looked at my Clymer's manual and the parts micro-fische on the websites.

I still don't know what you exprts are going to call these pieces. But they're definetly a rubber/gasket/washer piece that the mounting bolts for the petcock go through. Weird thing is, of course they're probably the originals, they are dirty and hard so I can't tell a lot about their make-up.

They're also VERY stuck to the petcock... How do I get them off correctly. I will then put new ones one which I will have to get from the local dealer or a website.

Talk to me...........