Running in new engine techniques

[ukjules]

GS550E 1980.
A second engine is fitted. This has been
stored for years but it was overhauled by
a knowledgeable chap. Assume so !
Assume the engine was made up by a obsessional
expert with time on his hands . That
sort of quality.

How should one run in new engine ?

assume :
Head fully reconditioned.
valves lapped and new seals.
Probably new rings (possibly pistons)
We prob must assume a new bottom end.

 

[Rich82GS750TZ]

That’s a lot of assuming.

 

[zed1015]

If all that's correct then just ride as normal.
Don't thrash it but don't baby it.
Make it pull through the revs and use plenty of engine braking to push the rings into the bores.
All that ride under 4k rpms for 500 miles or whatever running in procedure is cobblers.

 

[Nessism]

Riding in an assertive city driving manner is good. The rings need pressure to bed into the cylinder wall so don't baby the engine. 50 or 75 miles should be plenty and then progressively add more aggressive riding. Be sure to do a 500-600 mile service where you dump the oil, adjust the valves, and torque the head. Making sure the head nuts are tight is particularly important since aftermarket gaskets which often crush down thus the torque may fall off.

 

[ukjules]

For my RD 250 2 stroke a chap from
yam forum said to me
"ride it like you had stolen it"
Like that one but prob best for 2 strokes....

points noted.

one needs to be here to see the quality
of the old engineers work who reconditioned
this engine. I am only now beginning to realise this
is like new ! Every thread is perfect.

We shall see soon !

 

[Sandy]

Riding in an assertive city driving manner is good. The rings need pressure to bed into the cylinder wall so don't baby the engine. 50 or 75 miles should be plenty and then progressively add more aggressive riding. Be sure to do a 500-600 mile service where you dump the oil, adjust the valves, and torque the head. Making sure the head nuts are tight is particularly important since aftermarket gaskets which often crush down thus the torque may fall off.

What Ed says but to be a little extra prudent, or anal perhaps, I would do a retorque after a couple of heat cycles as well as one at the first service.

 

[ukjules]

All noted ... and I'm armed with exact torque data.

 

[Nessism]

What Ed says but to be a little extra prudent, or anal perhaps, I would do a retorque after a couple of heat cycles as well as one at the first service.

Agree. With OEM gaskets you can wait for the first service but a lot of aftermarket gaskets suck and crush down way too fast. If the engine has a green base gasket (Athena brand) you may as well pull the top end off now and save yourself the trouble.

 

[slayer61]

If all that's correct then just ride as normal.
Don't thrash it but don't baby it.
Make it pull through the revs and use plenty of engine braking to push the rings into the bores.
All that ride under 4k rpms for 500 miles or whatever running in procedure is cobblers.

^^ Do it like zed says. It has worked for me with race bikes & road bikes both.

 

[ukjules]

One quest :

At first start up should I put a drop of oil
in each spark plug hole ?

 

[Grimly]

One quest :

At first start up should I put a drop of oil
in each spark plug hole ?

Turn it over with a teaspoon of oil in each cylinder, then put the plugs in and start it.

 

[Rob S.]

Do like the manual says. So says Cycle World.

 

[ukjules]

Engine braking:

Bike engine in bike and first runs going ahead.
engine is sweet.

engine braking what exactly is that ?
simply throttling off ? and coasting ?

 

[Nessism]

Throttle off, clutch out, using the engine to slow down the bike. Engine rpm should be somewhat highish.

 

[chuck hahn]

heres a little read on the subject.


http://ntnoa.org/enginebreakin.htm

 

[bwringer]

I'd ask the guy who built the engine, but it sounds like he might not be available...?

For me, it's more about managing the risks of part failures or assembly errors. A slightly different set of priorities than they had back in disco era Hamamatsu.

Out of something akin to paranoia, I usually change the oil at about 50 miles just to look for excessive sparklies and chunks (some sparklies and bits on the drain plug magnet are perfectly normal, of course). Then do the next at around 500 miles, then oil changes as normal after that.

And yes, ordinary riding and heat cycling, load and unload the rings, don't lug it. A varied and healthy diet of load and RPM. Maybe avoid hours of droning at the same RPM, so maybe don't set off on an Iron Butt ride right away. Check the oil frequently in case it's using more oil than expected, or springs a leak. I don't know that I'd spin a fresh build to redline right away, but once you've done that first oil change and all seems well, zing away.

The sticker the Suzuki factory placed on the tach advised avoiding redline for the first 600 miles. I don't think that level of restraint is really necessary. And the speed/RPM shift points given in the manual are ridiculously low, so ignore that.

 

[ukjules]

OK . 20m done as per method.
No leaks whatsoever.
Thanks for answers.
(now I gota fix my original engine
that compared to this one has been butchered.)

 

[Rob S.]

Just as in normal (post-breakin) running, lugging will likely do more harm than over revving.

The absolute safest breakin? According to the owner's manual. Here's Cycle World's reasoning:

New motorcycles are under warranty. The owner's manual instructions will result in the fewest warranty-covered repairs.

 

[Nessism]

Cycle World's test was for a brand new engine. Not a used engine where someone lapped the valves and honed a used cylinder. For that some additional cylinder pressure helps the ring seal.

 

[GS1150Pilot]

This is a good video: