New Toy Bummer (03 V11 Sport)

[Ronkom]

After fixing a couple small issues & doing a general cleaning of dirt accumulated sitting in a shed for 2 years, I fired my toy up yesterday morning to go get an inspection sticker. MAN, those Mistral mufflers sound GOOD! It's about a 10 mile run to the Honda shop, pulling up in front & stopping I suddenly smelled oil smoke. I got off the bike & looked underneath.....Aw man...oil dripping from the bell housing/motor block seam, hitting the pipes & making a cloud of smoke. Already a little puddle on the ground. I got back on & rode home. Unless there are other potential leak sources inside the bell housing in the spine frame design (It's definitely motor oil) It has to be a blown rear main seal. Bummer-bummer-bummer.
OK, I've been into more Loops & Tontis than I can count, but this is the first spine frame. I've checked out the shop manuals Greg has on This Old Tractor, and of course they step-by-step "remove this-and-such as shown in section 2" "Then remove this-n-that as shown in section 3" etc. etc. I can do a rear main seal in a Loop or Tonti  w/out removing the motor from the frame. Wisdom/experience of the forum needed, Are there short cuts that can be used on the spineys?
Thanks,
Ronkom

[bigbikerrick]

Hey Ron, are you sure its not the big diameter breather hose on top, that has cracked, and allowed oil to drip inside the bellhousing from on top? Just a thought before you tear into it.
Rick.

[guzzisteve]

I take the front upper frame loose and pork chops off and crab it like a Tonti. Others do it differently.

[Lannis]

Ron -

If a rear main seal change turns out to be necessary, I have the seal installation tool that works a treat and sets the seal to exactly the right depth ... you're welcome to use it if you need it.

Lannis

[Ronkom]

Tank off to check breather hose as per bigbikerick. Opened the airbox to find....(picture) As in the old song about the boll weevil, I guess that mouse was "looking for a home" Bike was stored in a shed, last run to get inspected in 2017. Not really ridden a lot in the last 5 years. I found the same mess in several bikes I've worked on. When we last worked on my Son's Stone, we installed sections of 1/4" screen in the intake snouts.
Aint bikes fun!
Ron

 

[Lannis]

Tank off to check breather hose as per bigbikerick. Opened the airbox to find....(picture) As in the old song about the boll weevil, I guess that mouse was "looking for a home" ...

Mice have cost me a lot of money over the years .... the fuel tank filler hose on our Subaru, the taillight wiring on my truck, and several air-cooled engines, where the mice just love to climb up under the fan housing, build a nest in the cylinder fins, and then get burned out for the 50th time when the engine is started.   Overheated a couple before I found them - warped the head on a flathead Toro twin, and dropped a valve guide on my Kawasaki OHV twin.   

Got traps everywhere this year, with a pile of mice to show for it and the motors are still running.   One more thing to keep up with ....

Do you think your nest-in-the-breather is maybe your oil dripping problem?

Lannis

[bmc5733946]

We had a customer that stored his Jackal on the side stand next to the open can that his wife stored bird seed in. He called after the bike had been stored without running for at least two years. The air filter had a perfectly round hole sized just for a mouse, lower part of housing was full of nest material and mouse waste, left throttle body being on the low side was thoroughly seized from the apparently frequent urine bathes it got, Kroil and time and patience got the job done. Situations like this are why I like K&N filters in some places.

Brian

[kirb]

Two in the last few months...
Stelvio- heard a 'clunk' at startup, drove home, smelled sulfur-ish oil...yep trans fluid. Drop engine, split cases...clutch retaining spring part let loose and lodged into the trans case... split case, rebuild with new case half, on the road again...

Motus- picked up a salvage titled Motus from St. Louis. Owner low-sided with 630(!) miles. Motus closed down = total loss. Made it into a sweet naked bike, but went to start it one day and found the flywheel ring gear cracked. pulled rear wheel, swing arm, trans to get access to press a new one on. Back together and on the road...blog of mods here: https://2017motusmst.blogspot.com/

[Ronkom]

Rick called it, Large breather hose is dry-rotted & cracked open where it connects atop the bell housing. Pulled & timing plug & the starter, flywheel is dry & clean. Slight oil inside the bell housing wall seen & felt through the starter opening. Fingers crossed that it leaked down from the breather hose.
ronkom

[Lannis]

Rick called it, Large breather hose is dry-rotted & cracked open where it connects atop the bell housing. Pulled & timing plug & the starter, flywheel is dry & clean. Slight oil inside the bell housing wall seen & felt through the starter opening. Fingers crossed that it leaked down from the breather hose.
ronkom

I hope that's what it was!!   

Never seems to turn out that way for me, though.   Maybe I'm not living right!   

Lannis

[Chuck in Indiana]

That's a fairly common thing, Ron. I was up in Wisconsin visiting the Kid when you asked, or I'd have told you to Don't worry, Be Happy..

[twowheeladdict]

Tank off to check breather hose as per bigbikerick. Opened the airbox to find....(picture) As in the old song about the boll weevil, I guess that mouse was "looking for a home" Bike was stored in a shed, last run to get inspected in 2017. Not really ridden a lot in the last 5 years. I found the same mess in several bikes I've worked on. When we last worked on my Son's Stone, we installed sections of 1/4" screen in the intake snouts.
Aint bikes fun!
Ron

 

That's why I have two working cats living in my shop. Haven't seen a mouse dropping since I got them.  They take care of them around the barn during the day and get locked up in my shop overnight.