October 14, 201213 yr hi people, In a very serious head ache, sick of this sherco! Although she is beautifull to ride! The story goes. . . . I have a water leak. I noticed the water level was low, after the fan hasnt been comming on due to water level. I dropped the oil and there was no sign of coolant. But to be on the safe side changed the water pump seals. I then rung splat shop chris who told me to replace the head seals. Which I did. I rode once, cooled, checked level. It was down. Refilled and rode again, let it cool and checked level, it was down. I have now removed the head again to check seals and for hair line cracks? Is this common? I have noticed the bike smoking alot but thought this was due to oil in petrol? There is no power loss though. When stopped, the bike does still lets a few whips of smoke out, is this normal? My other area for concern is the radiator, i cant see any fluid comming out of the radiator, there is one spot thats a wee bit ropey but theres no fluid escaping. Is it worth sending off to get pressure tested bearing in mind im 15 and have no money for this bike anymore!? Or should i make a pressure test myself? Im pretty handy in the workshop. Please help before i go bald with all this head scratching.. . .
October 14, 201213 yr I had a Gasser once with a crack (invisible even with strong magnifier) in the head similar symptoms as you describe it sucked and blowed small amounts of water until it eventually blew a lot of water. what colour is the "smoke" blue black white....hope somebody else got a better idea for you.
October 14, 201213 yr Author Also how did you eventually find the crack? Was it in the head or barrel?
October 15, 201213 yr Jimbo I hope it's something more simple than a cracked head..... just for info..used a penetrant dye... probably with hindsight diesel fuel with colour in it.
October 15, 201213 yr White smoke normally means steam! Sounds like a head problem sorry bud. Good luck.
October 15, 201213 yr Author Cheers people, shes a 2011. If the base gasket had gone would it allow fluid into the cylinder?? How do I find the crack using red diesel? Im trying to pressure test the radiator at the moment. . .
October 16, 201213 yr Cheers people, shes a 2011. If the base gasket had gone would it allow fluid into the cylinder?? How do I find the crack using red diesel? Im trying to pressure test the radiator at the moment. . . As I recall, it could, as there are are passages from the case to cylinder. Never heard of leaks though. Casting cracks in head would be extremely rare as well I would think. Leaks to head area would generally push fluid out the rad as the compression pressures are greater than the coolant pressures.
October 16, 201213 yr It could be the clutch cover gasket as this seals off the gallery that connects the waterpump to the crankcase. it blew on mine but only when i took the bike down the road, the coolant was running off the sumpguard on the other side so i didnt spot it at first.
October 16, 201213 yr Author Cheers everyone, I've taken the barrel off and ordered a new base gasket from splat shop. They were the only shop to sell it but will have to wait till Friday as it was out of stock! The old gasket has a tiny crack in it, I really do hope that was the cause. It is only a small crack though. I've also sort of tested the radiator, managed to get the radiator to 25psi in a bucket of water, couldn't see any cheeky bubbles. Cant wait to try it, but putting the piston rings into to cylinder looks some what a challenge. Do I need to oil up the barrel with pre mix?
October 17, 201213 yr Cheers everyone, I've taken the barrel off and ordered a new base gasket from splat shop. They were the only shop to sell it but will have to wait till Friday as it was out of stock! The old gasket has a tiny crack in it, I really do hope that was the cause. It is only a small crack though. I've also sort of tested the radiator, managed to get the radiator to 25psi in a bucket of water, couldn't see any cheeky bubbles. Cant wait to try it, but putting the piston rings into to cylinder looks some what a challenge. Do I need to oil up the barrel with pre mix? Sounds like a good find, and indeed plausable. Seems you found no other external leaks, or entry to gearbox oil. put up a pic if you can
October 17, 201213 yr I normally smear the barrel with oil before assembling, shouldn't be that hard to fit the piston & rings back into the cylinder as long as you align them correctly with the pins in the ring grooves
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