The 1200 project

[John Schmidt]

I finally got the new gaskets & o-rings to reinstall the left head that was seeping oil. I gave the mating surface a good coating of copper coat, paying special attention to the area where it was leaking. More like slow seepage...about every 20-30 seconds it would drip at high rpm. If it hadn't been falling on the header I probably wouldn't even have bothered, but the smoke was horrendous....and smelly. Today I finished up the reinstallation by setting the timing, mounting/filling the radiator, bolting on the left exhaust. Filled the external tank and hit the starter. Note to self: Always remember replace the timing inspection plug on top of the engine block. It took about five seconds to get a good oil splatter as a reminder, followed by a good ten minutes of wiping down the engine, frame, foot pegs, exhaust, etc.     Finally hit it again, started right up and ran pretty good, I need to go back over the carb sync. Jeff Parker is coming by Wed. afternoon so will wait and show him how it's done. I need to devise a lever type hook up for the choke, mostly because I forgot to hook up the cable when installing the carbs and the attachment point is in front behind a panel behind the fan. I either take out the panel or partially remove the carbs to hook it up. Frankly, neither is going to happen. I ran the bike quite a while to let it get good and warm, shut it down and let it cool, then ran it again. So far no leaks....had my fingers crossed, eyes crossed, legs crossed, apparently it worked. 

Now, maybe I can move on to another part of the bike, sick of messing with the engine. Stay tuned!

[Flrider]

That is great John.

Keep the updates coming.

Can't wait to see the finished product 

[Grumpy]

One step at a time, glad you got the leak handled. 

[IamGCW]

Almost time for new pictures.  Good news John.

[TJ]

 

[BCoy]

  Great news!  Can't wait to see all your hard work.

[John Schmidt]

Jeff Parker came over after work this PM and watched how I sync'd the carbs. Guess I should have taken a couple pics of the process but too late. He seemed rather impressed as to how smooth it ran and how easy it started, just a split second bump of the start button and it's running. Think I heard "wow" at least a dozen times.  At least the oil leak at the bottom of the left head is gone, just some seepage at the bottom of the left valve cover. New gaskets didn't correct it, seems like I can stop it by using the left side cover from a second ratty looking set. Didn't really want to do that because I've already buffed and polished the one that's on there now. Oh well, small potatoes compared to the leak just fixed. Guess I'll order the parts to rebuild the rear master cylinder and caliper, then clean up and service the final drive. I can save approx. $16 ordering the parts from ProCaliber when compared to Partszilla or Serive Honda. Plus I get free shipping which is another few bucks. When the rear is done, I'll move on to the forks. Right now I'm trying to remove the pistons from the rear caliper and not having much luck. Been soaking in penetrating oil for a couple days now, tried an air hose to blow them out with no luck. Was hoping to reuse the pistons but not looking very promising. I don't have a hydraulic line available or I'd use that to try and blow them out, so I'm open to any suggestions, not concerned whether I damage them or not.

[OnaWingandaPrayer]

I have heard of folks fitting a grease fitting (zerk) to the caliper and popping the pistons out with a grease gun . Though I am not sure how t5hey fir the grease fitting.
 Perhaps find a bolt the correct thread and drill it thru the center and thread in the greas fitting at the bolt head .

[John Schmidt]

I have heard of folks fitting a grease fitting (zerk) to the caliper and popping the pistons out with a grease gun . Though I am not sure how t5hey fir the grease fitting.
 Perhaps find a bolt the correct thread and drill it thru the center and thread in the greas fitting at the bolt head .

I've heard of that also but was never able to find a fitting that fit, either the thread or size was wrong. Probably just drill a hole in the bottom and cut some threads for a bolt, then use a pulley puller or similar, done that in the past but it ruins the pistons. Going to let them soak for a few days.

[indybobm]

I got mine out by using a grease gun. My grease gun is an old metal lever type. It has a curved metal tube coming out of the top with a zerk fitting on the end. I unscrewed the zerk fitting and screwed the tube into the brake caliper. The threads are close enough to screw in a couple of threads. Pumped the handle and the grease pushed them right out. Use a block of wood to keep the pistons from popping out completely. Worked for me.

[FloridaValkRyder]

Always fun watching a master at work. Thanks for the lessons and the hands-on. I'm impressed at how much better it runs and sounds now, remembering the first time it cranked up. Fun to watch the progress.

[John Schmidt]

Well nuts, the pistons in the rear caliper won't budge....in or out. Frozen in there tighter than a bull's butt in fly time(you have to know farm animals to understand).    So, guess I'll find a good used one on Ebay but will make sure it's free moving first. I tried compressed air, then heating the outer casing, hooked up the old hydraulic clutch line and bled it out, then tried to force them out hydraulically. No joy, tire of messing with it so it goes in the trash. The fronts appear to be moveable so I'll address them while waiting for parts for the back end.

The engine runs fine once warmed up, but still has a small miss on #3 until it gets warm. Not sure the source yet, might be a plug or weak spark. I installed coils off a Valkyrie so it has good strong spark on the other three. Maybe I can get Jeff to come by and hold the plug wire to see if it's intermittent. He always said he's happy to help out. 

[FloridaValkRyder]

... Maybe I can get Jeff to come by and hold the plug wire to see if it's intermittent. He always said he's happy to help out. 

That's just wrong!!! 

[John Schmidt]

Finally got the pistons out by drilling a hole in the bottom of them with a size "O" ("oh") bit which is used for a 3/8-16 bolt. Only I didn't use a bolt, just kept going in with the tap and let it press against the bottom of the piston cylinder. Once the frozen pistons broke loose it walked it right out of the hole. However, the bleeder screw was a different story; it was frozen solid and wouldn't move. Use heat, penetrating oil, tapping it side to side and on top....all to no avail. It finally snapped off flush when using a vice grip. Tried drilling it out but unless I go much larger, the outer shell of what's left won't budge and  now the seat is messed up. Just wondering if anyone has ever redrilled the seat which is what I'd have to do if I drilled the entire thing out to a much larger diameter. I swear....if it weren't for bad luck I wouldn't have any luck at all. 

[flsix]

John I have to admire your persistence in keeping your project moving along.

If it were mine it may have been sold by now.

[John Schmidt]

John I have to admire your persistence in keeping your project moving along.

If it were mine it may have been sold by now.

Don't think it hasn't crossed my mind. I'd probably take a decent offer and move on to something else.

[John Schmidt]

Just not enough meat in the area where the bleeder was and I didn't want to take a chance with installing a bleeder repair kit. Area around it would be much too thin. So I took off everything useable and tossed the caliper. Went looking on Ebay for a decent replacement, either a good rear caliper or a left front unit, on the 1200 they're the same thing. Also expands your choices by quite a bit. I finally found a decent looking front caliper for just over $30 w/free shipping, also ordered a couple rebuild kits. The one I bought looks like it has new pads so if they're not EBC I'll probably use them if they aren't covered in oil or brake fluid. My plan is to clean and strip the calipers, sand and buff them then use some caliper paint to make them stand out. Color TBD at a later date. Should be here by end of the week.

[flsix]

Another piece of the puzzle.