Throttle, Cable, Controls, and the Brake System.

I decided this was the time to replace the throttle cable.  It had a couple of cracks in the housing and some rust.  The controls on the handle bar were pretty ruff as well.  So I thought I would clean them up also.



I sanded the surfaces down used compressed air and blew all the trash out from years of neglect. 

Next I taped them off and touched up the buttons with a little paint.  Not perfect but better.

When I removed the throttle tube from the control housing it was at best a stop gap item that had been heavily modified.

I purchased a new one on ebay for cheap.

 

Upon reassembly I discovered why the original was so heavily modified.   Somewhere over the years Suzuki had changed the insides of the controls.  With a little trial and error and the grinder and dremmel I was able to get a much more accurate fit. 

I also took the time to adjust the decompression unit on the head.  A lot of these units have failed on older bikes.  What this does is open the exhaust valve for just a moment during starting.  This takes  pressure of the cylinder and makes starting easier on the starter.   I followed the trail in the Clymers Manual and did the proper test on all components.  Everything seems to be opperating properly.  After adjusting the cable I cranked the bike and watched the decompression lever move as it should.  Success!!

I have never been very happy with the front brakes on this bike.  The real issue is the fact that it is a single disk with a single piston caliper.  I feel sure that the hose and caliper were original equipment, aka 28 years old.  I had replaced the master cylinder with a 2005 unit earlier and have noticed a leak at the caliper.  I purchased a 2006 caliper from ebay and a new brake line from the dealer.  First I drained the system from the master cylinder with a syringe.

Then I removed the caliper and drained the system at the lower end into a bucket.   I leaned the bike over by adjusting the tie downs to get the master cylinder as level as possible.  This would help when I refilled the system as well as with contamination on the lower end.   I was careful to cover all areas with shop towels as brake fluid is corrosive.

Reassembly with the replacement parts.  I made an effort to clean the areas as well as possible.  Looks pretty nice.

Refilling the system is a time consuming operation.  Air is not your friend and getting all of it out takes awhile, one bubble at a time.   As the system is now you pressurize the system and hold the lever in, open the bleeder to allow the fluid and air out, then close the bleeder.  Only after you have closed the bleeder can you release the brake lever.  Releasing the lever with the bleeder open will suck air and dispelled fluid back into the system.   This is complcated on this bike by the fact that the lever and the caliper are on opposite sides of the bike.  You pretty much have to give it a reach around.  Ha!  It takes a good while to get the system to begin to presurize.  It seemed like 15 miniutes that I was not accomplishing anything.  Once it does it is pretty much straight forward.  Speed bleeders make this a much easier operation. I will order one for this bike.  I will let the bike set for a couple of days and let any additional air settle.  Then bleed them again.  Gee, I'm turning into quite the mechanic!

Oil Leak

 

 

 

Oil on the left hand side of the head.  This is the sign of of the oil cap leak on the S40.  The cap covers a hole that allows access to one of the cylinder head bolts.

 

 

Location of the oil leak. I actually took this picture after I had replaced the valve cover. Notice the red line of Permatex. It's the sure sign of an amateur mechanic.

 

Valve cover removal.

 

More card board and a drawing.

 

The engine was in neutral and I was very careful not tho turn the engine over during this procedure.

 

The old Cap filled with oil and some old sealant on and around it.

 

Valve rocker arms. Checked for any lost motion on the rocker arms.  Everything seemed pretty tight.

 

 The old one seemed to be OK but the new one is much more robust.

 

Permetex High Temp Silicone gasket maker.  Lots of opinions online about what is best.  We will just have to see how long this last.

 

A nice bead of sealant.

 

Insert and press.  I did a little clean up around the cup with a q-tip to make things a little neater than this picture shows.

 

A very thin coating of Permatex on the surface of the valve cover.  I don't think there was much if any sealant on this when I removed it. 

 

Torqued to spec.

 

After removing the drive pulley I removed the collar on the output shaft.

 

Remove the old seal.

 

New seal and replace the collar.

 

Retaining ring and bolts.

 

I also checked the valves after installing the cam chain tensioner I mentioned in the last post.  The gap is supposed to be between .08 mm and .13 mm.  All four of mine were .10 mm so I left well enough alone.  For those not familiar with this procedure.  I first inserted a .08 mm feeler gauge which slid in without any problem.  Then I tried a .13 mm feeler gauge and it would not slip into the opening.  I next tried a .10 mm gauge which would slip in but seemed to be fairly tight.  This was the same on all four valves.  Sorry I didn't take pictures but I was kind of excited that everything was in tolerance and didn't need adjusting.  Seriously, I think it might be the first time I didn't need to perform a major procedure after any check on this bike.  Things are looking up!

 

While I was waiting on parts I tacked a few other things as well.  New throttle tube and a new throttle cable.  I 'll cover that next time.

Cam Chains and the Oil Drain.

I had said I needed to change the oil after the gas leak so this seemed like a good time to check the cam chain tensioner.    Removing the right side crank case cover is several bolts and they are all different lengths.

So after draining the oil I removed the cover.  To make sure I get the bolts back in the proper holes I use an old piece of cardboard and make a drawing of the layout and punch holes with a screw driver at the screw locations.

Looks pretty good inside.

The wear point on the tensioner is 18 mm,  Mine was 21 mm!

 

After reviewing my options, Cam chain replacement $120 for a new chain and tear the motor apart and re time.  Modified tensioner from the Savage forum $170, or send mine to California and have it modified, $75.  We're shipping to California.

 

In less than 2 weeks I have a modified cam chain tensioner!  Pretty nice work.

 

Installed and torqued.  The hardest part of this whole repair was removing and replacing the circlip that anchors the tensioner to the case.  Really tedious, on and off!

 

Now pull out the zip tie and see what we have.

Pretty slick actually.

 

One of the first things I did when I got the bike was to change the oil.  Not the filter but the oil.  I rode it a while then changed it again.  Since the gas leak I have ran the bike in the shop hoping to let the oil and gas mixture clean the sludge out of the engine.  Oil filter change and fresh oil. 

 

Old filter yuck!

 

New filter.

 

Button things up.

 

While I waited on the modified tensioner to arrive I decided to tackle a few others issues that had been plaguing me.  I have had a couple of oil leaks that I tackled and that will be in the next post.  Transmission seals and the dreaded

"Cylinder Head Plug Leak"! So tune in next time for more photos and a light nontechnical description.

Shop updates and a couple of product reviews.

      After the disaster with the RT I decided I needed some form of assistance to get bikes on and off the lift.  The first attempt was the out rigger you see below.  While this seemed practical it was not very useful for the same reason as the kickstand.  The apex of the ramp onto the lift.

Mounted on the Special.

A friend suggested I build some extensions for the lift in the lowered position.

The ramps allow me to ride the bike onto the lift and back it off the same way.

I have a video but nobody wants to see my butt for that long.  I cut a slot in the left hand addition to allow for the pedals.  Once the bike is secured I simply use the handles to lift one end and slide them out of the way.  Stacked they make a nice height little bench.

      The wheel chock on the Harbor Freight lift is less than satisfactory.  I replaced it with this model also available from HF.  I also added two eye bolts to the end to allow for an additional point to secure a bike.  As far as my opinion of the HF lift goes for the home user or hobbyist it is the way to go.  The choc is not very good but affordable and easy to upgrade. The deck is not as sturdy as I would like and there is some flexing when you are raising the bike but once raised this is not noticeable.  The raised lip on the deck is a nice feature as you don't have to worry about tools and parts falling off while you work.  It also serves as a great adjustable height work table for other projects. The choc is easily removable with 4 bolts.  With the choc removed the lift is low profile enough to leave in place and simply drive most cars over in your home garage, not some sports cars or cars with low profile tires though.  I have a friend that bought a shop grade air lift that is much more heavily built but with shipping cost 4 times what I paid for the HF lift at my local store.  For the money it is hard to beat.  I have a repair coming up on the RT that I could not do without the lift.  This one job will pay for the lift 2 times over.  Not to mention the peace of mind knowing 

what was done and how it was done.

I needed a jack so my solution was a WalMart 1.5 ton scissor jack.  $29.00 at the local store.  I added an aluminium plate to the top with two bolts.  I will use a small 1X6 on top for the RT so the screw heads will not place undue stress on the case.

A $25 gift certificate to Lowes prompted me to organize my tool box.  This system has 1/4", 3/8", and 1/2 inch studs to store the sockets.  There is a foldable handle that allows me to lift the whole group out. 

Pliers.



Wrenches. Pretty professional, HUH?



Another item I have worked on over the holidays is a controller for my heated jacket.  Most controllers are $80 and up.  I tried a rheostat configuration from parts I bought at Radio Shack.  It smoked out pretty quick.  I read on one of the forums about a DC motor controller on ebay.  This unit came with the case and was listed as a

"DC motor speed control, 30 amp, 9-28 volt, Max 800w."  Price shipped from China, $23.99!  I also ordered a First Gear coax extension from Amazon for $11.  I also added an LED from Radio Shack to allow me to see if it is on.  Works really great.  Only drawback is that it is not water proof.

In an earlier post I mentioned adding heated grips to the RT.  One of my Christmas presents was a pair of Lee Parks PCI Deer Tour gloves.  The deer hide is super soft and literally fits like a glove.  The pci option has a space age liner that picks up the heat from the grips and spreads it around your hands.  This seems to work great.  On a recent 33 degree ride my hands were toasty warm.  The PCI material called "phase change" is supposed to work in warm weather as well, dissipating the heat from your hands.  This supposedly gives you a range from  40 to 70 degrees where these gloves are comfortable.  The low end can be extended even further with heated grips. At $140 their not cheap but the quality is without question and they can extend beyond the motorcycle as they're not bulky and look like a pair of nice leather dress gloves.  There is also a repair option if they are ever damaged but the deer skin has a higher abrasion rating than cowhide.   I first heard about these on The Pace Motorcycle Podcast.  One of the guys there said he used these in the winter time and the regular unlined version ($89) the rest of the year. I may have to invest in a pair of these as well. These things get two thumbs up from me for winter riding.