Oil plug problem

[Brian_M]

I just changed the oil in my bike for the first time today since I bought it, I put in castrol actevo since that's all I have available locally. Next time I'll order some Castrol GPS. Anyways, I got everything off just fine but when I went to put my plug back in I used my torque wrench set to 16.5lbs and it wouldn't tighten up to that point, it'd get tight to a point and then loosen again so something is stripped. Now I have been driving the bike since I got it for about 800 miles with no problems or leaks but this worries me that I can't get the bolt as tight as it's recommended to be. What would be more likely to get stripped the pan or the bolt? And if it's not the bolt what could I do to fix it short of replacing the oil pan?

EDIT: Since I can get it pretty tight to a point could I just use a lock washer or aluminum crush washer as a spacer to be able to tighten up the bolt?

[KatanaSoldier]

OUCH! Yup, it is stripped. You need to swap out the oil pan and put in a fumoto while you have it off. That is the best remedy. You could also helicoil it but could run into this problem again later and you would have the shavings in the engine to worry about. A brand new pan from Ron AYers will run about 120. Plus you will need the gasket.

I feel your pain on this because I did this to mine last year. I would not ride it though until you fix it. If you do, you risk that bolt coming loose enough to spill oil and your back tire to lose traction resulting in you flying or worse. Ron Ayers will have it to you in a matter of days.

I have my old oil pan if you wanted to buy it and go the helicoil route. But I recommend just replacing the stripped pan.

[Brian_M]

Son of a b****, the guy I bought it from must've left me a little present to find then. So I'm guessing then that just using a washer to help get it tight isn't the right solution? Also now that you mention Ron Ayers, I placed an order with them on the 15th just for a few odds & ends bolts for the katana that were missing or halfway stripped, and it's still in the order fulfillment stage 11 days later, it still hasn't shipped.

[KatanaSoldier]

No, that washer solution is a recipe for a wreck.
I would call ROn AYers and see if it is in stock. I waited a little while for a muffler connector because it was not on the shelf in stock and they had to order from Suzuki. I remember getting the oil pan though within a week and I did not get expedited shipping.

The stripping of the pan is very common. Once you put the fumoto on, you will never have to worry about it again. It is morbidly funny because this happens about every quarter or so where someone either discovers the stripped oil pan, or accidentally over torques it. What kind of torque wrench did you use? If it was the one that requires calibration and it was a little off, boom, it could have been from that.

[Brian_M]

Alright sounds like I'll be dishing out even more money for the bike soon. I didn't strip it myself I started to tighten it and it started butting up and then it got loose again so it had been stripped before, and there was red threadlock or something on the plug so I'm sure the previous owner was aware of it. I used a regular torque wrench, not the boom style one.

[reconstyle]

If I'm not mistaken, the bandit Oil pan is the same as the kats, others can chime on in this.

But I'm almost positive it is, and there is one on ebay, just search for bandit oil pan.

[Brian_M]

Hmm I just checked up on the part numbers for the bandit 1200 and katana on bike bandit and the part numbers are the same for the oil pan.

[Brian_M]

Well after looking at a few sites I found that the oil pans for the Bandit 1200 and Katana are the same so I went ahead and bought the part off ebay, it saved me about $60 so thanks for the heads up Reconstyle! I also ordered a new gasket from Ron Ayers and since I was placing another order anyways I bought a set of Pirelli Diablo Stradas since I need new tires soon anyways. I am now done spending money on the bike haha. We'll see how they are compared to my bald front tire and 170 Dunlop tire that's on there now that the previous owner put on. Thanks for the help guys!

[KatanaSoldier]

Brian, I am glad you are doing it right. With your torque wrench, that shows it was the last guy was the culprit or the shop who worked on his Kat!. I am glad you discovered it before something bad happened.

[HS2020]

Yeah do not do what I did and actually crack your oil pan from over tightening it. I did this the night before the the First KR rally. Got a used oil pan for $75 in a matter of hours from a salvage yard in Kentucky. Guy was coming down here anyway so he brought it with him. It was Greenscycle Salavage. They are about 2 hours northeast of Nashville in Kentucky.

[05_katanatyson]

Thats one of the first things I did was install a fumoto .

[md86]

Or you COULD safety wire it ...... until you get a new oil pan .