98 Katana Head Gasket Replacement

[faberz]

So I had the oil cap fall off on me one day on the freeway luckly I exited and wqas within walking distance from a shop where I bought some oil. This actually happened twice within a couple days of me owning the bike. I used it to commute for a couple of weeks 30 miles each way. One day driving home I stop by a friends house for 5 minutes and when I start the bike up again it starts smoking everywhere. I mean huge cloud of white smoke. I drop the bike for about a mile and left it parked at my parents. The bike has been sitting there for about 4 months and I want to get it back running. It starts right up and runs fine except for the smoke and a little roughness once in a while. Someone said it was the head gasket. After getting a couple of quotes I decided to do the job myself. I have a little bit of mechanical background taking shop in high school and replacing some injectors and fuel rails in cars but never a bike.

I come to you guys for all your support I downloaded a copy of the service manual which I plan on getting myself acquainted with. The plan is to do it this weekend if I can find a supplier for the gasket set and delivered by then If not at the least to get it broken down. The problem is that I don't want to leave it in peaces more then a couple days. The place I will be working on it is infested with kids and no garage so it will be more of a patio area. If someone has some pointers I would greatly appreciate it. I live in San Diego so if you are interested in working on a bike this weekend and some free beers/brews let me know. All information is welcome....Will post pics of the process for those looking to venture into it later!

[92xjunker]

Before you tear into it, don't you think you need check your plugs, your compression and valves first to verify that it actually is a blown head gasket and not somthing else, like a broken valve spring or seal? just sayin... have you checked your oil for fuel. If your carbs dump fuel into a nonrunning engine it will end up in the oil and will cause smoke and lack of lubrication..When the bike is running if you remove the oil cap do you get large amount of air or little air and alot of oil spray? you will have air and oil spray not a massive amount of air.

[Mopedmafia]

How do u know its the head gasket? I would def explore every other possiblity first.

[steves]

First find out where the smoke is coming from. Is it literally just coming out of the exhaust, or is it coming out somewhere else?

Is there visible oil on the engine/exhaust? clean it up, then run the bike and look for leaks.

Are the headers properly installed?

Is their gas in the oil?

[05RedKat600]

These bikes aren't water cooled, so it's probably NOT the head gasket like it would be in a car.

White smoke is burning oil, but you need to figure out where it's coming from. It could just be that you overfilled it too, but it's also possible you torched the rings.

Start with the basic stuff. Change your oil, pull your spark plugs and note what they look like, that kind of stuff. Does your oil smell like gas?

[faberz]

I was told it was the head gasket. The oil seems to be coming from everywhere the engine and the exhaust go up in smoke i mean everywhere. You can see oil all over the place and the oil peephole looks like chocolate milk and as the bike starts running you can see it had create bubbles and then after a little bit it looks like a shaken mix of air and chocolate milk. I will take a video of it running for you guys. Any suggestions are what it can be or how to diagnose it?

[steves]

Ok, so that probably is a head gasket problem then...

Although you could just try retorqing the head bolts since that's free to try.

If the oil is frothy it's time for an oil change....

[05RedKat600]

Ok, so that probably is a head gasket problem then...

Although you could just try retorqing the head bolts since that's free to try.

If the oil is frothy it's time for an oil change....

Ya, those are cheap and easy tests.

[arsenic]

White smoke is burning oil, but you need to figure out where it's coming from.

Uuuummm, no it's not. BLUE smoke is oil, BLACK smoke is gas, WHITE smoke is condensation.

[steves]

or frothy oil

[arsenic]

or frothy oil

And why does oil get frothy? Because there is condensation in it. If burning oil was the problem, the smoke would be blue. It's burning the water, that is making the oil frothy.

[mcssls]

clean it all up, change the oil and then fire it up, look at the oil cooler, valve cover and head gasket area, narrow down where it is leaking.

[05RedKat600]

And why does oil get frothy? Because there is condensation in it. If burning oil was the problem, the smoke would be blue. It's burning the water, that is making the oil frothy.

So, does this smoke look blue? To most people, it probably looks white, and this bike is burning oil like no other. It's not just condensation. Blue smoke tends to be light oil burning, white smoke is heavy oil burning IMO. I'd bet this is what the OP sees when they run their bike?

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzqULUYqaa4"]Smoking BMW R100 - YouTube[/ame]

[faberz]

i had just giving it an oil change eith the help of a friend. The oil change was done right. The smoke is definitely white which means condensation. But you guys say these bikes arent water/antifreeze cooled?

[arsenic]

No, that is obviously blue dude. But your right, the OP probably thinks what he's seeing is white smoke.

i had just giving it an oil change eith the help of a friend. The oil change was done right. The smoke is definitely white which means condensation. But you guys say these bikes arent water/antifreeze cooled?

No, they're not. But that doesn't mean that condensation can't get into the engine.