How hard to do Rings on the Big Kat?

[vcrmax]

I have an 88 Kat with about 35,000 miles on it. Last year it started to burn oil on the # 3 cylinder. During the summer I had to replace the plug twice due to it fouling up. How hard would it be to take the head off and replace the rings on this thing. Would it be that simple or would there be a bunch of other things I'd need to do while I'm in there? Is it something that can be done in my garage or am I in for a world of hurt. I'm OK with my hands but I'm no mechanic.

[Mojoe]

you need to remove the jugs (cylinders).

it is only upper engine work. you don't need to open up the lower engine at all.

the engine need to be pulled from the bike, or at least lower the cradle at the top and let it drop down. you might have room, but I am not sure.

you might want to take the jugs into a shop to check for "out of round" wear, as well as taper. have them honed as well. it might be a good idea to clean up the valve seats as well. for the record, it could be the valve guides as well that is letting oil get by. you need to verify this, or else you will go through all the work of changing ring rings, only to have the same problem.

get a repair manual....it will help a lot.

[gaillarry]

I recently did a top end on an 89 GSXR1100 engine. You can do it with the with engine in place, but its a PIA. Its much easier to remove the engine.

As Mojoe mentioned get the head checked by a competant machine shop. For $50 it's worth it to have them throughly check the specs on the head. I have bore gauge, micrometers, and plastigauge but having a a third party double check your work is worth the money.

[arsenic]

it's pretty hard. Could you do it, I believe so, take your time. Buy a manual, without a manual you certainly CAN'T do it.

[suzy1052]

If you can do a valve adjustment you can do the rings just make sure you get a decent torque wrench when you tighten the head bolts up.You will for sure need a manual.

[danp2630]

you need to remove the jugs (cylinders).

it is only upper engine work. you don't need to open up the lower engine at all.

the engine need to be pulled from the bike, or at least lower the cradle at the top and let it drop down. you might have room, but I am not sure.

you might want to take the jugs into a shop to check for "out of round" wear, as well as taper. have them honed as well. it might be a good idea to clean up the valve seats as well. for the record, it could be the valve guides as well that is letting oil get by. you need to verify this, or else you will go through all the work of changing ring rings, only to have the same problem.

get a repair manual....it will help a lot.

+1

I have a Factory Service Manual posted as a sticky in the 1100 section for a 1988 GSX1100f, just download it and print out what you need.
Good luck and keep us posted!

[vcrmax]

When looking at the engine, from the sitting position on the bike, which cylinder is considered to be #1. Just trying to figure out which is my #3 so i can change the plug next time it fouls up.

[BIGKAT1100]

When looking at the engine, from the sitting position on the bike, which cylinder is considered to be #1. Just trying to figure out which is my #3 so i can change the plug next time it fouls up.

From that position, the #1 cylinder is the furthest left.

[Mojoe]

have you done a compression test yet? if you want to get a good idea whether it is the rings or something else, do a dry test first and take the reading. then add a good tsp of oil to the cylinder and test again. if the compression jumps way up, then it is pretty sure it is the ring. if there is little or no difference, then you can expect it to be head/valve related. this way you can concentrate on a good head/valve inspection first to confirm everything so you don't pull the cylinders for nothing.

if it was just ring wear, it would likely be fairly equal across the 4. a broken or stuck ring would be just the one.

before I even went through the trouble of tearing it all apart, I would dumped a 1/4 cup of kerosene into that cylinder and let it set over night. that stuff works pretty good at loosening stuck rings. then I would fire it up for a minute and let it sit for a bit....then do another dry compression test and see if there is a change. if the dry test is higher than it was before, you may have fixed the problem.

I know it might sound silly and seem like a lot of work, but it might work and save you even more work. be a shame to go through the time and expense to do all that work for just a simple stuck ring.

[vcrmax]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll see if the neighbor (mechanic) can help me with a compression check>

[Mojoe]

like I said....just a suggestion. if the bike has been sitting a while at some point, and that number 3 piston was positioned at the bottom of the cylinder, the ring may have became suck, then as it travels up the cylinder, which will have a bit of taper, it does not expand tightly against the cylinder.

that's the theory behind my suggestion.