Hello From Melbourne (Kawasaki F11B)

[JADERD]

Dont think im going to bother with removing the base cylinder.

Watched some videos and read heaps of articles / forums etc on when to replace rings / piston etc.

my consensus i think is that how it looks is typical / perfect regarding carbon build up etc.

from looking at the piston via exhaust port there is basically zero discoloration / blowby on the piston, zero scoring on piston or sleeve (of what i could see via exhaust port)

so i think i will just run a fine edge of premix oil around piston to act as seal to stop anything going past, put some premix on top of piston, let it soak in for 20-30 mins, clean cylinder head, then let piston slide down a little and clean up any oil/remnants of carbon on sleeve, then back up again and down, repeating till perfect and clean then job done, add a little premix oil to sleeve and piece everything back together.

Does that sound ok ? remembering this bike will do very minimal hours, very minimal effort and only reg. for 90 days per year.

would rather get it back together and going then do a rebuild maybe next winter.

From the net there is too much conflicting info from ppl saying if opened up do it all piston rings needle bearing circlips etc.....and some at 25hr intervals, i assume these ppl are riding hard and on track/comp.

others say aint broke dont fix etc.....

i need some advice from experienced ppl on here, remembering budget build is also in mind and does it have to be done now or can wait....orig i wasnt going to touch engine and most ppl said thats fine.

Cheers, any info be great

[Doc]

Jarerd, at 9300 fairly easy klm's and listening to the bike in your video's I'd say it'll be okay for a while yet and probably best left alone. Cleaning the carbon from the cylinder head as you've done and also in the exhaust port if there appears to be excess is about all you need worry about.

The cylinder can be stubborn if it's never been off. Sometimes a short piece of solid wood and a hammer will do the trick. Just hold the wood squarely on the cylinder, tap it firmly on both sides of the cylinder and it should pop it free. Probably just needs a bit of a sharp shock to loosen the gasket surfaces.

[Doc]

Have a listen to the F11 in this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qq7aRms1yzI&feature=related

If yours were to sound like this, lots of engine rattles, slower throttle response from low revs and poor idling then I'd say it more than likely needed a rebuild. Yours on the other hand still has a fairly crackly sound, minimal rattling, idles nicely and has pretty good response when you give it a quick rev which is fairly indicative of reasonable to good engine condition.

[JADERD]

perfect reply, of all the ppl who could have responsed to my questions the one i hoped for did.

Cheers Doc, on your advice i will do the carbon clean up and also enable me to properly remove paint from head, clean up the bolts and washers etc so nice and shiny and reinstall

Brilliant.

[Doc]

  my pleasure Jarerd but if it blows up I will totally deny ever giving the advise 

just kidding

[JADERD]

What a busy weekend, after man handling 9 tonnes of retaining wall blocks I still had half of today free to play with bike.

Head cleaned/ piston top cleaned & all bolts / washers cleaned up. Reinstalled everything and torqued up.  Decided to reuse orig copper gasket as was perfect with no kinks at all, the one that came in the full gasket set was about 1/3rd as thick as orig, so may have increased compression if installed ? So thought I'd wait till hearing ppls advice and can chang it next time.

Bought some new bolts and installed front fork guard properly

Pulled apart clutch, as ppl mentioned they were jut stuck together, so as I reinstalled i smeared some oil between each friction plate / steel plate etc. Clutch springs and friction plates are basically brand new in relation to tolerances.

Refitted oil pump etc and all new gaskets/ cases all with the new hex head bolts.

Also put the motor back in with zero scratches thanks to some left over packaging material from all the eBay purchases I've made lately lol.  Pics below very happy it's all coming together now

[Graham]

Hi Jadred,

With the head gasket the manuel will tell you not to reuse it.But I have reused them ,you need to take it to the kitchen put on the ring till its glowing,then throw it into the sink of cold water,this will soften it up and make it pliable again.

Graham

[JADERD]

Ok, so should I take it off and do that?
The replacement one in gasket set wasn't even the same toe of crush looking copper one, it was prob 1mm thick as oppose to the 3mm or so stock one so not sure how it would have worked ?

I made sure to put it back in the exact same way etc so it seemed to fit perfect

[Doc]

Jaderd, sorry but I've just realized I've been calling you Jarerd bloody domestic blindness, can't see anything that's right in front of me  

I can't imagine why your bike would have a 3mm thick head gasket, seems about twice as thick as it should be. The gasket in mine from memory somewhere between about 1.00mm-1.50mm. It's not 2 gaskets stuck together is it? Maybe when someone had the head off they inadvertently refitted a new gasket on the top of the cylinder but the old one may have still been stuck to the head hence they doubled up can't say I've known anyone to ever actually do this but it's not out of the realms of possibility..can't think of any other reason for the extra thickness.

[JADERD]

Cheers doc, my exaggeration really, I guess my stock is about 3 times as thick, I did measure the one that came in the kit it is .5mm thick so stock one is like you said around 1-1.5mm thick.

Is it ok to reuse it as I did or do I have to do what Graham mentioned above ? Cheers

[Doc]

I'd use the old one and be best to do what Graham mentioned. The other gasket sounds like a high compression job.

[JADERD]

sweet ill do that before starting bike.

today my first hiccup, screw snapped off inside rear brake lever cam actuator, id be lucky to have put 25 ft-lb on it and from the manual it is supposed to take around 60 ft-lb........dont suppose anyone has one laying around ?

i drilled the screw out and re threaded with tap n die set but really doesnt leave much mass there and also the fact that its a pretty integral part i would rather get another one....dont want rear brake failing at a time i need it most.

im waiting to see the postage costs off a few on ebay US

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/KAWASAKI-F11-REAR-BRAKE-LEVER-CAM-ACTUATOR-NEW-O4B-/380142016965?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item58823ad9c5#ht_2945wt_939

[JADERD]

just saw ebay thread selling .5mm and 1.5mm head gaskets.

explains it for us.

"This is a .5mm thick head gasket. F11 models with engine # 04115 and above use a 1.5mm thick head gasket, part number 11004-055, which I have available in a seperate listing."

im guessing the .5mm must be the early F11A series.

[Doc]

Jaderd, that's the lever that goes on brake pedal shaft which runs through the frame I assume. What you can do is drill out the hole, get a 10mm longer hi-tensile 6mm bolt and flat washer then simply put a locknut or a nut and spring washer on the other end. You may have to trim it back a little to get correct length but since it's not a 10 point restoraton there really isn't any need to buy another lever when a longer bolt/nut will work just as well. It's on the inside of the frame so know one will ever see it anyway

[JADERD]

Simple yet effective idea..... I should have thought of that.  I'll give it a go

Cheers