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Message started by bohe1 on 10/24/12 at 08:53:42

Title: Head plug leak.
Post by bohe1 on 10/24/12 at 08:53:42

Hi.
Ok I just got my first Savage,
Its a 2002 with a little over 6k miles. runs great but I've noticed a small amount of white smoke after i ride it for a while... its not a big problem yet but being that i'm in the chicago area and i know i will have all witer to work on it, i would like to replace that head plug, i've been reading about that problem and i'm 90% sure thats what it is!! (I can see a real thin oil film on the left top side of the head) Ok question is: i've been reading about it and some people say "I'ts a real easy job" then i reead somewhere else "Its an about 4hrs job"?? Im average to good with tools i am an automotive tech. and i think 4 hrs can not be as easy as they described????
i'm going to be working on it most winter and i'll be also replacing with the head plug, the spark pug,the air filter,oil filter and oil,i'm installing some of Ed L. forward controls and thinking about the cam chain tensioner!! is there any other recomendation to make this savage ready for next season???
Oh is there a place to get good parts at a good price???
Thanks. 8-)

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by Blinky on 10/24/12 at 09:36:29

bohe1,
Not all head plugs fail With only 6K miles before I would tear into it I would check the head bolt on the front of the jug under the exhaust header. Get down low and look up at the underside jug below and to the right (looking from the front of the bike) of the exhaust header. My guess is that you will see the head bolt and it will have oil on it. I have a 2007 that came with an oil film on the top of the jug and I was able to trace it to this bolt being loose.

For what it is worth

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by oldNslow on 10/24/12 at 09:41:38

I just bought some OEM parts from Bike Bandit. Price wasn't much lower the the local dealer's but the dealer didn't have what I needed in stock. Parts were at my door in four days. Shipping charges were reasonable I think, especially since I avoided the 8% sales tax that I'd have to have payed at the dealership.

For some things you might be stuck with ordering from a dealer though. Bike Bandit doesn't list every single part.

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by rfw2003 on 10/24/12 at 09:49:20

Now I wonder if you have an overbore upgrade planed or some other reason that your going to be removing the engine if tapping the hole and putting a pipe plug in there with some thread sealant would be a better idea? I have been wondering about this because I do plan on doing the overbore on my Savage hopefully over over this winter. So far I haven't been plagued by the head plug leak yet and hope it remains so until I do the upgrade.

R.F.

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by bohe1 on 10/24/12 at 10:24:05

Thanks Blinky, I Will take a look at that bolt before i start with the head cover, is there any other bolts that you know?
around the head that could cause a leak and can be ck without removing head cover??
Thanks fo the advice.
4146504949250 wrote:

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by Dave on 10/24/12 at 10:31:49

382C3D787A7A794A0 wrote:

I don't think that there is any reason to be pipe plugging. A good quality sealant will help, and when I had mine apart I used a small rubber stopper that I inserted between the plug and the head cover so that it can't back out. I had the old style plug and the newer style plug may actually be unable to back out enough to leak.....not sure.

Here is the link to what I did on mine....works for me!
http://suzukisavage.com/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?num=1344781304

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by bohe1 on 10/24/12 at 13:02:05

Ok I've been searching for the torque specs. on the head bolts and I think i still have to practice a little bit more here to be able to find what i'm looking for!!! :-[ I'm trying to find the torque for the upside down head bolt/nuts in front and back of the engine??
thanks in advance for any help!! :)

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by Dave on 10/24/12 at 13:23:18

3F3235383034325D0 wrote:

Here is the link to the torque specs listed in the Technical Seciton. Go to the index and look there first when you need something technical.

http://suzukisavage.com/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?board=tech;action=display;num=1098848534

The specs show 17-19.9 foot pounds.....but I don't know of anyway to get a torque wrench on them. I just put a bpx end wrench on and snugged them up.

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by bohe1 on 10/24/12 at 13:26:35

5F64697E6F63787E656D607F0C0 wrote:

[quote author=3F3235383034325D0 link=1351094022/0#6 date=1351108925]Ok I've been searching for the torque specs. on the head bolts and I think i still have to practice a little bit more here to be able to find what i'm looking for!!! :-[ I'm trying to find the torque for the upside down head bolt/nuts in front and back of the engine??
thanks in advance for any help!! :)

Thanks Dave I will do that!

Here is the link to the torque specs listed in the Technical Seciton. Go to the index and look there first when you need something technical.

http://suzukisavage.com/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?board=tech;action=display;num=1098848534

The specs show 17-19.9 foot pounds.....but I don't know of anyway to get a torque wrench on them. I just put a bpx end wrench on and snugged them up.[/quote]

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by verslagen1 on 10/24/12 at 14:04:52

There's a method of using a box wrench with a torque wrench to torque it.

I'll have to look it up.

You have to measure the length of the wrench and apply a conversion factor to the torque requirement.

You can also buy crow's feet that puts a small open end wrench on the end of the torque wrench.

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by verslagen1 on 10/24/12 at 14:17:05

There're a few calculators on line to help figure out what the new torque will be. I didn't see a darn thing other than the info.

But the quick and easy solution to the problem is... turn the wrench so that it's at a right angle to the torque wrench. There's still a difference, but it's a small one.

From http://norbar.com/calculators/torque-wrench-extension-calculator.aspx

When you put an extension on a torque wrench, like a crow foot or a dog bone, the torque applied to the fastener increases, since the lever arm increases. Use the calculator below to find what value you should set into the wrench to achieve the required fastener torque You must have Java enabled on your web browser, then you should see a calculator appear below.

While we have done our best to test this program, we cannot be responsible for errors or damages that result from its use. You must verify that the values obtained from the calculator are accurate before using them in any critical application.

This applet is based on the formula:

M1 = M2 x L1 / L2

Where:

M1 is the torque setting of the wrench.

M2 is the actual torque applied to the nut

L1 is the normal length of the wrench

L2 is the extended length of the wrench

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by bohe1 on 10/24/12 at 14:43:20

Thanks verslagen1 as soon as i get home tonight i'm a give it a try!! and if tprque is @ 17 -19.9 i think i can just use my natural torque meter!! (I'm always working on cars) but you know car engine head torque is a lot higher than 17 -20..So i did good by not assuming on this one!!!
thanks guys!!
415245445B5650525906370 wrote:

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 10/24/12 at 16:11:14

IF youre gonna be wrong, be wrong on the low side..It can be tightened up later, un-stripping threads isnt so easy

Title: Re: Head plug leak.
Post by Digger on 10/24/12 at 21:21:31

447F7265747863657E767B64170 wrote:

....but I don't know of anyway to get a torque wrench on them....

Here's a way to torque fasteners that are impossible to access with a plain torque wrench:

I've got lots of impromptu torque adapters I use while working on my bikes. For instance, here are two that I've rigged up to torque the two 6mm nuts that are on the starboard side of the bottom of the cylinder assy.

This one uses a standard 10mm combination wrench. The open end of the wrench fits perfectly on the drive square of my 3/8" torque wrench:

http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee201/Digger109/TorqueAdapter-1E.jpg

This one uses a 10mm crow's foot popped onto the drive square of my 3/8" drive torque wrench:

http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee201/Digger109/TorqueAdapterE.jpg

Just get an accurate measurement of the new perpendicular moment arm and do the math. The offset angle of the 10mm wrench is small enough such that it can be neglected, by my calculations.

I keep the conversion factors in a book in my garage. I currently have nineteen different torque adapters listed in that book.