SuzukiSavage.com - Head gasket question

shovelbum87

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Head gasket question
04/23/13 at 15:26:37

Hi All,
My name is Yvonne, I just purchased a 1987 Savage LS650H about a week ago. She had a bunch of minor issues when I got her she had not run in many years and I spent a couple of hours whe she got home working on her and got her to run a bit but not well. After tinkering with the carb for a while I got her to run, now that she runs I see that there is a massive oil leak coming out of from between the head and jug, there is also a fair amount of oil seaping out of the plug area. My question to you is
"How badly does doing the head gasket suck?"
I did check all of the head bolts, which were all WAY loose, I torqued them down but now I'm concerned that the gasket is junk from probably running for a while loose. Any info would be greatly apprecaited!

Basically when I got her she was a pile of parts and needed some love. I cant wait until getting her on the road!

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justin_o_guy2 Serious Thumper Offline What happened? Posts: 55279 East Texas, 1/2 dallas/la.	Re: Head gasket question Reply #1 - 04/23/13 at 18:31:22 Well,,, If youre sure it was actually Head bolts loose & not just head cover bolts, you may need a head gasket,, Did you pull the cam cover off?
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shovelbum87 Full Member Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 158 New Hampshire Gender:	Re: Head gasket question Reply #2 - 04/24/13 at 14:48:58 No I haven't pulled anything off yet, I wanted to know how bad it was going to be before I started ripping it appart.
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Dave

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Re: Head gasket question
Reply #3 - 04/24/13 at 17:27:56

When you say that all the head bolts are loose......How many where there.....and what size wrench fit them?

Since you have not taken anything apart yet....there are two head bolts that are not accessible.....and I bet you didn't know about the two under the intake port and the exhaust port. I believe you have the "head cover" confused with the "cylinder head?

I am not aware of anyone that has actually had a head gasket problem, but we have plenty of head plug leaks.

Have you looked a the Technical Section and read this thread yet?
http://suzukisavage.com/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?board=tech;action=display;num=1099227295

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shovelbum87

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Re: Head gasket question
Reply #4 - 04/25/13 at 16:02:44

Dave,
You are correct, It is the head cover, I was mistaken. I do know about the two that one cant reach until the head cover is removed (I looked at those and went how in the
*explitive* do you get those, Then decided that you have to take the cover off) . I did see the plug leak, It does not appear to be my issue as the oil I have is coming from the area where the yead and the jug marry. Only on the left side I can see it seap right out as I crank the bike. So basically this weekend I will be pulling the head cover off and seeing what I have going on.

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polarpilot YaBB Newbies Offline I love YaBB 1G - SP1! Posts: 34 Canada Gender:	Re: Head gasket question Reply #5 - 04/25/13 at 16:46:44 The leak is coming from a part called a head cap seal. It dries out over time. it is NOT the cylinder gasket. Suzuki redesigned the part in about 2002 and the replacement will not leak.
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shovelbum87 Full Member Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 158 New Hampshire Gender:	Re: Head gasket question Reply #6 - 04/26/13 at 15:09:19 I will have to give that a try, I saw the link on that, I will let you all know what we end up with. Thanks for the help!
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shovelbum87 Full Member Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 158 New Hampshire Gender:	Re: Head gasket question Reply #7 - 04/29/13 at 15:16:18 I hate it when Im wrong! I have to thank Dave; The plug wasnt even there anymore! Thank you Dave, It is now not leaking oil. Simple easy fix!
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Dave YaBB Moderator ModSquad Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 18101 Camp Springs, Kentucky Gender:	Re: Head gasket question Reply #8 - 04/29/13 at 18:05:00 I just love a happy ending!
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Serowbot YaBB Moderator ModSquad Offline OK.... so what's the speed of dark? Posts: 28674 Tucson Az Gender:	Re: Head gasket question Reply #9 - 04/29/13 at 18:11:06 shovelbum87 wrote on 04/29/13 at 15:16:18: I hate it when Im wrong! I have to thank Dave; The plug wasnt even there anymore! Thank you Dave, It is now not leaking oil. Simple easy fix! Trust me,.. you don't hate it half as much as if you had been right... ...
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