Well, the good news is that it didn't explode into a shower of burning shrapnel
Had a few set-backs yesterday, so I gave up and went to see my girlfriend. Hence no news
Got up early, and set about putting it all back together. Everything going smoothly, fitted the throttlebodies and airbox with new filter etc. Filled the new oil filter with oil (halfrauds finest dinosaur goop), spun it on, then filled the engine up. I could feel my knees getting wet, at which point I remembered to put the oil drain plugs back in
The second attempt saw the engine holding oil though, which was a good start
Somehow managed to route all the cables and hoses, and get everything plugged in. Filled the radiator up with coolant (should've used distilled water to start with, ah well) and no leaks to report.
Got all the plastics on, and forgot to take a photo (I'm now a touch nervous). Get the keys, double check everything, switch the ignition on, and....
nothing.
Next, I fitted the battery and tried again
Weird. Headlights off, sidelights on, and all the indicators on (dimly). Pressing the hazards made the indicators, sidelights and abs light flash.
So off come the plastics. I try other buttons on the handlebars to see what happens. Flashers don't work, hazards and indicators do that weird flashing thing, BEEEP OK, the horn works, and then suddenly everything whirs to life! Apart from the fuel pump, as the tank's on the ground next to the bike. Still, life!
Put everything back on the bike, switch it on again, whir buzz.... CHEC arse. It's 11am, and the MoT is booked for 12, so I call the garage and cancel it. Sidestand switch is OK, it's in neutral (and the N light's on), killswitch is off... Ah, but the rhs handlebar switches are unplugged!
next attempt: Whirrrr bzzz... right, everything looks good. I hold my breath, pull the clutch, squeeze the front brake (just in case), cover the killswitch, and press the starter. It turns over! Then stops. Try again - CLUNK. Arse. Try again, CLUNK. CLUNK.
Can't have seized already can it?! Switch off, open up the generator access port thingy, and I can turn the engine over by hand (with a ratchet). So the engine's fine. Everything between the starter switch and the solenoid is fine, 'cos I can hear it clunk. Power is getting to the solenoid too... so everything should be fine.
Right, double check everything. Most likely dead thing is the solenoid. To test that, simply short out the two large terminals! So I put my welding gloves on and pick up a 1/2" spanner. Lots of sparks, but the bike turns over! So I pull the solenoid out and bench test it. It's fine, no problems
Put it back in, turn the ignition on, pull the clutch, front brake, and press the button.
It turns over! and makes me jump, so I let go
Right, again! It starts!
and dies
OK, it didn't stop with any horrible noises, it just sort of slowed and stalled. That's alright - lots of friction, not much oil yet, and it hasn't been run for two and a half months(!). I need to hold it at ~2500rpm anyway to get the oil pump working, so... try again, with more throttle!
It runs!
noisy, as there's no oil, but my overfill/turn by hand/drain technique a few nights ago may have helped as it as quietens off within a few seconds
Still doesn't sound too good though. Almost as if it's running on one cylinder, but not quite. No FI errors showing (it's in dealer mode), but it won't idle, and WOT feels veerrryy sluggish. Killswitch, stops. Front cylinder is warm/hot to touch, but the rear cylinder is only warm. (but not cold)
So... it runs, with no 'mechanical interface' noises, so that's good. (Actually, that's f*cking great
) But it's running poorly, and sounds more like a steam engine than a v-strom. That'll be valve related then. Clearances, timing, or just leaking?
I'm fairly certain it's not the clearances, as I re-done the camshafts/timing a few times getting the clearances right with new shims. And they were in spec as I put the covers on.
Timing I done a few times, and I'm pretty sure I got it right. However... it is certainly a possibility. If its out, its not far out (see, 'no mechanical interface noises' above
)
Leaking valves... could be. When I turn the engine over by hand with that ratchet, its not particularly difficult, and I could convince myself that I hear air hissing out. Thing is, the heads were taken care of - as soon as they came off, they were wrapped in clingfilm with some silica gel, and put away in a box inside. I didn't try cleaning them (it was running fine before the gear fell apart), as I was trying not to disturb anything. Admittedly, I also didn't check them much.
So. Bad news - it's not a living breathing motorcycle quite yet. It still needs an MoT, and I'll need to open the engine up again.
Good news - it runs, and isn't eating itself from the inside yet. All the electrics are (now) OK. The work I'll need to do on the engine shouldn't require removing it from the frame, so that's a bit easier.
I completely failed at getting photographs I'm afraid (the black engine looks smart on the bike. I did scratch it a bit getting it into the frame, but I kept some paint spare for touch ups
) but here's some I took before.
Engine on the bench:
Radiator, oil cooler, and thermostat painted hammerite gloss black. (Gloss was a mistake - satin or matt would look better)
The engine paint I used (recommended - it goes on nicely with good coverage, cures in 24hrs, and becomes solvent and impact resistant after a 'low' temperature bake. A hair dries seems to work. Engine oil doesn't touch it, even pre-baked. Petrol makes it soft pre-bake, but doesn't do much after)
Painting the bottom of the engine, and the sprocket cover
and on the bench, ready to fit!
