TECH
techtips
penetration oil for the best results. If the bolt is stuck beyond all hope,
then it must be drilled out. When drilling a steel bolt, you will need drill bits that are of a better quality than found at a big box store. If dull or low quality bits are used, they are likely to wander and you will drill into the much softer aluminum cylinder head. Care must be taken to hold the drill in line with the bolt. A slow speed and application of oil to lubricate the bit will give you a better cut and longer drill bit life. If you run the bit too fast and dry, the bit may break off inside the bolt—that would not be good. With a lot of skill and some luck, you can drill right down the center with a few sequentially larger bits. The last drill bit should be as close to the bolt’s root diameter as possible. At this point the threads can sometimes be removed with a pick. If the threads cannot be removed, use a drill bit slightly larger than the root diameter. Using a thread caser or tap should finish the job. Over-tightened fill and drain plugs
are a common problem. Most of the time they can be freed with a sharp rap on the plug’s face. This trick works well on plugs with crush washers; use a brass drift and the proper size ham- mer. For plugs without crush washers the solution is similar, but instead of a drift you will be rapping on the head of a breaker bar. I do not recommend using a ratchet; they do not take kindly to being hit. Holding constant pressure on the breaker bar, strike the head of the bolt. It may be best to find an extra set of hands to help with this. To prevent stuck thread, use anti-
seize paste or a thread locker. Thread locker might not be your first thought, but it works well if the correct strength is used. Find a thread locker that is rated for disassembly with normal hand tools. The thread locker will coat the threads and keep them from corroding, making the fastener’s eventual removal a bit easier.
56 BMW OWNERS NEWS December 2015
Your giant GS dirt bike If you own a GS and think it is a dirt bike, then treat it like one. Riding over the river and through the woods to GS bliss is only half of dirt biking. The other half is non- stop and extensive maintenance. The most needed and often neglected
part of 800, 700 and 650 GSs is the chain. Though a chain is the most common way to transfer power from the engine to the rear wheel of a motorcycle, to many long-term Beemerphiles motorcycle chains and chain maintenance are quite foreign. The question of how often to lube and
adjust your chain eludes a truly straight answer. Like tire pressures, chain tension should be checked before every ride and adjusted when out of spec. The chain should be lubed on an as-needed basis. Determining when action is needed is where things get tricky. Checking the chain’s tension is easy; for
most bikes, just put the bike on its center stand and put the transmission in neutral. Then measure the chain travel using the sticker on the swing arm to find the recom- mended specs. Adjusting the chain will take some practice to get right; remember to make sure the sprockets are properly lined up with each other. Knowing when and how much lube to
apply is much more art than science. If your chain is rusty, you have not lubed enough; if your leg and back are covered in chain lube, then you have over lubed. Basic intervals can be found in your owner manual. Now on to the not-so-obvious mainte-
nance items. Check and lube all the brake caliper pins. The rear caliper has pistons only on one side. The caliper slides back and forth on two pins as you apply and release the brakes. If water finds its way to these pins, they will begin to rust, causing the caliper to drag. It is not uncommon to see pins rusted to the point where the cali- per will not move at all. A stuck caliper will cause unnatural stress and possibly damage the mounting components. Both wheels should be removed to
inspect the bearings and to ensure no water is trapped in the hub. The bearings should
be free from rust and corrosion. With your finger in the center of the bearing, it should turn smoothly with minimal effort. There should be no play in any direction. The air filter should be checked and the air
box drained. The opposed twin BMWs have intake snorkels only a few inches above the cylinders. The R 1200 (K2X) series have the crank case breather located on the lower left side of the air box. With a lower breather, any oil that builds up in the airbox drains back into the crank case instead of being burned, which is a good thing. Unfortunately, any water that gets pulled into the air box will also go into the crank case, and that’s a bad thing. If you just cannot resist riding through
water, you should make one of two modifica- tions to your motorcycle. Either cover the snorkel intake with a selectively permeable membrane or re-route the snorkel. Parallel twins and singles have intakes closer to the turn signals and due to the higher location, are less likely to pull in water. Drain the gas tank. As you ride, fuel is used
and this fuel is replaced by air. If you are in a high moisture environment you will be pull- ing water into your tank. The water will col- lect at the bottom. In small quantities, the only effect it will have is to cause corrosion inside the tank. However, in larger quantities it can be quite problematic. Your fuel pump has a “sock” that allows fuel to pass through but stops water. With a lot of water in the tank, even if the sock is intact the bike will be starved for fuel, even with a full tank. If the sock has failed, the water will go through the fuel pump (the pump will not be happy about that) and be injected in to the combustion chamber. Water in unregulated quantities in the combustion chamber will have a decidedly negative effect on engine performance. Change all your oils. Yes, even the oil in the
forks, and yes, even if you have a telelever and the forks “don’t do anything.” Because the forks aren’t under a lot of tension, though, this isn’t a particularly difficult maintenance item to undertake. Be sure to check your fork seals while you’ve got the forks off the bike. This may all seem a bit over the top, but if
you want your GS to give you years of faithful service, you must do your part, too.
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