RG500 Carb Synchronization

Performing an RG500 Carb Synch will make the engine run much crisper. The factory manual briefly describes a procedure which gets the carbs sorta close to synchronization. The steps described here get the engine running much more precisely. A major improvement over the factory procedure is using a flow meter to dynamically balance the carbs at idle and at running speeds. You will smile when you enjoy the improvement in rideability from properly synched carbs. 

RG500 Carb Synch Static Adjustments

Make sure that the cables are routed correctly to their respective carbs. The cables are numbered at the junction from 0-4 with 0 being the oil cable. 

The oil cable runs under the right rear exhaust pipe then across the back of the engine on its way to the pump. 

The cylinders are numbered LF=#1, RF=#2, LR=#3, RR=#4.

The longer of the two choke cables goes to the #4 carb.

Here is a video which shows the static adjustments detailed below. 

Run all the carb top cable adjusters completely in then verify all four slides are completely bottomed out in their bores. 

Back out the carb top cable adjusters 2/3 turn. Leave the locknuts loose for now.

Next up is initial adjustment of the Throttle Stop Screws, which affect the idle speed. The factory manual specifies adjusting the screws so the slide is lifted .5mm from totally bottomed out. Half a millimeter is about .020 inches. It has been suggested to use a .5mm drill bit. Stick the bit under the carb slide then adjust the Throttle Stop Screw so the slide is just barely lifted off the drill bit. You can tell the slide is off the bit when the bit can be moved back and forth a little. I don't have a .5mm drill bit so I used some .032 safety wire. It's OK to be off a little with whatever you use to set the static slide height because later on we are going to precisely set the idle by adjusting the Throttle Stop Screws using a flow meter. What matters now is having them all be set the same.

Figure out a method of holding the carbs partially open. One method is to anchor a bungee cord onto a radiator mount, wrap it around the handgrip, and attach the other end to the preload adjuster sticking out of the top of the fork. Another method is to wrap some 1/8” vinyl hose (or clothes line, or 12ga wire, etc.) 1.5 times around the throttle between the handgrip and the switch housing to act as a friction brake to hold the throttle stationary. If you just like using shiny tools you may want to use a vise grip lightly cinched onto the handgrip with the handle resting on the brake lever for this purpose.

Starting with the right side carb bank, open the throttle to raise the slides until the timing dot of #4 carb (right rear) is completely visible and just brarely touching the top of the carb throat. Make sure the handgrip is secure because all the other carbs are going to be synched to this one.

It helps to use a flashlight to properly illuminate the dot and throttle bore to dispel shadows when positioning the slides for adjustment

Now go to #2 Carb (right front) and use the carb-top cable adjuster to line the dot up with the top of the carb bore just like you did on #4. 

Repeat with the left two carbs. Note: The left side adjusters typically ride about a couple of turns higher than the right side. It's just how the cables are cut.

Check the oil pump and adjust the dash marks to line up on the pump and cable cam.

For bored carbs, I recommend a richer than stock oil pump setting since the slides are higher when the dots reach the top of bored out (taller) venturi. Here is a video about adjusting the oil pump. 

Remove whatever is holding the throttle open and let all the slides close.

Leave the carb top cable locknuts loose for now. They will be tightend up after completing the following Dynamic Adjustment step.

Adjust the throttle cable slack at the handgrip to have a 2-3 mm of play.

Dynamic Adjustments

Get a STE Sychrometer Flow Meter because balancing the carbs with a flow meter makes the bike run much sweeter. Here is a link to a source for them which has a good image of one. There are many other internet sources for these tools.

Cut a few mm off the Synchrometer's snout because otherwise it runs into the carb slide and cannot seal the carb's mouth.

Here is a video about the next steps, detailed below, which shows how to balance the carbs while the engine is running.

Start the engine. Warm it up.

Use the Synchrometer to adjust all four Throttle Stop Screws to make all the carbs flow the same with an acceptable idle speed.

Now do final throttle cable adjustment using the Synchrometer. Lining up the dots is as close as we used to be able to get. Now that Sychrometers exist we can sych the carbs much more closely. Using the throttle grip holding system you previously employed, get the engine running at a fast idle. Just get it running at a couple thousand RPM. 

Use the Synchrometer and adjust the carb top throttle cable adjusters so all four carbs flow equally.

Shut the engine off.

Tighten all four carb top throttle cable adjuster locknuts.

Start the engine again and verify all four carbs are still flowing the same while running at a fast idle.

Make sure all the the throttle cable locknuts are tight before pulling the rubber cable boots down into place over the cable adjusters.

Operate the throttle to confirm there is no bind or obstruction and that it operates smoothly.

Set the Idle Mix Screws to their default position: 1 1/2 turns out from seated. They are brass and soft which makes it important to be gentle when screwing them in to the seated position. Turning them hard as if they are a fastener can screw up the tips. Turn them until they are just barely seated, then back them out 1 1/2 turns.

Turn the Idle Mix Screws back and forth to find the setting which yeilds the fastest idle. In the video about dynamically adjusting the carbs I said there would be a seperate video about adjusting the idle mix screws. I have developed a method of setting those screws based upon initial pickup from riding along on flat ground with the engine just idling along. Problem with this method is finding a stretch of flat level pavement which is safe to ride on at a fast walking pace. Kevin Cameron made our lives easier by publishig a detailed article about carb tuning. His method of setting the idle mix screws is simply adjusting them to get the fastest idle. Which can be done in the safety of your garage. So I didn't make the video, I wrote this up instead :-) 

Carburator Idle Mix Screws are designed so three turns out from fully seated is the same as changing the pilot jet one size. Gamma carbs have it upstream of the carb slide which means it changes the amount of air going into the system. Backing it out lets more air in which makes the idle mix leaner. If the bike idles best with the idle adjuster screw all the way out then try going one size leaner with the pilot jet. If it idles best with the screw all the way in then try one size richer pilot jet. Most bikes work fine at the default setting of 1 1/2 turns out from gently seated.

When carb synch is complete it will idle like this.

The very last step is setting the needle clip position. Go for a ride someplace where you can roll along at 5 to 6,000 RPM in 6th Gear and roll the throttle open. If it just sits there without accelerating it means the needle is too rich. To lean out the needles raise the clip. There is a little washer on the needle which is used to make 1/2 clip position adjustments. Moving the washer from above to under the clip makes it just a little richer. Putting the washer on top of the clip makes it just a little leaner. Gammas are sensitive to clip position.

Note: There is a mistake in the video. My stroked-out brain said the washers are twice as thick as a clip positioning slot on the needle. What I meant to say is the slots are twice as far apart as the washer is thick. Putting the washer under the clip is the same as raising the clip one half slot; making the needle a little richer. Putting the washer on top of the clip is the same as dropping the clip one half slot; making the needle a little leaner.

RG500 engine start after rebuild

I made significant notes about what is going on at the YouTube site. Please read them.

Demonstrate best initial start after rebuild procedure for RG500. Also works for RZ500 and RD500. Assemble _dry_ pistons into _dry_ cylinders and start engine with premix gas. Immediately upon starting engine reach down to oil pump and hold it wide open. After 30 seconds or so smoke will start coming from the pipes. Each smoky pipe proves oil is being delivered to that cylinder. The dry start gives the rings nice sharp ninety degree edges which seal really well.

How to tow a motorcycle

Whenever towing a motorcycle it is _very important_ to rig the tow rope so the towed person can drop the tow rope at any time. 

Weird things happen with towed motorcycles.  Sometimes the tow-er is looking forward and cannot see the problem developing with the tow-ed motorcycle so keeps on at full speed.  This can result in a crash and subsequent dragging of the bike along on the ground.

The way to do it is to bring the rope in between the handlebar clamps, loop around the handlebar once or twice then run a bit out to the left handgrip.  The tow-ed rider can hold the rope against the grip with his fingers.  If a problem develops he can just let go.  The towing force will immediately unwrap the rope from the handlebars and the tow-ed bike will be free.

RG 500 break in oil

Running in an engine is all about doing a certain amount of wear to the rings and cylinder bore surface. Unless some wear happens the rings may never seal properly.

When a Cylinder is bored and honed it finishes with many micro-ridges. They look like swirls going around the cylinder. After a while these ridges get smoothed off by the running action of the rings.  The key is getting the rings properly seated before the cylinder micro-ridges wear off.

Since synthetic oil virtually eliminates wear it is forbidden during break in. Using synthetic oil during break in of an old school cast iron cylinder (which Gammas have) will result in poor ring seating and reduced power until the next set of pistons is installed. Assuming the next set is run in with non- synthetic oil :-)

Go to a car parts store and get 2smoke oil for a lawn mower. Drain the oil tank and replace it all with lawn mower oil.  It's about 1500 cc of oil , so gets two bottles of lawn mower oil.

Gammas continue to run in the rings for about as long as it takes to go through an oil tank's worth of
Milage.

Engine Leak Detection

Athlete’s foot spray powder is very useful for leak detection.  It is sticky so it stays on the engine until hosed off.

Clean the engine.

Spray athlete’s foot powder all around the suspected leak source.

Start engine

Let engine warm up while bike remains stationary

Riding the bike will blow the leaky fluid all over the place which makes finding the source very difficult.

Eventually while the bike is running in place the leak will manifest itself.

Follow the leaking liquid trail up through the white athlete’s foot powder to the source.

Hose the powder off (It's easy and all of it flows off with a bit of water)

Fix the leak.

Tinactin powder spray is the best for leak detection.  It is the stickiest.  Make sure to the label specifies Tinactin _Powder_.

Lance Gamma Big Bore Motor - Take 2

Starts easier.  Less abrasive engine sound while putt-putting through town.  Pulls so hard up top I haven't found where the power tapers off yet.  I used to run my 500cc motor to redline all day long.  It's so intense with the Big Bore up there that I always upshift.

This is what I bought my Gamma for.  I wanted a big motor so it could ride through town discretely while also being able to scratch my speed itch out in the country.  Suzuki installed a crazy powerband for publicity purposes.  Lance Gamma has finally evolved the engine to what Suzuki should have released in the first place.

Rick has been telling me to try running a gear or two higher than usual.  When I do that the bike is buzzing less than I am used to at any given point in a corner.  Less buzz makes me more comfortable, which leads to carrying more speed.  Going faster makes my suspension work harder.  Going faster makes me have more speed entering the next straight.  Which means I have more speed when the next braking zone comes up more quickly than expected.

So what starts out being more comfortable winds up also being faster.  Who woulda thunk?

This engine will take a while for me to explore the limits of.  That's a good thing ;-)

Philosophy of engine building / RG500 Stator Installation

I have recently proved to myself once again that it is possible to work too fast building an engine.  

A mistake which would have taken another minute to carefully avoid during construction can turn into twenty hours of consternation and repair work later on.

OK, here's a recent war story from my RG500: I skipped looking in the manual at the stator mounting page.  Seemed fairly simple, just three screws after all.  Didn’t see the notice to use locktite.  Didn’t use locktite.

Turns out stators are under lots of periodic stress as the magnets in the rotor whirl around and electricity is generated.  Lack of locktite resulted in stator becoming loose.

Loose stator rattled around for a while.  Until a few windings wore through against the rotor and shorted out.  Causing one of the three yellow stator output wires to break and the stator to fry. 

Fifty twisty miles from home on the Coast Highway while zinging along in 6^th.  Sudden and complete spark disappearance.

Talk about a buzz kill.

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Here's the fried stator:

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Here's the RG500 Shop Manual item about installing the stator.  I don't know what Thread Lock 1342 is.  I used Red Locktite.  It's OK to use Red on small threads, it's only large things that need to be heated for disassembly.

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Here's the loose screws.  Looks like they were rubbing against the inside of the rotor for a while.

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It would have been a lot easier and less time consuming to have read the manual and used Locktite than to have to remove the stator again.  Here's a pic near the end of the job with the replacement stator in place:

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It is important to pay attention to every word in a shop manual.  When they say "Route the stator lead wire properly" they mean it.  Suzuki cast a little post and threaded a mounting hole for a bracket just for this purpose.  After a previous rebuild I found out that if this bracket is left out the wire will rub the rotor, wear through, and cause the bike to stop running.

I made my own bracket.  It's in the top right of this image:

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Suzuki wants lots of Locktite around the stator and rotor:

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Factories are vary sparse with the words in shop manuals.  Each word is important.  Read it or weep ;-)

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Of course, there is another possibility.  Maybe I verified the words of an old AMA Pro friend "Never put a fastener on part way."  It is possible that I put the stator screws in finger tight then never made another round for final tightening.

Which ties in nicely with my opening statement about how important it is to be patient while building engines.

How to Anneal Copper Washers

Annealing copper washers makes them soft again so they can do their job.  Some people even recommend annealing copper washers before the first time they are used, as storage can cause oxidation hardening.

Annealing makes copper washers seal properly.  Copper washers can be reused virtually forever when they are annealed before each tightening. Copper washers get hard over time so simply putting them back in after a rebuild can lead to leaks.  It is a drag to have a fresh engine leak from the head nuts.

The process is simple, heat until it glows red, then let it cool slowly in the air.  Some confused people advocate "quenching" the washer.  Quenching, immersing in liquid, is a way to make hot metal harder.  We want our copper washers to be soft so they can form a good seal.  That's why we let them cool gradually in the air.

Here's a YouTube showing how it's done.

RG500 Transmission Oil Philosophy

The RG500 is the only 2Smoke motorcycle I know of which uses gear oil to lube some of its crank bearings.  The four center main bearings are lubed with oil from the gearbox.  The mains are all ball bearings, as are the transmission shaft bearings.  So oil which works for the tranny bearings will also work for the crank bearings.

The tranny also has lubrication requirements for the gear teeth.  After all, wherever there are moving metal surfaces lubrication is required.  Millions of 4Stroke motorcycles which share engine and transmission oil have demonstrated that engine oil can also work for transmissions.

Suzuki recommends using 4Stroke engine oil in RG500 transmissions.

The problem with using engine oil in trannys is the meshing action of the gear teeth shears the engine oil molecules into little pieces.  Think of oil molecules as being strands of spaghetti which get between the gears so they never directly touch each other.  Cut the "spaghetti" into short bits and the gears have more likelihood of direct contact with each other.  That is why gear oil was invented.  Gear oil has stuff in which allows the long molecules to survive the gear teeth shearing action.

As far as Gammas go the problem with gear oil is the stuff which prevents molecular shearing of the gear oil also limits the oil's lubricity with respect to the ball type bearings in the crankshaft.  Oil which is really good for gear teeth is not so good for the ball type bearings used in the RG500 crankshaft.

RG500 crankshaft bearings are expensive to replace.  Also lots of work splitting the cases just to get to them.

I used to think only of the tranny's requirements.  Especially with respect to the dreaded 2nd gear clunk Gammas are famous for.  Putting really heavy gear oil into a Gamma can make the clunk go away.  However, the crank bearings pay the price by being under-lubricated.  Heavy gear oil just cannot flow around ball bearings in a crank spinning 10,000 RPM.

Meanwhile, oil which is really good for the crank can also be really good for the tranny.  For a while.  Using engine oil in an RG500's tranny means the gears will merrily shear the long molecules in fairly short order.  The solution to that is to change the oil frequently.

Changing tranny oil frequently is less work than replacing crank main bearings.  My experience with using heavy gear oil is I have to replace my center crank bearings every time I have to replace pistons.  I know of  other Gammas which have had frequent tranny oil changes which have the crank bearings last through multiple sets of pistons.

So here's what I've come to about Gamma tranny oil: use straight 40wt engine oil and change it every 800 miles.

Lance Gamma RG500 Big Bore Kit First Impression

5th gear jumps off a wave in the pavement!  Same wave that used to make the front end light when I was getting it on caused both ends to skip off the ground for an instant.  It was accelerating so hard it didn't have time to lift the front before the back hit it so the whole bike got a little air.  No matter how hard I ride my Speed Triple it just soaks up this pavement wave and progresses forward.  The Lance Gamma Big Bore Kit has moved my Gamma into another realm of performance.

It also starts easier.  I've started this bike many times since I got it on 1985.  It has been through three sets of heads in the search for more performance.  Four sets of heads total, as the Big Bore Kit comes with o-ring heads having reshaped combustion chambers.  The bike now starts with less effort and more gusto than it ever has.   Here's a video of starting it after installing the Big Bore Kit. It is easy to see the engine is happy and wants to run with this setup.

It is more mellow when riding around imitating a normal bike with the Big Bore Kit than before.  The exhaust note isn't quite as abrasive.  The throttle isn't as picky at low around-town revs as it used to be.  It's almost 4Stroke-like now at legal speeds.

So, it starts easier, putt-putts in a more relaxed manner, while feeding steroids to the beast when given the stick.  When I get on it the Big Bore Kit it takes off with more gusto than anything I've ever ridden.  This is the most satisfying engine upgrade I've ever done.

There will be a whole series of posts detailing various assembly steps.  Closeup images of parts will be included, as in the RG500 Crankcase Splitting post I made a while ago.  For today I'm just going to post the bottom line: Lance Gamma Big Bore Kit Rocks!!!

Advice To A Young Man

Advice as you Head Out

As Samuel Clemens said “Take good care of your teeth”.

Every person you meet has something to teach you.  Seek the lesson they bring.  Sometimes the lesson is to get far away as soon as possible.  Sometimes the lesson is opening a door to a new and enjoyable aspect of life.  Hope each person is opening a door, while being cautious they aren’t trying to take your wallet.

As Pink Floyd sings, you must learn how to tell “a smile from a veil”

Look for women to bring the light side of living to you.  They are in the same ballpark and they are playing a _different_ game than men. 

Women live in a world of emotions.  Talking about emotions is a major activity for women.  Expecting women to talk about cool inventions and things that move civilization forward is like expecting ice to form in the desert sun.

Talk with men about what things do.  Talk with women about how they feel when things happen.

Never do with a woman that which you enjoy doing with a man.

Men solve problems and then leave them behind.  That is, men stop thinking about a problem once it has been resolved.

Women love problems because they stir their emotions and women live for emotions.  Women love problems, which is why they bring them back up years later.

Don’t let other people put their context into you.  They may be upset and you can let them have the emotion while you remain calm and reasonable.

Show respect for each person at all times.

Look people in the eye when you speak to them.

Honor is expensive by definition.  The only way honor can be demonstrated is by making a choice based on honor that has a personal cost.

Chick flicks never have the words Honor, Commitment, or Sacrifice in them.  Those words are absent from their vocabularies, other than as something that men do which they can take advantage of.

The story of the Woolly Mammoth and the Taber-toothed Tiger:  One day, the men of the village went hunting.  No single man with a spear can bring down a Mammoth.  The way to hunt a Mammoth is to have some men chase one into a trap where other men can ambush the Mammoth.  The Chase Men have to trust the Ambush Men to step out and fight at the right moment.  The Ambush Men have to trust the Chase Men to make the Mammoth run into the trap.  The Ambush Men trust the Chase Men to come in from behind and attack the Mammoth once it has been stopped in the trap. Without co-operation all the men will be hungry and some of them will be dead.   The men co-operate, get the food, and take it home to the women and children.  While the men are away the women head out to pick berries.  One of the women sees a saber-toothed tiger approaching.  She quietly gathers HER children and slips back to the safety of her home.  She leaves the other women and children to fend for themselves, as she waits for her man to bring home more food.

While in school take Intro to Everything, then make a career from the classes you ENJOYED and did well at.  If you can’t maintain a B average in your major you need a different major.

Work like you don’t need the money (do what you like and never work a day in your life)

Dance like nobody is watching

Love like you’ve never been hurt

AvGas is for Airplanes

AvGas is for airplanes.  Airplanes fly at altitudes with lower air pressure than is common at ground level.  The lower air pressure makes it easier for fuel to evaporate.  Having all the fuel evaporate through the tank vents before an airplane reaches the next gas station can be kind of a drag.

AvGas was tits after WWII when it was higher octane than street level gas.  That was a long time ago.  Back then AvGas had significantly higher octane than otherwise available.  This made it work well with high compression engines, which racers liked.  The gas companies have since developed higher octane fuel for surface level use, including developing race gas.

They make AvGas with what is called Low Vapor Pressure.  That makes it work fine at airplane altitude and not so fine at ground level.  As in, hard to start.  Also making less power since more gas is passing through the system as unevaporated droplets.

My personal experience which led me to this truth involved a Triumph TSS (stock 8 valve head, last model the old Triumph ever released) that I raced a couple of times in the AMA Battle Of The Twins Class.  I was stepping up to the National level so did everything I could think of for that bike.  Including pre-race pilgramages to the local airport.

That bike used to wear out three pushers (removed the kick start mechanism) before starting in the morning.  Finding a fourth pusher after people had seen three of them wear out was kinda difficult.  Then one day I got behind schedule and couldn’t make it to the airport.

So I bought the race gas for sale at the track.  The bike started the _first_ time I dumped the clutch.  I never bought AvGas again.

AvGas is for airplanes.

Adjusting Shock Absorber Settings

 Low speed settings are all that most shocks have.  High end models also have a high speed adjuster.

In general, I have found I like minimal compression damping and maximal rebound damping.

The compression affects how hard the jolts coming into the chassis feel to me.  Less compression makes for softer bumps.

Rebound affects how high I get bounced out of the seat after a big hit.  More rebound means less bouncing.

I go for a compression setting that is as soft as possible with only occasional bottoming out.

I go for a rebound setting that keeps me in the seat.

Point and Shoot is the only way to ride pavement

I am talking releasing the brakes as soon as full lean is achieved.  The apex is hit on the gas, rather than trail braking to the apex then opening the throttle after the apex has been passed.

Trail Braking is when the front brake is used to hold the front end down all the way to the apex.  Holding the nose down reduces the steering head angle, supposedly making for quicker steering.  Classic trail braking is done all the way to the apex, at which time the gentle brake release you describe happens.

Back in the days when drum brakes were all that was available trail braking had some validity simply because drums never deliver the same brake performance two corners in a row.  They would fade during a single hard stop from top speed.  Engine braking was very important back then, something the big singles of the day provided.

Tires used to break loose suddenly before radials were developed.

Frames used to flex strangely.

All of which makes hard braking-> flicking it in–> gassing it hard out pretty sketchy.  Much more likely to make it all the way to the end of the race if corner entries are gentle and drawn out affairs.

All the components are better now, much more predictable and consistent. Which is why trail braking is no longer relevant.

Point and Shoot extends the front end back to the middle of its travel, so it can respond to surface irregularities.  It also shifts some weight to the back tire, so front end deflections have less effect on the whole machine.

I started riding a long time ago, when trail braking was still winning GPs.  I used to load my front heavily going into corners.  The whole idea of getting on the gas before the apex was alien to me.  I argued with Keith Code about it.  He finally said "You paid me hundreds of dollars to be here and hear this, how about yo go out and try it and see what happens?"

What happened was someone laid Velcro(tm) down under my front tire.

RG500 Air Filter Comparison Overview

I did a dyno shoot out of sorts with my gamma and a long hill.  Wound three filters and open carbs up that hill WFO in 3^rd, comparing acceleration and how far it would rev.  I experimented with various sizes of mains and three different pilot jet sizes.

It was two long afternoons.  I am really good at changing Gamma jets now.

Big jets that made the rg500.com filters unrideable, and made the original Lance Gamma filters stumble a bit, made the bike very perky and strong with the TriPods. 

There was no difference between the jets I could get the TriPods to take and what I could get open carbs to take.

If the filters allow richer jetting without four-stroking then they have demonstrated they are flowing more air. 

My results are that the TriPods allow as rich jetting as open carbs.  Including going up two sizes on the pilot, which is really good for getting a corner exit drive started.

As Kenny Roberts said “Burn more gasoline, make more power.”

Epilog:  While doing this filter test I spent two afternoons running up the same hill three or four times every forty-five minutes or so.  Skaggs Springs Road just West of "The Bridge".  The mufflers on my expansion chambers hadn't been repacked in several years, so they were very loud.  When I was done the second day I headed back to town.  I was feeling rowdy and riding at Full Speed.

Came around a corner with a good 3rd gear drive going only to see two CHP bikes headed the opposite direction.  The second was about forty yards behind the other one.  It was way to late for me to slow down for them, so I decided this was a Good Time to split the scene.

I kept it WFO, shifted to 4th and zipped past them.  The first made no visible reaction.  The second weaved visibly in shock at my approach.  Stopping would force them to give me a very expensive ticket.  Continuing on about my business would allow them to show the citizens they flushed the noise maker away, while saving me a ton of money.

So that's what I did.  

Splitting RG500 Crankcases

It's never good when oil is on the OUTside

Never wrap exhaust pipes with high heat cloth.  Then your pipes will never rust through and have an exhaust leak.  Exhaust leaks can make a perfectly healthy engine seize.  The paste around the bent rod used to be a piston.  As can be seen by the fine condition of the other piston this engine could have gone a lot more miles if it weren't for the cloth tape caused exhaust leak.

Before RG500 cases can be split the inner disc covers have to be removed.  This is difficult as they become one with the strange gasket Suzuki puts behind them.  The gasket also becomes one with the cases, so it is stuck on both sides.  Removing the inner disc cover basically means delaminating the gasket.  First I sprayed some penetrating oil (stronger than WD-40) around the openings in the covers.  I figured to make the gasket soft.  It worked a bit.  

I used vice grips to lever the cover off.  Vice grips are made by riviting a piece of folded sheet metal to the top jaw.  I put the shoulder of the folded-to-jaw meeting point to the case while hooking the tip of the jaw on the edge of the inner cover's opening.  I slid a piece of newspaper back and forth behind the vice grips to assure myself the force was going into the top case, rather than just the other side of the inner cover.  I pushed on the end of the vice grips with one hand to push the jaw into the work.  While doing that I did an isometric exercise on the side of the vice grip handle to lever the cover off.  I pushed towards the engine, which pivoted the force so it was prying the cover out from its inside edge.  After about ten seconds of steady presure the cover began to move.

As a result of this posting I have received a comment that a heat gun can be used to soften the gasket so the cover can be removed.  I haven't tried it.  It seems-ta-me that it would take longer to put heat into the cover than the ten seconds of gently prying it took with vice grips.  Even with a soft gasket the cover still has to be pried off, which leads right back to the vice grips.

After the gasket delaminated the cover moved out.  It could only be pulled so far before the angle was wrong.  Then I used a prydriver (large screwdriver with rounded off tip used only for prying things since the rounded tip can't catch in a screw's groove) to coax the inner cover the rest of the way off.

A little more coaxing and the cover came completely off

Then it was on to the next inner cover.  All four have to be removed before the cases can be split

A bit of levering, a bit of coaxing, and another inner cover is removed.

Go to the other side of the engine and remove final the two inner covers .  No pictures as they are the same as already depicted above.
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After removing all the inner covers it is time to remove all the bolts holding the cases together.  Remove them in reverse order from the torque down sequence. That is, start at the outer bolts and work towards the center, criss-crossing the engine.  Normal torque stuff.  The trick with Gammas is to make sure to get ALL the bolts out.  There are a lot of them.

Just for grins, there are two little ones with black heads which help them hide in the shadows.  Even better, they are placed in the shadows underneath the rear cylinder's base gasket.  The cases will NOT separate until those little 8mm head bolts are removed.  Look under the cylinder base gasket (if it stayed on the case like mine always do) to find them.

Also, the case bolts are different lengths.  Lay the bolts out on the bench in a spacially correct manner as they are removed so you can tell which bolt goes where.  A n empty cereal box can laid down on the bench then stick the bolts in the big flat side as they are removed from the engine.  You wind up with a cereal box lying on its side with all the bolts in their relative positions.

After removing all the bolts the next step is actual separation of the cases.  Suzuki shows a fancy splitter tool in the factory manual.  There are two pry places built into the cases.  I didn't want to get the factory splitter tool, so I came up with an alternative.  I used a tap to hand thread the hole, then put a bolt into it.  I applied force to the same pry place as the factory tool for a lot less ca$h.  Got a little clearance at the back pry point as shown below:

The reason there was only a little clearance and only near the pry point is because I had failed to remove those pesky little bolts hiding under the base gasket.  All I was doing was warping the case.

Flush with success I moved to the front pry point, which I had also tapped by hand.  Inserted a bolt and turned it to apply a bit of pry pressure on the designed-in pry point.  It broke :-(

Faced with total disaster, unable to imagine how to go any farther given I had just broken the factory designed pry points, I was a bit upset.  There is nothing the factory can do about a mechanic who fails to remove all the fasteners before attempting to force things apart.

At this point I called the Gamma Guru, Rick Lance.  He soothingly said the top case would be off in less than a minute.

First thing Rick asked me to do was look under the very back of the cylinder base gasket.  I had left the base gasket on as it looked like all the bolts were out and I wanted to split the cases.  I figured to scrape all the base gasket bits off later.  Turns out there are two little bolts with black 8mm heads which are "hidden" under the back of the base gasket.  The cases cannot come apart until these little bolts are removed.  Once those little bolts were removed the rest of the job went lickety-split.

Rick then told me to put a half inch breaker bar through the top case opening and lever on the crankshaft.  I lifted up on the bar, which pushed the end down onto the crank which held it in place.  The bar lifted the top case up and all was well with my world once more.

It took less time to lever the case off than it did to retrieve the set of taps, let alone all the time tapping the two holes.  Next time I'm going to call Rick before I start taking anything apart.

Mission accomplished.  Top case removed.  Next step is sending the cranks to Lance Gamma for refurbishment.

NoToil Filter Oil

I tried NoToil filter oil in 2005.  It’s vegetable based which makes it biodegradable.  They have a very impressive web site  http://www.notoil.com/  

The oil never “dried”.  It kept drooling out the airbox drain.

Puddles of oil on the floor bother me.  I went back to regular filter oil.

Perhaps the oil formulation has changed since 2005.  I'm all for environmental friendliness.  I always line my airbox with Bel Ray Waterproof Grease http://www.belray.com/bel-ray-waterproof-grease  as a dust catcher.  Any grit that hits the grease never gets to the air filter.  Makes the filter last longer between cleanings.  

I also put some grease downstream of the filter.  This grease ought to stay clean and shiny.  If it doesn't the filter is not getting the job done.  Or the filter's base is poorly sealed against the airbox.  Or it's a K&N filter ;-)

NoToil worked fine as far as catching grit.  The intake tract downstream of the filter was clean.  I just didn't like the oil spot under the bike caused by the never-drying NoToil Filter Oil.

K&N Air Filters

K&N advertizes more performance.

However, I note the Dynojet fuel maps are the same for "stock or aftermarket
air filter".  They have a gazillion maps, one fore each kind of
pipe/muffler.  They care about pipe type but not a bit for air filter type.

If it doesn't make enough difference to change the fuel map it isn't making
any real difference.

I think the anecdotal evidence of greater performance with a K&N is just the
change of putting in a new filter.  I've also had a performance increase
with a new paper filter.


I did an experiment.  I put a thin layer of grease downstream of the stock paper air filter on the FZR1000 I used to own.  Then I rode around for a while.  I pulled the filter and inspected the grease.  It was a clean as the day I put it there.

Then I installed a brand new well oiled K&N air filter.  Rode around for a while.  Pulled the filter and inspected the grease.  It was dirty.  All that dirt made it past the K&N.  The dirt was stopped by the stock paper filter.

I threw the K&N away.

Pistons don't like grit rubbing between them and the cylinder.  The grit acts like grinding paste.  It co$ts more to replace a set of pistons these days than to buy a whole low mileage replacement motorcycle.  I want my pistons to last as long as possible.  It's stock paper filters for me from now on.

Dealing with Deer

Sometimes deer run in front of a vehicle because they are running from a predator.  It looks to them like they go from one bad situation to a worse one.  It looks to me like they are mindless meat missiles. 

Regardless, there is actually something a rider can do to prevent a crash.  It is totally counter-intuitive but it works.

If a motorcycle hits a deer in cruise mode or with the front brake applied the front wheel gets knocked sideways and the bike goes down.  If a motorcycle hits a deer while on the gas the front tire has more gyro effect and the back tire is pushing it back into line with acceleration.

If a deer appears, and there is time, the best immediate reaction is to dynamite the brakes.  This applies to standing deer as well as moving, as they sometimes are just stupid and jump right in front of a bike just before it gets to them.

If a collision is unavoidable then GET ON THE GAS HARD.  Punch through the deer.  Knock it aside or shred it.  Either way, hitting a deer on the brakes guarantees a crash while hitting one on the gas usually saves it.  I know three people who have punched through deer at 100mph+.  I have hit two deer myself.  Once on the brakes and I crashed.  Once on the gas and it bounced off.

Carb Cleaner vs. Brake Cleaner

Manufacturers generally want happy customers.  To that end they make products aimed at performing tasks people want to pay for.  To help people get what they want they put labels on their products identifying their intended use.  Solvents makers do this too.

There are a gazillion kinds of gunk to remove.  There are products aimed at removing certain kinds of gunk well which can also do a sorta passable job of removing other kinds of dirt/contamination/gunk.

Brake Fluid, Contact Cleaner and Carb Cleaner are similar products.  However, they are aimed at specific kinds of contamination removal.  Any cleaner will do a better job on the gunk it is designed to remove.

Carb Cleaner (http://berrymanproducts.com/Products/AirCarbandInjectorCleaners.aspx) is aimed at the stuff that accumulates in carbs.  Carbs deal with varnish and gum deposits, so carb cleaners are designed to dissolve varnish and gum.