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Post by philosophydoc on Jul 23, 2011 14:25:04 GMT -6
Been busy doing other things, but picked up a gallon of Berryman carb and parts cleaner (with basket!) and will try to soak top half of cylinder head tomorrow.
Have tried repeatedly to pull cylinder block off, but no luck. Finally decided to rotate crank at by turning variator nut...piston moved down, and I stopped turning when the piston reached bottom, and then tried to pull head off. No go -- whereas with piston at TDC the cylinder block would rock, with piston at botton no movement at all. When I then continued moving the piston, the whole cylinder went up with the piston, so clearly piston is sticking! I will try to remove it later, but now that most of the interior cylinder wall is visible, I did smear a bunch of oil in it, and will leave it overnight. But I will use physics as my friend, and with the cylinder block "up in the air" now, I will place a few wood blocks under it, rotate the piston down literally "pull" the off by pulling the piston through the cylinder.
I have hope the cylinder isn't cracked, and that what explains the rust is the for the last (nearly) three years, it has sat in my garage with no cylinder head cap nuts on, thus allowing cheap Chino coolant to leak between the cylinder block and the head, and pool on top of the piston. It's surely possible that after 130 miles the head cracked, but here's hoping...
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Post by philosophydoc on Jul 25, 2011 15:56:11 GMT -6
Okay, brief update -- I am still cleaning things off, but I can't see any cracks in either the cylinder block or cylinder head. Here's a before an after picture to show you where I am: Cylinder head when first pulled: ...and after a cleaning (one valve pulled out): Still have more to do, but things are looking up. Here's the cylinder block after cleaning: You can still see a bit of rust, but how to remove? Should I try some naval jelly, or is this discoloration that won't affect performance? Here's a closer look: Inside of cylinder is definitely rough here at the bottom, but much smoother where the piston travel has been. What should I do to it -- try to get it honed or is it unsalvageable? Most of the rust is inside the water jacket, and I have been using a small wire bristle brush to clean out all the crap that was there. Ran water through the inlet to the cylinder block after cleaning, and once all the crap came out, it ran clear. Again, I am convinced the rust came from leaking cheap coolant at the head gasket, while the bike sat (with no cylinder cap nuts to secure the cylinder head) for nearly three years. Engine only has 130 miles, so I am hoping to salvage everything. But I am still a newbie, running more on hope than knowledge...
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Post by philosophydoc on Jul 26, 2011 14:50:56 GMT -6
Took the cylinder block to a local auto shop that hones engine blocks, and the owner thought it made more sense to buy a new cylinder block. He looked at the head and valves and said they looked fine, so it looks like I'll get this: www.chinesemotoparts.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=112_135&products_id=2166Total rebuild (block, piston, rings) for 108.95 (free shipping). What I can't determine is how long it will take -- anyone have any experience with this company?
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Certified Clinician
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Post by philosophydoc on Aug 13, 2011 16:57:33 GMT -6
Have been out of commission for a while -- moved one daughter to Tulsa, and the next two kids head off to college at the end of the week, so I've had a lot of non-scooter odds and ends to take care of.
But I have the cylinder and piston, and will install them later next week. WARNING: if you ever remove a valve spring, be forewarned (if you use a homemade spring tool like I did -- a clamp and a piece of conduit) that if your tool slips, and the VERY POWERFUL spring takes flight, you might lose the valve retaining clip in your garage! Surprisingly, no harm done, and the two very tiny valve clip inserts were easily found, but the retaining clip appears to have been launched into orbit...had to order one, but I discovered that the local Honda dealer (my engine is a CN250 clone) can order me one for $2.44...but it won't be here till next week.
Just a note that I haven't given up on the scoot, and I will see this through to the end.
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