DAMN Riders - No rules, Just ride!

So after some diagnostics and discussion - you'll never believe what the shop discovered - and I would have never guessed it:

The only thing I changed (about 12 hours ago) from what I had been using for years - was the crankcase oil type. For the first time in this bike I used Rotella synthetic - a change from my usual BelRay 80W. And guess what - the shop stated "We've seen this before on 2 strokes, synthetic oil will get past the crank seal and foul the plug" So I'm going back to the 80W (the bike needed an oil change anyway), put a fresh plug in, and ride that puppy hard this weekend. I'm hoping that this will solve my issue for the long-haul.

You know - I wander if synthetic oils have a tendency to start leaks - cause just last month my brother-in-law was telling me a story about a friend of his that changed his oil in a F-250 with synthetic and wouldn't-you-know it started leaking oil - until he changed back to the non-synthetic.

here's a good article on the issue

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/switch-to ... c-oil1.htm

Kyler wrote:here's a good article on the issue

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/switch-to ... c-oil1.htm

That's more like it, I have been using synthetic in everything I own but the diesels. I had a 100k on my Chevy van and the bottom of the motor was as dry as the day I got it. Now my Ford P/U with the powerstroke an 18k leaks and has always had mineral oil. Who knows it all sounds like

62Tom wrote:So after some diagnostics and discussion - you'll never believe what the shop discovered - and I would have never guessed it:

The only thing I changed (about 12 hours ago) from what I had been using for years - was the crankcase oil type. For the first time in this bike I used Rotella synthetic - a change from my usual BelRay 80W. And guess what - the shop stated "We've seen this before on 2 strokes, synthetic oil will get past the crank seal and foul the plug" So I'm going back to the 80W (the bike needed an oil change anyway), put a fresh plug in, and ride that puppy hard this weekend. I'm hoping that this will solve my issue for the long-haul.

You know - I wander if synthetic oils have a tendency to start leaks - cause just last month my brother-in-law was telling me a story about a friend of his that changed his oil in a F-250 with synthetic and wouldn't-you-know it started leaking oil - until he changed back to the non-synthetic.

Very interested to find out if changing oil fixed your problem...
Never came across that fix before.
Sounds a little like to me, but what do I know

Update:

I picked-up the bike Tuesday night and got a chance to look it over last night. The shop changed the oil (from Rotella 10w-30 Synthetic to Belray 80w) and made a small adjustment to my throttle cable length via the screw next to the throttle tube (something I needed to do to shorten the amount of slack in the cable). I DID NOT change the spark plug. The bike started-up on the 3rd kick and ran beautifully! I putted around my house/neighborhood and shut it off several times...each time it started up the first kick! No bogging or issues!

I dont know if it is a function of syntheic oil molecular structure (i.e., molecular chain different and therefore compressability and/or friction characteristics are different)....oil viscocity difference (i.e., the 10w30 versus the straight 80w)....or maybe the crank seals are starting to leak slightly (i.e., if the more viscous Belray oil gets by crank seal - it is burned with no/little effect versus the less viscous synthetic oil that gets by the crank seal is not burned as easily as the Belray and therefore fouls the plug). All I know is that my bike is back to running good again after changing the gear case oil. Time will tell.....and I plan to get LOTS of seat time this Sunday!

Best,
Tom

Taylor wrote:

Kyler wrote:here's a good article on the issue

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/switch-to ... c-oil1.htm

That's more like it, I have been using synthetic in everything I own but the diesels. I had a 100k on my Chevy van and the bottom of the motor was as dry as the day I got it. Now my Ford P/U with the powerstroke an 18k leaks and has always had mineral oil. Who knows it all sounds like

Hmmm, my 1999 powerstroke is dry, @398k miles.

Bork wrote: Hmmm, my 1999 powerstroke is dry, @398k miles.

Maybe so, but check back with us after it gets broken in...

Just got registered as a DAMN rider as Im moving to Pax River on orders in the next month or so. Im looking for a reliable and affordable mechanic to work on my 08 xr650l. I am looking to do a tranny adjustment to add the 2nd and 5th gears from the NX650. Also, Im considering a bore and a 10.5 JE p piston as the entire motor is going to be apart anyway. Im handy enough to get the engine out, but have no experience with internals other than simple valve adjustments, and I have done stator work in the past. Who do you recommend? And any idea what I should expect to pay? I appreciate all the help. Looking forward to get back stateside and start riding!!!

opey521 wrote:Just got registered as a DAMN rider as Im moving to Pax River on orders in the next month or so. Im looking for a reliable and affordable mechanic to work on my 08 xr650l. I am looking to do a tranny adjustment to add the 2nd and 5th gears from the NX650. Also, Im considering a bore and a 10.5 JE p piston as the entire motor is going to be apart anyway. Im handy enough to get the engine out, but have no experience with internals other than simple valve adjustments, and I have done stator work in the past. Who do you recommend? And any idea what I should expect to pay? I appreciate all the help. Looking forward to get back stateside and start riding!!!

Vendor section, Dual Sport, Allen

opey521 wrote:Just got registered as a DAMN rider as Im moving to Pax River on orders in the next month or so. Im looking for a reliable and affordable mechanic to work on my 08 xr650l. I am looking to do a tranny adjustment to add the 2nd and 5th gears from the NX650. Also, Im considering a bore and a 10.5 JE p piston as the entire motor is going to be apart anyway. Im handy enough to get the engine out, but have no experience with internals other than simple valve adjustments, and I have done stator work in the past. Who do you recommend? And any idea what I should expect to pay? I appreciate all the help. Looking forward to get back stateside and start riding!!!

Don't have a shop to recommend but in case you don't already look at ADVrider, here is a link to where the XR650l guru's hang out:
http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=114834
That's a massive thread, but many guys have done the mods you're planning, including recently. Give it a search or post up your question... I actually went back about a year and just started reading to learn about the bike.

This one is one of the guru's (Steve) engine build thread where a lot can be learned:
http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=713831
A lot of guys pack up their motors and send to him, though its awfully far from here in San Francisco. The ultimate XR650l motor mod guy seems to be Cycle Wizard, you'll find plenty of info on his stuff and I think he's in the mid-west.