should the flywheel cover be airtight?

[bclapham]

this sounds like a stupid question, but ive run into a small problem.
my YZ came with an after market billet flywheel cover. A while back, i took it off only to find 1/8 inch of water and mud sat inside the stator case! Yikes! I sealed it up with silicone gasket, but the problem is still there, but not nearly as bad. On further inspection, the problem is the gasket, even a new one has two wedges relieved, and they act like a small vent, but in the process they let crap in.

my question is, can i make myself a new gasket and seal this coverr up for good, or is there a reason for the little vent holes from the gaskets?

thanks in advance.

 

[Sphinx]

I was always under the impression that it should be sealed, but I could be wrong. If it isn't sealed I believe dirt/water would be able to get to the crank bearing not to mention trash the stator. When I get home I will take a look at my 2000 and let you know tonight. Do you have a stock gasket?

 

[Senior KX Rider]

Some of the enduro guys I know seal these covers but they run a vent tube out of the top so moisture does not condensate inside the cover.

 

[marcusgunby]

Yep if you seal it, it will need to be opened up occasionally or vented.

 

[Farmer John]

Bruce,

On most of my bikes I glue a small plastic hose barb onto the cover & run a small (carb vent size) piece of tubing into my air box, then connect a fuel filter on the end. I then seal the ignition cover up tight.
If I get to the point where there is water in my airbox, I've got more issues than water under my cover. ;)

 

[bclapham]

this whole thing is turning into a real pain in the arse. the bottom half inside the cover is all corroded and in addition all of the screws and even the stator pick ups are rusty....i thought i had sorted it last time with the gasket sealer. (it was a lot worse last time since it was totally full of dust behind the stator and standing water in the case) looks like i am going to have to put my tiny little brain to work on this...any suggestions gratefully received! anyone seen a similar problem before?

maybe a drill tiny little at the bottom of the cover and then go to work sealing the whole thing up?

 

[marcusgunby]

Bruce generally i use a good original gasket and vent it every few rides and clean it out with WD40.My 02 Cr125 had alot of corrosion in the same place as i forgot to clean it out for a while-just one of those things.The best thing is to make a vent and seal up the cover but i dont like drilling cases.

 

[Sphinx]

I just checked my 2000. It looks like there is a notch in the gasket at about 7 o'clock.

 

[bclapham]

i mislead you mate, i just made the edit, i meant to say drill the cover!

i will see how this pans out in the next couple of weeks, i got my flywheelweight, but the cover doesnt go over it properly so i had to get a spacer. i will see how sealing this whole lot up works, i might even have to ditch the gasket, i suppose taking the cover off and cleaning it out every couple of weeks is no big deal and will be a good oportunity to keep an eye on the weight.

while we are on the topic, i weighed the 9oz weight it came out at 330 grams. so if 1oz = 28 grams this makes it a 11.8oz weight...i called them up since they dont have any markings and asked whats up, they didint have a g to oz conversion, but said that the weights are about 1.5 oz heavier than what they state....its a funny old world!;)

 

[bclapham]

Originally posted by Sphinx
I just checked my 2000. It looks like there is a notch in the gasket at about 7 o'clock.

yep, you are correct sphinx!

did you also notice a bigger notch around 3 o clock also, just above where the stator sealing cable wedge goes?

 

[marcusgunby]

Well bruce when 9oz is really 11 oz its time to pack up and go home-i wonder how people would react if a item was for sale at £40 and we went in a said 'but this week £40 is actually £30' so im going to only pay £30 ;)

 

[LEE BAXTER]

TO bclapham,
One thing I do to reduce moisture in the ignition cover is to never wash the bike while the engine is hot or even warm.

 

[Nevada Sixx]

i sprayed wd40 around inside my ignition cover, and it shorted out my stator coils.. you could tape off the hole in the bottom, and take the cover off after you ride/wash bike and let it air out. but i think the hole is there to let it air out. the water that was in there after you plugged it was probably from condensation.

 

[bclapham]

Marcus, couldnt really say a lot to that, quite flaberghasted really.

Lee, its at least a 1 hr drive home from the track, but i usually dont wash the bike until a few days later, but you are correct!:)

Nevada, its definately not condensation, otherwise how would all of the muck and dust got in there. condensation would only be a few drops, this was a puddle of water, obviously built up from several washes

 

[marcusgunby]

Bruce my analogies sometimes are not the best-its a bit like .........

 

[bclapham]

no, i mislead you again....i meant i was flaberghasted when the guy said well, the 9oz weight isnt really a 9oz weight, they are usually 1.5oz heavier than what we say they are!

 

[jmics19067]

If you are interested in sealing up your flywheel cover go to a tractor trailer parts place and ask for 3/32 or 1/8 synflex air line......spaghetti lines for transmision hi lo splitter. If you take your time you can feed this line thru the rubber grommet and up thru the wiring harness to underneath the tank. use a bit of grease on the line to help it slide and dont let it kink. This can help you immensely if you do a lot of deep water crossings becasue now you can seal the cover down tight and yet still be vented up to the hieghth of your tank. You still should take the cover off and let it dry when not in use though since condensation will find its way in there.

I am toying with the idea of drilling a hole in the case under the flywheel.installing a nipple and running a hose to some type of foam vent<like those pc vents things for carberators>. My idea being that if any condensation forms that it should flow down the drain vent into the foam. Any rapid pressure changes like having a hot engine going thru a cold deep stream should vent thru the unristricted line that is going up top. And with any luck the foam vent will hopefully slow down the water trying to find level in my flywheel housing long enough for me to get out of the stream. Still just dont have the nerve yet to try it though.

heh even thought about using one way vents in the lines so that it draws in from the top and pushes out thru the bottom. so every heat cycle you have a purge. bit way too much over thinking though campared toj ust take the dang cover off after you wash the bikel :)

 

[DEANSFASTWAY]

Ive seen some tricked out Huskys out here with a kit from some enduro shop out here They added a fitting to the cover and ran a line to the airbox . The company also claimed it kept the ign coller as the spinning affect of the rotor would draw in colling air ..E Rider / wer or something . I think it was on Fred Hoess' bike a couple years back.But its really all fuzzy now .This happens to alot of bikes espescially Hondas and alot of quads like banshees and blasters . Sometimes theyll get so corroded that Ill glass bead the stator assy to clean them up . Almost like little Barnacles in there.