New (old) bike, first problems!

[Tzigane]

Hi everyone,

I bought my r65, knowing that it needed some maintanance. Not yet having much technical knowhow, I'm hoping someone can help me tackle the following things I have encountered so far:

Changing tires today, the mechanic discovered a rear wheel drumbrake full of oil, not quite right, is there a likely cause for this?



Part three in this picture maybe?

Also, after this first ride I noticed boiling water in the cilinder heads, through a small hole that I hadn't seen before. There is a slightly smaller gap in the other cilinder as well..


How much of a problem will this pose?

And a very small question:
I was under the impression I ordered the same fuel filter as is on the bike now (the translucent cilinder-thingy), but instead I received this:


Will that do fine as well?

Of course, I had my first stupid thing, while starting the bike a few days earlier for a short ride, the bike suddenly stopped working after two corners down the street. Pushed the bike home, not knowing what was going on. I was in a slight hurry and hopped on my other bike. An hour later, I realised that I the petcock was closed.  

[Bob_Roller]

Here's a picture of the rear brake .

 http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=0364&mospid=51897&btnr=34_0599&hg=34&fg=21

There are two o-rings on the brake camshaft, the part that has the arm on it, on the right side of the final drive housing .

Item # 23 .

Those are the usual suspects for gear oil in the brake area .

Getting water in there, always causes a boiling/sizzling sound, until it boils away .

There are no standard filters for the R65, they are all after market, so they all differ from one another .

If your fuel tap, has the barbed outlet coming out at the three o'clock position, there is a fine metal mesh screen over the intake tubes .

Wouldn't be a bad idea, to remove the fuel tap when you get low on fuel sometime and just make sure it's in good condition .

Not uncommon to get a few small red chips in this area, the fuel tank has a red liner and with time some of it comes loose and settles in the fuel tap area .

[Tzigane]

Thanks!

so, number 3 from the other picture, and number 23 from yours, and I'm good to go?

I guess removing the rear wheel is not really doable without a lift? That might complicate things..

[nhmaf]

You may want to consider getting some new valve cover gaskets, maybe some of the squishy silicon variety, to help with sealing up that hole on the vavle cover, but yes, a number of the bikes do that if water gets down in there.  Don't let water get in there if you can help it, but as long as it isn't allowed to sit for longer periods and gets boiled out, no big deal.

As Bob indicates, the o-rings on the brake cam rod are the more common suspects for oil leaks.   There were anywhere from 1-3 o rings on the rod - the rod must have square cross sectioned grooves machines into it for the o-rings.  Factory & owners/dealers would add more o-rings sometimes if they found the original 1 or 2 weren't doing the job.  Some rods from the factory only had shallow, rounded "marker" grooves and the o-rings won't work with them until properly machined.  Only examination of the rod will tell you what you have.   There are some other possibilities though -
1) large round oil seal which goes around the spline drive - these can be replaced by your mechanic with a little more effort - just be sure he wraps tape around the spline teeth to prevent cutting the new seal as he installs it (can drive it in place with piece of PVC pipe)
2) There is a paper gasket that goes between the rear cover of the final/cardan drive and the outside housing of the final drive.  These don't usually leak, but sometimes one or more bolt can drip.   Replacing this is a bit more work, and must be careful to put any dislodged shims back in the proper order/location.  Will also require that you replace the large oil seal mentioned in #1 if you take things apart to do this.   Chances are slim that this is the issue tho.

[Bob_Roller]

If your rear wheel/tire isn't clear of the ground with the bike on the center stand, place a piece of plywood on the garage floor and then put the center stand down on the plywood, should give you the needed clearance to remove the rear wheel/tire .

[Tzigane]

Thank's! I'll try that! If all else fails, I can always drop the bike off at the nearest bike shop, but I would love to do things like this myself. =)

[montmil]

Some additional thoughts on your "rear wheel drumbrake full of oil":

Buy a couple extra of the small O-rings that fit on the rear brake camshaft. It is quite easy to cut the O-ring when refitting the shaft w/rings into the hub casting as there is a crisp edge the assembly must pass through. Light oil is helpful. Save some frustration.

Often, the grease for the rear splines might be applied overly excessive by a DIY mechanic. The excess grease, once warmed by riding the bike, will be extruded from the splines and flung into the brake assembly area. Confirm you have either oil or grease contamination.

If the large oil seal -your #3- is the leaky culprit, and before pulling the assembly apart for replacement, try adjusting the seal's position to be slightly deeper in the seal's recess. A small wood block and very light hammer taps around the perimeter may move the seal to a position where it no longer leaks. Worth a try and the cost is zip.

Brake shoes saturated with oil can sometimes be rehabilitated by cooking the shoes in boiling water. A paper towel wrapped around an ice cube will pickup the surface oil/grease. Use caution to: A) Not burn yourself, and: B) Get caught by your significant other.

"I can always drop the bike off at the nearest bike shop"
Don't forget what BMW actually stands for: Bring My Wallet



 

[Tzigane]

Thanks for the advice!

I already threw the drumshoes away (they were worn anyway), and covered in way too much oil, There was also oil on the outside of the wheel. No saving there..

[donbmw]

Until I got the ATV I use this is how I always removed the rear wheel. Place a 1/2 or 3/4 piece of wood  under center stand. Strap center stand to front Exhaust cross pipe. Remove front wheel and tilt bike over resting forks on ground. Now you have more than enough room to remove rear wheel.

[nhmaf]

I leave my front wheel on, but I do put bike on centerstand on some 3/4" plywood, bungee centerstand to front exhaust pipe, tip bike forward so it rests on front wheel and slide a jackstand (with old shop rag on top to prevent scratching frame paint) under bike just stlightly behind swingarm pivot where it can push up on the cross tube at the back of the frame there.   If you have 120/90 series tire on the rear you may still have some finagling to do - including letting air out of tire- to get the wheel out, but if you have a 'normal' 4.00x18" tire or a 110/90 series tire it should be able to slide out the back under the fender, tilting the wheel towards you (and you are working from the left side of the bike, where the pinch bolt for the rear axle is lcoated)..

[Tzigane]

Thanks for the good advise! That sounds very doable!

I consulted the BMW airhead specialist in the Netherlands, and got the advice to change part 2 and 3:



with a 95% certainty that those are the culprits.

[donbmw]

Of th 30 years of riding my 82 R65 since new I have change the orings on the brake cam shaft a couple of times for the rear drive leaking. To this day have not changed the drive gear seal or housing gasket. May have to know since I am talking about it.

[Tzigane]

I've decided to bring the bike to a bmw airhead specialist, I feel better having someone who knows what he's doing working on it. =)

[Tzigane]

The bike is fixed!

The final drive has been repaired (which, supposedly, was a very tough and dirty job, good thing I didn't attempt it on my own in front of my house on the street)

Most regular maintenance thingies are done too, the only thing that needs to be done is synchronising the carbs, and maybe change the fork oil. I suspect it's in there for quite a while, but the springs feel fine.

[Bob_Roller]

The final drive shouldn't give you any leakage problems for quite some time now .