[Blindstitch]

Why do you need to clean the oil strainer pickup?



I know it says in the manual to do it but why? Is there something metallic that makes a mess and needs to be cleaned or the fear of oil turning to tar and plugging everything?



And how often do you do it? Miles, Years, hours...



Gotta love getting new toys that look similar but need different things.

 

[CXPHREAK]

I have a mates 650 here I am currently recommisioning and the pickup screen is on the agenda.



On other vehicles I have often found disturbing amounts of silicon blobs and other crap so I guess this is the reason that the screens need routine checking and cleaning.



Too much obstruction to oil flow here and your motor will be toast.

 

[cdyoung1985]

Why do you need to clean the oil strainer pickup?



I know it says in the manual to do it but why? Is there something metallic that makes a mess and needs to be cleaned or the fear of oil turning to tar and plugging everything?



And how often do you do it? Miles, Years, hours...



Gotta love getting new toys that look similar but need different things.

Basically, if you don't, then you can end up like me and get 5 miles and have a blown motor lol. Don't know how often, I'd probably do it once a year since it's easy enough, and if it's clogged, your screwed. Wouldn't be a bad idea to do it more often, but if I had another one, I'd clean it before riding, then every winter, while you're at it you can clean the oil pan and have a nice clean engine, then you know you won't have sludge build up or anything.....

 

[Blindstitch]

Basically, if you don't, then you can end up like me and get 5 miles and have a blown motor lol. Don't know how often, I'd probably do it once a year since it's easy enough, and if it's clogged, your screwed. Wouldn't be a bad idea to do it more often, but if I had another one, I'd clean it before riding, then every winter, while you're at it you can clean the oil pan and have a nice clean engine, then you know you won't have sludge build up or anything.....

Since you say the engine is blown up have you ever thought of taking off the oil pan and seeing if anything was going on there. Maybe you're just paranoid. Seems the oil light should have came on if it wasn't pumping.

 

[cdyoung1985]

Since you say the engine is blown up have you ever thought of taking off the oil pan and seeing if anything was going on there. Maybe you're just paranoid. Seems the oil light should have came on if it wasn't pumping.

I took the pan off, it was full of metal shavings, brass, and the pickup was covered in some sort of gunk... Dunno if the oil light worked, don't know if any of them did for that matter, didn't have it going long enough to get that far

 

[NateDawg]

The oil switch is at the bottom, so it only tells you if your oil falls below a certain level. If the pickup is clogged, your oil light wouldn't tell you. Cleaning the pickup every year sounds VERY excessive to me. If you blow a head gasket and got milky oil I would recommend it. Or if you take something apart and find crud in the motor somewhere, then this would be a part of the cleaning process, or if you don't know if it was ever done. But if you have done it before, and have had a clean motor, I wouldn't worry about it until there was a dirty motor event

My 2 pence.

 

[bandit]

The oil switch is at the bottom, so it only tells you if your oil falls below a certain level. If the pickup is clogged, your oil light wouldn't tell you.

Nate,is a 650 different...most engines will have their oil warning light come on if pressure drops down to a critically low level,irrespective of oil level.



i have generators and compactors here the switch registers level,not pressure.then wont let the machine start.

just wondering....

 

[CXPHREAK]

Definitely a pressure switch. Don't know about these specifically but most automotive oil pressure switches don't trigger until oil pressure is below 4 to 7 PSI. The motor is probably beginning to suffer if pressure dips much below 20 PSI.



As Shep says, it's best to consider these as an engine shagged light.

 

[bandit]

Definitely a pressure switch. Don't know about these specifically but most automotive oil pressure switches don't trigger until oil pressure is below 4 to 7 PSI. The motor is probably beginning to suffer if pressure dips much below 20 PSI.



As Shep says, it's best to consider these as an engine shagged light.

thanks CXP,thats what iv always been told from an early age.....if your oil light comes on while riding....the chances are you have a ruined engine.

 

[cdyoung1985]

I know I've blown many cars up due to running out of oil, or running low I should say, and I've never seen an oil light come on. If companies were smart they'd have it to where if your oil isn't perfect or close to it, a light comes on...



I'd just clean the pan more often just due to the fact that it's easy enough to do, so why not, but then again, I've felt the repercussions of not cleaning it, and I TRY to learn from my mistakes, unless it's checking oil in a car evidently.....

 

[NateDawg]

oops. Now I remember a post by Reg and a pressure test he did on an oil switch.It was more like 4 psi the switch closed at

 

[Reg in Bristol]

Why do you need to clean the oil strainer pickup?



I know it says in the manual to do it but why? Is there something metallic that makes a mess and needs to be cleaned or the fear of oil turning to tar and plugging everything?



And how often do you do it? Miles, Years, hours...



Gotta love getting new toys that look similar but need different things.

I see it more as a check or indicator

Some I've seen were clean and some, especially on shagged motors clogged with crap

The one on my spare engine looked clean when I removed it and I found that encouraging

Just a small speck or two of 'stuff'.

Had it been full of debris it would have knocked my confidence in the motor



Yep, Nate's right I found the oil pressure switches work at about 4 psi.

Not a lot is it? if I ever see it come on when it shouldnt

that would be very alarming

 

[Shep]

As above.I've had a couple of crapped out engines that had clogged oil pump strainers which will have aided in their early demise.One of those engines was also one that had the oil filter washer missing and the spring was pushed down into the rubber grommet of the Oil filter which meant the oil filter may well have not been there

As for the oil warning light it should be renamed,"Your engine is F*cked" light IMNSHO unless you have one of the CX models that has the oil light wired with the rear light/brake thing.

 

[Reg in Bristol]

Following Sheps description I might inscribe

EF

on my oil light

 

[Russ]

now I'm getting paranoid that I didn't clean mine when I did the oil change this weekend.. oil was dark but didn't find anything in it.. guess i'm just jumpy since it's only been running for a couple months and I have no clue what previous owners have done. Just how simple is this to do? would be worth the cost of more oil if that's all I'd have to get..

 

[Shep]

As you have gathered Reg I am not enamored by older engine/auto designs that use these crappy oil warning systems.Why they didn't use a better sensor to tell you when the oil pressure is lower than required I don't know.At least then we would have a fighting chance

 

[Shep]

now I'm getting paranoid that I didn't clean mine when I did the oil change this weekend.. oil was dark but didn't find anything in it.. guess i'm just jumpy since it's only been running for a couple months and I have no clue what previous owners have done. Just how simple is this to do? would be worth the cost of more oil if that's all I'd have to get..

I wouldn't panic but with you having a 650 where the engines and engine spares are less prolific I would plan to check it some time soon just as preventive maintenance.All you would need is a front cover gasket in most cases or you can make your own,



http://globalcxglvtwins.hostingdelivered.com/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=256



I doubt you will have a problem depending on the mileage and how well the bike was maintained but prevention is better than cure as they say for not much cost except time

We none of us know what POs did or didn't do until we check these things.

 

[cdyoung1985]

now I'm getting paranoid that I didn't clean mine when I did the oil change this weekend.. oil was dark but didn't find anything in it.. guess i'm just jumpy since it's only been running for a couple months and I have no clue what previous owners have done. Just how simple is this to do? would be worth the cost of more oil if that's all I'd have to get..

I wouldn't panic but with you having a 650 where the engines and engine spares are less prolific I would plan to check it some time soon just as preventive maintenance.All you would need is a front cover gasket in most cases or you can make your own,



http://globalcxglvtwins.hostingdelivered.com/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=256



I doubt you will have a problem depending on the mileage and how well the bike was maintained but prevention is better than cure as they say for not much cost except time

We none of us know what POs did or didn't do until we check these things.

The 650 has an oil pan on the bottom of the motor, whereas the 500's you have to take the front cover off, so you just need an oil pan gasket, not sure if you could just permatex it or use a cereal box or not. It's just 8 or 10 bolts I think, something like that, takes maybe 1/2 hour to do

 

[Shep]

Good point.I always forget that Honda made that improved modification to the 650s.I wish the 500s had it

 

[cdyoung1985]

Good point.I always forget that Honda made that improved modification to the 650s.I wish the 500s had it

I wish I'd have known when I got my GL650 going down the road, she'd still possibly be riding had I known, don't know how bad she was before my 5 mile trip, but she only made it 5 miles and I found the pickup clogged and brass shavings everywhere....