[fibonacci]

Okay, brand new here. Glad I finally found a forum related to my '82 GL500I. Love this bike. I've had it for a little over a year and I have just recently started having issues.



I was forced to let the bike sit for about 3 months and the guy I left the bike with only started it a couple of times while I was away. Ran great before that, but after that, started noticing less and less power. Thought I had carb issues until I finally did a compression test and discovered I had a cracked (yes, cracked) valve. Fixed that and it ran great for about 3 days. Then I start hearing "tap, tap, tap". Checked the tappet clearances multiple times and finally found this website and some really good advice and pix. I'm wondering if maybe I had the valves adjusted improperly the first time I did it (months ago), which caused the cracked valve and also affected the chain and tensioner?



After seeing other postings here, I bought a small dental mirror and checked inside the inspection cover and saw the tensioner slot just like the pic with the caption "if it looks like this, you're dead." Great. I'm only hoping I can come up with the $200 or so for all the parts I'll need. This is my first time in and probably the first time it's ever been opened up at 40,000 mi. I have pretty good mechanics skills but my main worries are getting the exhaust off and the fairing mount bracket. I put an aftermarket electric fan on it after I went through 3 oem fans in less than a year. While I was doing that, I never really got that bracket off.



1.Does the front fender have to come off to get the fairing mount bracket off?



2. Can I pull the exhaust by just pulling the headers out of the heads and removing the mounting bolts elsewhere, or does the whole thing need to come apart? It's pretty well rusted together at the hbox.



3. What is the best way to remove the water pump impeller? I've had the housing off and that cap nut off and it didn't exactly slide right off. I don't want to pry on it or grab hold of it with channel locks...



Thanks in advance, and I'll try to keep this thread updated on my progress

 

[Johnny Canuck]

Fibonacci:



I can't help you on the front fender question, but the others I can...as I'm in the throws of a "triple bypass" procedure so I've just gained some knowledge.



Yes, your exhaust can come out in one piece. Here's a pic of mine. It took a bit of wiggling and jiggling to get it out, but it can come out in one piece. There are a number of posts regarding the use of Harley pipes as an alternative, should you wish to consider a mod.

Your impeller is splined and as such is sitting on a splined shaft. Corrosion is pretty easy, given the coolant is all surrounding it and sometimes it can be hard to "slide" it off. Bikes that have been sitting with questionable or old coolant will probably see corrosion here. I used some PB Blaster penetrating oil on mine...aimed at the shaft the impeller is located on. it wasn't long, only about 10 minutes and it came off like butter. Don't lose the front securing nut, the copper washer under the nut and the special ceramic washer behind the impeller (please note which way is front side of that washer). At lease this was the order of things on my 650E. The pic below shows what is under the back cover. If you're taking off the impeller housing only, you won't see all the internal workings like in this pic, but you can see on that same splined shaft the remnants of the corrosion I was speaking of.

 

[CXPHREAK]

If you are going to reuse the mech. seal clean the white washers face with metho once you have him seated back in the impellor again and give him a wipe with a bar of soap, then don't touch him again.



Same applies to a new mech. seal.

 

[fibonacci]

Thanks for the intel fella's. I'm pretty well strapped right now but it's either fix it right or don't fix it. Also, this is my daily rider so I need it ASAP. That being said, trying to get up the money to do it right could take me a week or two, so I will be taking it apart slowly, writing everything down in case it stretches out too long. Today will probably be the fairing and exhaust, tomorrow the rad and various other pre-drop parts.



I'll keep posting my progress...

 

[Shep]

Cam chain $65(Fits all 500 and 650 models)



http://www.partsnmore.com/parts/honda/cx500/?filters[fitting]=custom



Rear engine gasket if required can be home made if you find wide enough 0.8mm Gasket paper,



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



Mechanical seal(Use inner) $20 + postage.



http://www.partsnmore.com/parts/honda/cx500/?filters[category]=engine&filters[fitting]=custom



http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/HOND...3073715QQptZMotorcyclesQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories



HTH

 

[fibonacci]

Ok, in less than an hour I have the fairing and fairing bracket and exhaust removed. It turns out that the side brackets coming off of the main fairing bracket are removable, which I had never paid attention to before. After that it took a little maneuvering, but the main bracket came right off. Don't forget to unplug the horns!



For the exhaust: after I removed the two nuts attaching the bracket to the silencer on each side, it occurred to me that removing the bracket (one bolt each side, and then it is free to drop) would be much easier. Duh!



I read in another thread that you can pull the motor without pulling the radiator. Does that make it any more difficult? I realize that the AF still has to be drained, but it's only another 10 minutes maybe to pull the rad; is it worth that 10 minutes?



Anyway, it looks like in less than another hour, I can have the motor dropped. Maybe tomorrow. I'm not in a big hurry because I don't even have the money for the parts yet. I figure I will drop the motor and get it all shiny clean while I'm waiting for parts and then open it up and do all of the interior work in one day, so as not to have it open and forget how it all goes back.



More later...



I took a couple of pics, but I am having computer issues trying to get them uploaded. My computer is almost as old as my bike. Ok, maybe that is exaggerating a little bit.



On a similar subject, I have no way to record and upload what it sounded like, but to describe it- It was not a constant tapping, more intermittent. Tap... tap....... tap tap tap... tap. Similar to an HT lead shorting, but I checked that. And the noise appeared to be right about where the tensioner adjustment bolt is. At any rate as I stated before, doing the internal mirror check it appears that the tensioner is as adjusted as it gets, so I want to do this before any serious damage is done.

 

[fibonacci]

By the way CXPhreak, love your accent but I'm not real sure what metho is and did you mean to clean the new one with that also, or just if I reuse the old one?



Thanks again, 11235813

 

[fibonacci]

Ok, engine out, rear cover off. Cam chain tensioner arm broken. If I can only remember the size of the bolt to pull alternator rotor with now, I'll be halfway there. I'm thinking M20 X 1.5? And what specifically do I ask for at the auto parts store, because I don't think they stock something that big in the aisle? I do remember it being mentioned as an oil drain plug but I don't remember what vehicle specifically...



I know, I'm looking through the rest of the forum now to see if I can find it, but if anyone currently on this site can help me out in the next few minutes I'd appreciate it...



Thanks ya'll



11235813

 

[Blue Fox]

It is a Subaru oil pan drain plug. Glue a washer on the end to extend the length.

 

[fibonacci]

Thanks Blue Fox,



I guess the gods are conspiring against me. Went to auto store and they had NO drain pan plug bolts at all. Something about a recall... Of course, I only had time to hit one store. I'll probably hit another today.



I ordered the cam chain and mechanical seal from PartsNMore (Thanks Shep). The rest of the parts, o-rings, gaskets and such, I ordered from MRCycles. A total of about $200 worth of parts with shipping.

I'll probably have more questions when the parts come in and I start putting the puzzle back together.



Thanks guys,



11235813

 

[Shep]

I know $200 may seem a harsh at the moment(But hopefully the links have saved you some money) but a couple of things to make you feel better.



1:Once you have done this major service you can expect anything between 50,000 to 70,000 miles without trouble just doing routine maintenance and oil/filter and coolant changes and tappet and cam chain adjustments.



2:Some years ago a pal of mine bought a 2nd hand Honda VFR.Not long after owning he had to get a new collector box(H-box) for the exhaust system.



The OEM part cost £580.00 GBP = $927.434 USD

 

[CXPHREAK]

By the way CXPhreak, love your accent but I'm not real sure what metho is and did you mean to clean the new one with that also, or just if I reuse the old one?



Thanks again, 11235813

I write with an accent?

Metho = methylated spirits, which I think to you is denatured alcohol.



I clean the new seals too, this is done to remove any skin oil or other filth that has managed to get on the polo mint during assembly into the impellor.



They say not to touch the face but I have never managed to get one together without touching the face but as long as the face is cleaned it doesn't really matter.



The bar soap is for lube on start up.

 

[fibonacci]

Shep - I guess I was complaining with a frowny face when I should be happy that once it's done it will pay for itself in a matter of weeks. Just missing my ride right now is all. Big boxy van, or motorcycle... gee, I wonder which I would rather be on/in... Of course, it is the rainy season here, so big boxy van has to do once in a while.



CXPhreak - Denatured alcohol I do have.



The manual says to heat the rear cover in an oven when installing a new mechanical seal. Are there other options besides that?



Thanks again

 

[Shep]

The manual says to heat the rear cover in an oven when installing a new mechanical seal. Are there other options besides that?



Thanks again

http://www.pdsrecording.site90.com/cxgl500/Mseal.html



http://globalcxglvtwins.hostingdelivered.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=355

 

[fibonacci]

Thanks Blue Fox, I finally found that bolt and got the rotor off.



Here is a pic. First time inserting a pic so I will post this and make sure I got it right before doing another.

 

[ramprat06]

Yipe! It may just be the angle of the pic, but it appears as though the tensioner blade is GONE. Nothing to push against the chain. I know you said "broken", but where is all the bits?

 

[fibonacci]

Ok, so my cell phone camera sucks and I was outside with the sun kinda in front of me so that pic is REALLY bad. Here is another, maybe better, showing the shredding done by the cam chain.

Shep, thanks for the info on the mechanical seal. The copper washer referred to that needs to be re-annealed is the small one that fits inside the polo mint washer? I'm hoping so because that is the only washer I can find that looks like it might have been copper at one time...



Thanks again for all of your help, all of you.



Fib

 

[fibonacci]

Hey Ramprat,



Yeah, the tensioner arm is completely broken off. Glad I stopped and took the time to disassemble before something more permanently horrible occurred. It was still sitting where it belonged when I opened her up, luckily. New parts ordered and I am anxiously awaiting their arrival.



Fib

 

[ramprat06]

 

[fibonacci]

Funny thing is (sort of) the guy I bought it from almost two years ago came by while I was just pulling the motor and asked what I was doing. When I told him, he said "just put it back together and ride it..." and he was serious. What a moron...



Fib