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Got her running, slight oil leak

2935 Views 3 Replies 2 Participants Last post by  Helmut
Well I put the wheels back on my 86 trx350 with the new tires and I Just couldnt stop myself from taking her for a little rip around the garage parking lot. no brakes, and no fenders but she purred just like a kitten. I decided to let it run for about 15 mins to see if the fan would kick on or if the oil light would light up. Neither did and the engine did get quite hot, although I'm not sure just how hot is hot on one of these bikes. When I shut it down I could hear oil trickiling around in the valve area. I stuck my finger in the oil filler hole (slowly) and it was hot but not scalding, also the oil cooler was hot to the touch (I guess its curculating which is good) but again not uncomfortably hot to the touch. So either it just didnt get hot enough or the oil temp sensor is gone. Is there any way of testing the oil temp sensor in place? I just put fresh oil in it and I'd rather not drain it. Also there is a slight oil leak in the valve cover where it seems the shop stripped one of the valve adjuster cap bolts, can this be just sealed temporarily with high temp silicone on the outside or do I really need to helicoil the stripped bolt hole right now? Sorry for the long post but I thought I would cover everything in one shot.
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I decided to let it run for about 15 mins to see if the fan would kick on or if the oil light would light up. Neither did and the engine did get quite hot, although I'm not sure just how hot is hot on one of these bikes.
It probably wasn't warm enough. The oil temperature has to be over 270-306 degrees F. before the fan will kick on. The oil temperature has to go over 378-414 degrees F. before the oil temp light will come on.

Also there is a slight oil leak in the valve cover where it seems the shop stripped one of the valve adjuster cap bolts, can this be just sealed temporarily with high temp silicone on the outside or do I really need to helicoil the stripped bolt hole right now?
I've never tried it, but Hondabond might temporarily keep the valve cover from leaking. It wouldn't hurt anything to try. Just put some Hondabond on the gasket areas where the rubber O-rings are and tighten down the other bolt. Also, put some around the stripped bolt and put it down into the bolt hole and let it all dry good before running the engine. I don't like the idea of using silicone on the engine, because it can break loose on the inside and stop the oil pump up. I've actually had that to happen once.
I was just talking more about placing the silicone on the outside just to stop it from leaking. I dont have any idea where I could find hondabond around here.
I don't know if it would hold on the outside or not. I've never tried that.
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