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K75S DIY painting (& polished tank) thread

Nice project, Waiting for the painted pieces with baited breath..lol
Sweeeeeet
 
Timing chain cover leak

Hi Bev; Nice to hear from you (and because your bike and mine were "born" the same month and have such close VINs it feels like we are related, too!).

No, I haven't had any leak from my timing chain cover so far.

It was stuck on pretty well, though (had to tap/hammer the back edge of one side with the plastic handle of a screwdriver a bunch of times to loosen it...). So it is a fair bit of work although mainly comprised of unscrewing or unbolting quite a few bits here and there. Wish I had a bike lift to save my knees and back doing jobs like this.:banghead

Yes, as you can see from my previous posts/photos I decided to go ahead and remove all the engine covers a couple of weeks ago for painting with the PJ1 engine paint (satin black).

I just finished scuffing/stripping*/sanding/repainting them as well as both footpeg plates yesterday afternoon; I baked them in my large portable electric oven at 300 degrees for about 45 minutes once the paint had set.

*(Only stripped the oil/water pump cover that had the bubbling paint/corrosion, then sanded it really well afterwards---the rest of the covers only required a good cleaning and scuffing before paint, thank goodness))


Now I'm heading outside right after a late breakfast here to set about reinstalling everything and refill the cooling system. I think I'll be draining and refilling the tranny oil first while I have the footpeg plates out of the way and maybe do the rear differential oil change at the same time.

Wish me luck getting the radiator hose snaked back throught the crankcase cover; it was hard enough getting it out in the first place. Suppose I'll put some dish soap on it to lube it before pushing it back through...:banghead:violin:banghead:violin:scratch

If all goes well I'll be posting a major update later tonight or tomorrow complete with photos; stay tuned.:wave
 
Nice project, Waiting for the painted pieces with baited breath..lol
Sweeeeeet

Thanks, Haughty!

Your post kind of prompted me to call my paint guy when I read it. The last time I went to town he was out on a delivery and I never got to find out when the rest of the tupperware would be ready.

Everything's looking good for a next-week completion in that department. He said it's taking a long time because the PPG paint needs some time to set properly between stages. He's planning to do the final stage over this weekend---so my fingers are crossed and my breath is also baited...

Meanwhile I'm getting lots of other things attended to while the fairing is still off the bike which I will post an update on late tonight or tomorrow.

Thanks again for your interest!
 
On the way

Jeff,

I've got an extra set of speed bleeders. You're welcome to them. If you send me a mailing address I'll send them off this weekend. I've never installed them because I have a Mity-Vac.

:buds

Jeff - I shipped the bleeders out this morning....

:thumb

Tom
 
Speed bleeders and update on my update...

Thanks again, Tom, that's so nice of you.

Should help immensely in my first-ever brake bleed/flush that I will get to in the next couple of weeks. Will reread the IBMWR and MOA tech articles in the meantime so I hope to have a good understanding of the whole process.

Got half of the engine covers back on yesterday/last night; plan to finish them up today as well as remount the footpegs and footpeg plates (took off both plates for painting).

Hopefully I'll get around to that full update promised yesterday; sorry for the slight delay but it's been a lot more time-consuming than I thought it would. (I needed to clean off the remaining gasket sealer completely before applying the new stuff, make sure I was reinstalling the Hall xmitter correctly, etc., etc.---so I really took my time to make sure I was doing everything right.)

Also, Mother Nature threw us a big curve-ball; our usual NE tradewinds died out and now we're getting slammed with hazardous fumes from the nearby volcanic vents via the SE/S/Westerly winds that shifted in our direction. The sulphur dioxide gas/air quality was so bad yesterday the National Park Service had to evacuate and close the Park (nearby to us) to all visitors. The SO2 levels reached the NPS's Maroon Level (highest of the six thresholds) several times yesterday.

Twice yesterday afternoon I literally had to drop what I was doing, run inside the house, close the doors and wait for it to pass. After a while it cleared up and then it was OK to go outside, more or less.:scratch Sometimes it just hangs in the air all day long, though. Makes us cough, wheeze and feel really sick right here in what otherwise could be called "Paradise.":hungover

Working outdoors with these occasional hazardous conditions throws a wild card into my project/progress more often than not; hence my delayed update once again. I did manage to take some photos which I downloaded while I was waiting out the "vog," though. Stay tuned, folks, a full report is still coming.

The trade winds that blow these noxious clouds of gas and ash away from us are forecasted to return Tuesday. Fingers crossed...!
 
7-month update

Last week I tried to remove that large rusty plug from my water/oil pump but soon realized that it would be necessary to remove the pump entirely in order to do so---so I will have to clean the rust off and have that suffice for now.

While I have the Mobil 1 oils for the rear differential and tranny I will also wait to change them once the bike is all back together, too. That way I can ride and warm everything up well before draining the old oil.

I decided it was prime-time to finish up the engine painting sub-project I had started instead. (The bike's engine was open all around except for some plastic cling-wrap I had wrapped around it to keep out dust and debris while so exposed)

After removing and cleaning all the engine covers I decided to also remove the footpeg plates for cleaning and repainting at the same time. I had recently received the stainless bolts I ordered for the footpegs, etc., so I figured I might as well do it all at once.

I also received the LEDs (decided on blue instead of red that I also ordered) to replace the instrument cluster incandescents and have sealed the inside of the cluster faceplate with super-glue (no problems encountered as I took my time and did one section at a time---it took overnight for the glue to fully set). I reassembled the cluster 90% and hooked it up to make sure it worked and will finish the reassembly as soon as the bike is ready to be completed elsewhere.

I will be taking a night photo of my "new blue cluster" and posting it here as soon as I can conveniently do so (I've had requests from other members in another thread).

These are the bulbs that I used (Type 194 wedge-base Blue WLED-x all 120-degree regular single LEDs---did not use the 4x LEDs at all):
EnginecoversPJ1014.jpg


The engine case/footpeg plate painting went well overall but I am a bit disappointed with the flat black appearance that I ended up with. The PJ1 Satin Black engine paint was supposedly the closest match to BMW OEM engine/fork paint by all the accounts I read here and elsewhere.

In retrospect, I should have applied wetter, heavier coats. The instructions said to apply light, thin coats and since I was afraid of getting runs that's what I did. I also though it might cure with a satin sheen once it was baked---but it stayed the same after 350 degrees for 45 minutes. At least it seems fairly durable as I have cleaned a bit of anti-seize off the finished covers with brake cleaner to no ill effect.

Here are a number of photos of the parts shortly before I started spraying the paint:

(The oil/water pump cover was stripped and thoroughly sanded/brushed beforehand; it cleaned up nicely so there was no need to replace it:))
EnginecoversPJ1021.jpg


After taking this photo I got out my Dremel and did a bit of light grinding to smooth out the scrapes:
EnginecoversPJ1001.jpg


EnginecoversPJ1018.jpg


All the parts laid out for painting:
EnginecoversPJ1016.jpg


My parts oven and rack for the timing chain cover (which has a rubber seal installed that I didn't want to bake so I put it on this rack above to have a "warm" cure instead):
EnginecoversPJ1022.jpg


With new coats of PJ1 paint:

EnginecoversPJ1025.jpg
 
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Engine painting done, radiator hose wrestling and the covers back on......

Here's more pix of the engine covers/ bits in the oven, etc..

EnginecoversPJ1026.jpg


EnginecoversPJ1030.jpg


I had one heck of a time trying to wrestle the lower radiator hose back through the crankcase cover; I finally got it by applying lots of Mother's Back To Black (like Armour All) on the hose as well as the cover tube.

The trick is to stick the bottom end of the hose into the top of the tunnel and push it down while twisting. Pulling it in and out with more lube also helped; I even used a scuff pad on the inside walls of the tunnel to smooth out the paint as much as I could---this also contributed to it finally sliding all the way through.

I was so overjoyed with my hard-won victory that I immediately got out my camera for this shot:

EnginecoversPJ1greasenipple002.jpg


...And then I cleaned the otherwise ready cover so I could reinstall the rubber gasket in its channel (it needed a tiny bit of adhesive in the corners to keep it in place just like the rubber head cover gaskets---Btw, I used contact cement in one and gasket sealer in the other):

EnginecoversPJ1greasenipple003.jpg


Ready to go back on:

EnginecoversPJ1greasenipple004.jpg



All the covers back on with the new stainless fasteners in place (I used plenty of Permatex high-temp anti-seize on them; obviously I still need to finish cleaning the excess off the covers; please excuse the mess---should look sharp thereafter):

EnginecoversPJ1greasenipple005.jpg


EnginecoversPJ1greasenipple007.jpg


As you can see, I still have a decent amount of rust to remove from the center stand and corrosion is beginning to occur elsewhere. These issues will also be dealt with as soon as I can. I'm still reassembling the footpegs and plates which should go on in the next few days... and the rest of the freshly painted tupperware may be ready to pick up soon, too.:dance
 
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30 January progress report

Here's a pic of the blue cluster as promised about a week ago---it's pretty nice but not quite as bright as I'd like. I don't plan on doing much night riding so it'll suffice for now.
Bluecluster009.jpg


I finished reinstalling the newly painted footpeg plates today and used some of the stainless steel bolts I recently received from the UK. It was a bit tricky remounting the rear brake lever, brake light switch and master cylinder but I soon got it all back in place. I found some stainless steel cotter pins at Ace for the footpeg mounting bolts and also replaced the rusty steel washers with stainless flat washers.

Speaking of installing stainless bits, I also received a big aerosol can of Alu-Slip (aluminum anti-seize compound) in the mail the other day. It was from a fellow K rider in Plymouth, England that had recommended it to me as a good quality high temperature anti-seize. I tried to find a domestic source for it before he told me he'd send me some---it's made and sold only in the UK, AFAIK. Such kind people out there in moto-land---thanks, Mike, if you're reading this!:thumb

Mike also replaced all/most of his K75 bolts with stainless and likes the convenience of a spray-on anti-seize. It is pretty nifty; I sprayed several bits today as I finished the footpeg plates. I'll have to post a link to his multi-page K75C resto thread/blog here sometime; it is truly inspiring (and his resto didn't take quite as long as mine, either :blush.

The stock height Corbin got mounted up a couple days ago and it, too, was easier than I expected. After installing the rear hinge pin and circlip it was dead simple to figure out the other bits. While the helmet latch fell off of the lock while I was finishing up the installation I don't think I'll bother with it further as I cannot use it with my Nolan chin strap anyway.

The Corbin came with the plastic combination ECU holder/toolbox so removed the old holder and installed the new one above the battery. It went together well and now I have a tiny bit of extra underseat storage that I didn't have with the low seat before.:dance The Corbin is old but still in very good shape and applying some Mother's Back to Black on it spruced it up considerably. Guess it's finally time to put my Sargeant low seat & hardware up for sale in the Flea Market here; just a tiny heads-up in case anyone needs to do a conversion with their K75; I have 100% of the parts minus the key for the seat lock (it's my ignition key but might be able to figure out the key code if need be).

I found that some of the Corbin's rubber bushings had either fallen off or were very worn so I cut some rubber plugs down to size and glued them in place with contact cement. Now the saddle fits as it should and is nice and steady.

Tomorrow I plan to finally mix up some Prestone anti-freeze & distilled water and refill the now empty cooling system.

I saw my paint guy when I went to town a few days ago and he's still having some problems with the PPG paint---seems as it is prone to wrinkle under certain conditions so he's going to have to resand and respray---again. Fortunately I have a great deal of patience and don't mind waiting a bit longer for the right results.

I won't have much spare time this coming work week so I doubt I'll have much more to report until next month is well underway. I did get a heat gun the other day which I'll use to cure the centerstand and sidestand when I clean and repaint them (with engine paint) next chance I get, though.
 
Seat lock key

The Corbin came with the plastic combination ECU holder/toolbox so removed the old holder and installed the new one above the battery. It went together well and now I have a tiny bit of extra underseat storage that I didn't have with the low seat before.:dance The Corbin is old but still in very good shape and applying some Mother's Back to Black on it spruced it up considerably. Guess it's finally time to put my Sargeant low seat & hardware up for sale in the Flea Market here; just a tiny heads-up in case anyone needs to do a conversion with their K75; I have 100% of the parts minus the key for the seat lock (it's my ignition key but might be able to figure out the key code if need be).


I had the same problem when I did the high seat to low seat conversion...I ordered a couple of key blanks from MaxBMW and when I get them, I will have the local lock shop copy my ignition (or flat key) to the new blanks and then I will have the key to go with the lock I have on sale now on the flea market (hint, hint!)

Bev
STING II
:wave
 
Will return the unopened Prestone to Wal-Mart if I can...

Make sure you get some good coolant for in it. I'd get Zerex G-05 personally, or if there is a BMW dealer nearby, or Mercedes, get their stuff!
http://www.valvoline.com/products/brands/zerex/antifreeze/42

Thanks for the heads-up just in time, Gilly; believe it or not I was getting ready to refill my cooling system with a mix of regular Prestone 40/60 this morning---until I read your post.

I did a search on Prestone here and came up with different opinions regarding its use in K-bikes but I think I'll hold off on the Prestone for now (I'll try to return the unopened gallon to W-M if they'll let me).

I think our local Sears stocks the Zerex G05 you recommend but I'll also check my local bike shops and the Mercedes dealer before making a purchase.

While regular Prestone may be fine I don't want to take any chances---I'll seek out the right stuff instead.

Btw, something called MotoCool/ Motul looks really good; it's free of all the nitrites, silicates, phosphates and amines...:thumb
 
Heading into town in a little while and I'm going to see if I can find some Motul (1st choice) or Zerex. Might also stop by the Mercedes dealer (no BMW on this side of the island) and see what they have on offer.

Thanks for the recommendation, Tom. I don't care if it's expensive; quality only hurts once, I say.
 
Coolant for my K

All I could find that fit the phosphate/amine/nitrite-free bill was some pre-mixed Moterex coolant (Swiss) that the Suzuki bike shop had---looks good and will be refilling my bike with it in the next couple of days.

System capacity is 3.2L if I'm not mistaken; I got 3L and will top off the last .2L with distilled water if necessary. I'll also siphon out the overflow resevoir and flush out the system with a couple gallons of distilled water beforehand since I will no longer need it to dilute the coolant.
 
Hi, Jeff,
There's nothing wrong with Prestone, or even Wal-Mart coolant. Neither has nitrites. I've used them, mixed 40% coolant and 60% DISTILLED water, ever since I bought my first K-bike in 1997. There's nothing wrong with the various coolants others have mentioned, either, except for their propensity to lighten one's wallet unnecessarily.
 
Coolant for my K Part II

I believe you, Phil and I'm sure many others can say the same. I appreciate your input.

Inasmuch as there's no clear-cut consensus on the best anti-freeze for K-bikes (I read a number of threads on the subject here---and was more confused by doing so) I decided to err on the side of caution. Motorex is bike-specific (and I know that our bikes have car engines, but...) and formulated more or less the same as Motul.

I also have read of problems with regular Prestone and that it does contain some phosphates (even though it may state otherwise on the label). I figured why take a chance?

Now I just hope this doesn't turn into another oil thread...:D
 
Maybe I am just lucky, but my K75 has run on green Prestone and distilled water for 21 years and is clean as a whistle inside. I change it about every 5 years. The fact that the entire cooling system is one type of metal (aluminium) helps a lot.

I am not against running premium coolant, just posting my results.

Scott
 
Hi, Jeff,
It's your bike and I wouldn't try to steer you wrong. I looked at the "no nitrites" years ago and then looked at the price of BMW anti-freeze. I read the ingredients for Wal-Mart anti-freeze, then later, Texaco anti-freeze and later still, Prestone anti-freeze. None said anything about nitrites. I've used all three, with no ill effects.

I am frugal, or a cheap SOB, whichever you prefer. That's why I use Wal-Mart anti-freeze, Autolite 4163 spark plugs, Auto Zone or O'Reilly fuel filters, Mobil 1 15w50 synthetic (car) oil - NOT the more expensive 20w50 motorcycle specific oil, blow out and reuse OEM air filters for at least 50k miles, etc. Like you, there are some things I won't compromise. I use OEM or (recently) Mahle OC-91 oil filters.
 
Coolant update & gas tank leak

Hi Phil; I'm usually frugal as well. This time I decided to splurge on the coolant. Turns out it's blue (just like my instrument cluster LEDs:laugh). I got around to flushing the cooling system and refilling it today on my first day off in a while. As usual it all took me longer than expected but I got it done. I didn't spill too much and what I did I cleaned up well---we have curious cats on the premises.:brow

I unlatched the seat so I could lift the gas tank off partially without it getting in the way.

Rigged up a bungee cord onto the tank and stuffed some foam underneath it so I could gain access to the radiator cap while having the gas tank/fuel line still connected:

Coolantchangethrottlebodies007.jpg


This way I was able to start and run the engine while adding coolant. I also hooked up a length of 6" ducting to the muffler which helped get about 50% of the exhaust fumes out of the carport; I still had to run outside, take a deep breath and hold it while slowly adding the Motorex.

(In retrospect, I probably should have gotten out my fresh-air feed respirator and used it while the engine was running but this half-baked method worked OK.)

I also siphoned out the resevoir* without having to undo it from the frame and thoroughly flushed the sytem with distilled water (twice) before adding the pre-mixed coolant.
*
Coolantchangethrottlebodies003.jpg


When I got the engine going I noticed what looked like some milky oil in the sight glass---not a good sign, I think. Later on it seemed to clear up and looked like honey, so maybe it's OK.

This is what it looked like at first:
Coolantchangethrottlebodies008.jpg


Note the waxy stuff around the center dot---should I be worried about this?

Something else croppped up that is definitely a bummer---it appears that I have a small leak in my gas tank. It's in the likely place for such a leak to occur---the lower left point where corrosion occurs first in a lot of K tanks.

I discovered it because I had put several ounces of Marvel Mystery Oil in the tank when I added a small quantity of fuel for the first time since cleaning and polishing the tank last summer. Last week when I reinstalled the engine covers I noticed a reddish fluid all over the left side of the plastic wrap I had covered the camshafts with (to protect the internals while I was painting the covers). At first I thought the fuel line was leaking but today I realized it was coming from the tank's seam as best as I could determine. I ran a paper towel along the underside and there it was; more red fluid (looks just like power steering fluid).

So the tank will come off for a careful external cleaning and application of either JB Weld or FastSteel (my trusty favorite epoxy putty from Home Depot) soon.

Another (lesser) problem is that my throttle body springs are getting rusty:

Coolantchangethrottlebodies010.jpg


I'll probably spray some Inox (Australian corrosion inhibitor/penetrant that may be superior to WD-40 if the claims on the can are valid; non-toxic, will not harm metals, won't wash off, has no acid-forming ingredients, etc., etc.) after trying to brush them with a stainless or brass brush.

Any thoughts on this, anyone?

Suggestions are welcome---I'm leery of messing with the TBs in the first place.

It's getting late so I'll stop rambling and get some shut-eye now.

One last recent photo, though (the repainted footpeg plates shortly before last week's reinstallation):
Coolantchangethrottlebodies002.jpg
 
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5 February update: Headlight & cluster back on, gas tank removed for leak fix.

Made a decent bit of progress today. :)

I decided to see if I could install the headlight and center cowling before the fairing side panels come back from the painter's (I know, I know, someday this'll all be finished...:brow).

To make a long story short, I succeeded in getting the headlight AND newly revised instrument cluster installed and hooked up. Now the fairing sides should reattach easily as far as I can tell.

Before the teardown I had always figured it would be practically impossible to do things in this order as there wouldn't be a way to reach inside the headlight cowl to reattach the various bolts and screws. I was wrong. It was---and should be (when I finish it up)---a piece of cake!

Here's some photos of how it went back together:

BEFORE:
Headlightclusterreassembly5Feb004.jpg


Used a 3mm allen socket (turned by hand) to reconnect the multi pin connector to the back of the cluster:
Headlightclusterreassembly5Feb008.jpg


Then installed the four M6 bolts into the cluster base with another socket bit underneath:
Headlightclusterreassembly5Feb011.jpg


Voila!

Switched on the ignition; hit the starter and the 90/100w Bosch headlight came to life (now seems to benefit considerably from the Eastern Beaver H4 relay I installed last month---the light was very bright!)
Headlightclusterreassembly5Feb012.jpg


Once I got this part done it was on to siphoning out most of the gas left in the tank and removing it for further inspection. I wanted to make sure that the leak was at the lower left seam and not the O-ring between the sender and the tank body.

Sure enough, the left-side seam was the culprit, as suspected:
Headlightclusterreassembly5Feb015.jpg


Here's another shot to give a better perspective as to size and location:
Headlightclusterreassembly5Feb019.jpg


I also discovered another spot of corrosion on the opposite side---I don't think it's leaking yet but I will attend to this as well as the others as soon as I get some proper epoxy:
Headlightclusterreassembly5Feb020.jpg


Just realized that the undertank insulation must be fiberglass---I never noticed it until I was uploading these photos. Another reason to always wear gloves when working on the bike.:nod
 
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