broken sight glass

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Old 04-19-2012, 05:33 PM
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Angry broken sight glass

Sight glass broke, oiled my right boot then my brake. Parts ordered will see how much of a pain it turns out to be. Lost my manual might have to wing~it.

Pointers
 
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Old 04-19-2012, 06:38 PM
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Not a hard job at all. You'll have to just remove that case side cover.

Going by memory so might forget something..
Order new side case gasket
Pull the brake pedal, detach clutch cable on the low side
remove water pump cover, water pump impeller (careful with the seal)

Then pull the side case. There's like 12-15 8mm cap bolts that hold it on.
PROTIP: some are different lengths. To not get messed up, take a piece of cardboard and sketch the case cover and put dots for each bolt. Then as you take off the bolts, stick them into your cardboard sketch in the right spots.

Once you have the case cover off, the sight glass is held on by one bolt I believe. Swap, put it back together and ride.

Someone verify I haven't missed a step, I forget things often
 
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Old 04-19-2012, 06:50 PM
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Trail fix ideas for this one? Never thought about that little bugger...
 
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Old 04-19-2012, 06:57 PM
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turnsleft:
check my 351 thread https://www.kawasakiforums.com/forum...351-0-a-36944/ for pics of the other side of the site glass. I looked at that when I had it apart and just figured it would be a press out / press in fit. PM me your private email if you want a copy of the manual. Let us know how this one turns out.

edit - here's one pic:
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Last edited by IDRIDR; 04-19-2012 at 09:11 PM. Reason: added pic
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Old 04-19-2012, 07:04 PM
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Originally Posted by WhiskeyTF
Trail fix ideas for this one? Never thought about that little bugger...
try to clean it up best as possible and duct tape ?
 
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Old 04-19-2012, 07:21 PM
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Or, you can cut your own gasket, which I prefer. Get a sheet or two of good fiber gasket material (instead of the cheapo OE crap.) Place side cover over and trace around, "dot" the holes. Hold the gasket up to your case and "indent" the inner edge, making sure the gasket doesn't slip or move. Cut the inside. Use paper punch for the bolt holes. Use gasket sealer of your choice. (Use alcohol or naptha to ENSURE the edges are oil free.) Apply to both case edge and cover edge. Allow to tack about 15-20 min. Gently place the gasket on the case edge while you insert bolts through cover. Finger tighten to snug (ONLY!) Allow another 20 min for gasket/sealer to begin to cure. Tighten to "more snug" and don't squeeze out the goo. Allow another 10-15 min, then torque to spec.
 
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Old 04-19-2012, 08:04 PM
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Originally Posted by CousinLarry
Not a hard job at all. You'll have to just remove that case side cover.

Going by memory so might forget something..
Order new side case gasket
Pull the brake pedal, detach clutch cable on the low side
remove water pump cover, water pump impeller (careful with the seal)

Then pull the side case. There's like 12-15 8mm cap bolts that hold it on.
PROTIP: some are different lengths. To not get messed up, take a piece of cardboard and sketch the case cover and put dots for each bolt. Then as you take off the bolts, stick them into your cardboard sketch in the right spots.

Once you have the case cover off, the sight glass is held on by one bolt I believe. Swap, put it back together and ride.

Someone verify I haven't missed a step, I forget things often
Yep good call, that's what I did when I installed the kick starter on the wife's bike.

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Old 04-19-2012, 08:22 PM
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Originally Posted by jeffzx9
Or, you can cut your own gasket, which I prefer.

Yep, that's what I do. NAPA sells rolls of it in like 5ft sections for $5. I've made hundreds of gaskets, saved a lot of money. I didn't mention it to OP though because to most people it's easier to just buy the gasket.

My wife has lots of craft supplies including some nice scissors and hole punches of different sizes.

This is the last gasket I made:


If you can get the old one off in decent condition, just trace it. If not, lay the material over the new surface and use rubber mallet to tap it on and "trace" the edges.

Good stuff!
 
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Old 04-19-2012, 08:41 PM
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+1^ The home-made type just seem to work better for me.
 
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Old 04-19-2012, 08:50 PM
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Just curious, how did you guys break it.
 


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