I've noticed oil on these parts almost since the bike was new. There has been a gradual buildup of oil and dust around the bottom of the throttle bodies

and on the cable spool.

Is this common? I don't see any oil seepage up higher around the ducts so this is about as far as it goes, I guess. I remember seeing oil inside on the throttle plates but the airbox is pretty dry and so is the filter element.

* Last updated by: Rook on 7/11/2014 @ 9:18 PM *

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Hi Rookster!...MAYBE it's blowing forward from the valve cover right there...OR..the lower throttlebody intake attachment point...those screws for the ducting...they tight right there?

I,ve never seen any oil at the back of the valve cover so I don't think it could be coming off of a valve cover leak + the oil and dirt are ONLY around the tops of the throttle bodies holders--so I felt the oil was coming from within the TB holders. The clamps on the Tb holders are tight but you can only tighten that sort of clamp so much before the clamps start to bend. NO way can you torque those to spec -- well, I think the bottom clamps have spacers that would stop the tabs from bending. Those clamps are made of too light of metal to be intended to synch off the holders like a hose clamp. In any case, the clamps are tight and I had the Tbodies off a couple years ago and the holders themselves fit quite tight without clamps.

You gave me an idea though. The idea of oil blowing backward. There is some wind under there, I'm sure but not enough that the oil would blow off the engine from one part to the next--at least I don't think so. You'd expect to find oil blown onto other parts as well but there is none. However the spool does look just like the oil was blowing backward, doesn't it? ...or else, the oil seeped when the spool was rotated about 120 degrees clockwise. That would be about WOT, I'd guess. SO the leak is happening under heavy load and maybe not at all during normal use. That's one theory. NO surprise.

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Wipe it clean and monitor it. Head looks too clean. Rest of the t-body looks too clean. What say air turbulence and it's more rust and dirt than oil. Does it smell like oil? Is it tacky/filmy like oil?

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Actually that pic was taken after the head cover was washed off, Hub but all there was on the cover was dust and some small gravel and tiny chunks of asphalt. The Tbodies were not washed because I wanted to show this pic first.

What say air turbulence and it's more rust and dirt than oil. Does it smell like oil? Is it tacky/filmy like oil?

No rust anywhere on the bike. I shmeared my finger through the film and it definitely feels greasy like oil saturated with dust.

Wipe it clean and monitor it.

That's what I've been doing since I first noticed it 5 1/2 years ago. It doesn't seem to be getting worse. I think I may be overserviing the oil a bit. I don't use a measuring cup or anything but I put in very close to what the book recommends for oil capacity (1 gallon, 10 fl oz). My oil is at the top line when I check it. Maybe I should shoot for center of the lines.

* Last updated by: Rook on 7/13/2014 @ 12:27 PM *

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Start the bike up and let it idle.

1. First, I'm going to grab my bellcrank, move it up and down, turn the crank a little and move it up and down again. First is to check to see how wobbly that shaft is in that bearing rub.
2. Look at the rubber spigots bounce when I start the bike and watch it idle.
3. So for every action, we see the reaction, right? What do I look like behind the bellcrank?
4. I may not be oil but sticky old varnish like gas vapor.
5. I suck air in between that worn shaft to bearing, my for every action is going to push fuel out that shafthru.
6. Could that much vapor wrap around the front of the bellcrank face? How constant do I look we take a peek at that area and it is peppered with the same?

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