hi people just wondering, i changed the oil on my zx14 07 model tonite and may have stuffed it up.i refitted oil bung and filter then poured oil in. first time ive done this myself. anyhow when i looked down at the sight glass it looked like i over filled it, so i got my pan and drained the oil out again. but when i origanaly drained the old oil out i emptied the pan and took the pan outside and leaned it against the shed wall on the ground.so when i dropped the good oil into the pan i then emptied the pan back into the bottle then topped up the bike again.i think when the pan was leaning aginst the wall the spout may have got a bit of dirt on it so im worried some of it might have got into the bike. im not much of a mechanic ( as you can tell) but what should i do or am i paranoid about nothing. would like some suggestions please. cheers fellas.

Oil is cheap compared to motors, If you think the oil is contaminated drain & replace it. If you haven't run it there is no need to replace the filter, you should replace the filter every time you change the oil, don't forget to replace the crush washer each time you take the drain plug out.

Neil

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Large grit will sit at the bottom forever.
Large grit will not be sucked up the oil pump and damage blades.
Small grit will pass thru the pump blades, but then be caught by the filter before entering the engine.
Ignore it.

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anyhow when i looked down at the sight glass it looked like i over filled it, so i got my pan and drained the oil out again.

That's cuz there was no oil run into the filter or the engine yet. You had it right if you poured in about 4.3 quarts. just looks high before you run it cuz all the oil is in the pan.

ENGINE OIL AND FILTER CHANGE

When you check oil, do exactly as I recomend in the tutorial. Always Same spot on garage floor always after oil has been run through engine always on a dead cold engine, never less than 3 hours after the bike has been shut down. There has been so much needless confusion about checking oil level. It's really pretty simple if you can get your head down low enough and hold the bike. If you can't have someone look for you while you balance the bike straight up and down.

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I'm with Hub. Any chunks that mighta got poured in would get filtered. If there was any solids small enough to get hrough an oil filter, I doubt they could do much harm. The bigger the chunks, the easier it would be for the filter to catch it or else it would settle to the bottom of the pan. Also gotta agree with Neilp. If there is any question about oil purity, just throw it out. No need to put crap in there.

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What oil did you use?
I've never seen this discussed on a bike forum before...

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And yes, like Rook said, you have to run the engine, let it settle for a few minutes, and then check the level on a flat surface. If you check it after filling it, without running it, the true amount of oil won't read right. If you check it first thing in the morning before a ride, the level won't be accurate either. Keep your chain lubed.
Look way ahead and steer right to turn left.

OK, Rant over.

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I'm pretty adamant about waiting a few hours after running the bike. Just like the oil is all down in the pan when you first fill it, the oil is all up in the engine right after you shut down. It takes hours for the oil in the engine to drip back down to the oil pan and cool. Oil expands quite a bit when it warms up. This will give you a false reading. Between the oil that has circulated in the engine and the temperature of that oil, you'll drive yourself nuts. Just run the motor and wait until it is cold as a stone before you bother with checking. If its cold every time after that when you check, you will be able to read the level accurately.

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Okay...what's all this fuss about?What does the MANUAL say about quantity?With or without filter change?You don't need to check ANY oil level guys.

Drain oil.(assuming it's change time).Replace drain bolt with washer.Keeping filter unreplaced?ADD the book recommended amount for that procedure.Replace oil fill cap(with O-ring).Start bike.Stop bike after it starts and runs for a minute or so.YOU ARE DONE...period.

Changing filter as well?Drain oil.Replace filter.Install drain bolt with washer.ADD the recommended amount for THAT procedure.Replace oil fill cap(with O-ring).Start bike.Stop bike after it starts and runs for a minute or so.YOU ARE DONE.

Checking it again after refilling or whatever is COMPLETELY unnecessary.SKIP THAT.Think about it.After running for a couple of minutes...check drain bolt and filter seal area for drips(there could be residual oil already on those parts...so it might appear as a drip)..wipe off and check again later..And again(during or after) the first ride after filling.

You can stick a 2X4 under the stand if you're not comfortable pulling the bike into the vertical from the side by yourself.This should give you enough vertical attitude to see oil in the sightglass...now mark the sightglass with White Out or something similar at the level it's showing.Do this each time you want to check the level...and you will be able to determine if she's blowin oil...or staying good.SIMPLE;)The bike doesn't HAVE to be perfectly vertical...long as it's showing the glass...and you've added the CORRECT amount of oil as per procedure in the manual.

IF you've changed the oil with the 2X4 under the stand...then that visual level after starting and all should show easily in the glass...mark it then.And check levels with the 2X4 everytime.

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 1/14/2015 @ 10:06 PM *

gee thanks fellas with all your feed back it was really helpfull. ive talked to a few friends in the know and they seemed to come to the same conclusion that if its only a small amount of dirt got in there it would sit on the bottom or get caught in the filter.so all seems good. ill be very meticulous with the next service.by the way i use shell advance ax5 4t 15w-50. cheers again.

hey HUB that national anthem of "straya" is a beauty it should be australias national anthem.

Checking it again after refilling or whatever is COMPLETELY unnecessary.SKIP THAT.Think about it.After running for a couple of minutes...check drain bolt and filter seal area for drips(there could be residual oil already on those parts...so it might appear as a drip)..wipe off and check again later..And again(during or after) the first ride after filling.

True. One of the reasond I don't usually look at the oil level until the next day when the oil is cold and all dripped back to the crank case. If you just changed the oil and you put in the recommeded amount, it's at the right level. You might want to verify the level after you change oil the first few times. if you consistently follow the same EXACT procedure, it will always be the same after filling it with the proper amount of oil. The only way it could be otherwise is if if you had a serious leak. I'd think you'd notice oil on the floor before you ever got to checking the sight glass. The sight glass is for the cumulative effect of oil consumption that takes place over hours of running the motor. It's good to check it before each ride but right after an oil change, not really necessary if you know the proper amount of oil the bike takes.

IF you've changed the oil with the 2X4 under the stand...then that visual level after starting and all should show easily in the glass...mark it then.And check levels with the 2X4 everytime.

Whatever method you use, if you do it under exactly the same conditions every time, that should be reliable.

As mentioned before, if the bike is not held at the same angle left to right and even front to back, that can have an effect on the level in the sight glass. Also, warm oil is BIGGER than cold oil. It expands a lot from heat so warm oil will look higher (assuming it has all ran back to the crank case). Check cold check always in the same spot using the same method.

* Last updated by: Rook on 1/15/2015 @ 5:09 AM *

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