urgent problem. with pictures.

[PowellB]

I can identify with you, man. I replaced the front brake pads on my EX500 the other day for the first time and went through hell figuring it out, despite the how-to I was following.

Doesn't it feel good when it all comes together in the end though?

So what if it takes several hours to finish that "45 min" job... lessons learned

 

[reiobard]

wow, sounds like i went to bed too early last night.... glad that it got all sorted out and you are done, the next oil change will be a lot better, i promise.

Now just take this for what it is, but the FZ is the easiest bike i have ever done an oil change on...

the rubber gasket on the oil filter IS the o-ring that we are all talking about. but sounds like you got it all together, run it for a few minutes in the daylight and then check for drips or leaks, if there are none then you did everything right.


:thumbup: to doing your own maintenance. now that you did it yourself you can save $60 every time you need it changed now. by doing it yourself. and the next one will take about 20-30 minutes.

 

[wrightme43]

Dude

You know that 90% of this is just thinking to much right????? :thumbup:

In the future you should be able to remove and install your filter by hand.

The drain plug should take one sharp rap from your hand on the ratchet to break loose and it should be very easy to do.

Glad you got it all done.

 

[necrotimus]

Another method besides the screwdriver method that sometimes works when your oil wrench is too big is to wrap a towel, sock etc around the filter for extra bulk and if necessary throw a rubber glove around it for traction. Have had to do this on a number of ocassions.

 

[Boneman]

Wow, epic thread!!...possibly sticky worthy..hmmmmm... :rockon:

I thought I was the only one who had issues with trying to get the oil filter off. Last time I tried to change my own filter, I went out to LORDCO and bought one of theose cup style oil filter 'wrencehs'...damn thing broke on me where at the head where you put the ratchet in!! Split into two pieces!

I was like WTF...just how much frigging tourque did the mechanics use to put this damn thing on?? 100lbs?

It almost sounds that there is an issue with both Yamaha and dealers severly overtightening oil filters. Apparantly they all missed the class where "hand tight is enough" was taught.

I have since purchased a higher end and propper fitting cup style oil filter wrench (like the one pictured in this thread) from my dealer. I made sure it fit properly on the oil filter before I bought it. From what I've read here, it sure sounds like K&N is the way to go for ease of installation/removal.

Glad to hear that FZ6-Forum.com swooped in and saved the day again for someone. We should make a new comic book hereo - FZ6 Man!!

I bet lonesoldier84 had a sleepless night after all that! Good on ya for asking questions and keeping at it. My rage would have kicked in 30min into it and I would have burned down my garage! :banghead: As others have stated, you will look back on this (possibly now) and laugh. Main thing is you now learned how to do something yourself on your bike and the next time it will actually be a 10min job!! :thumbup:

 

[YamahaMAXdRPMs]

wait.... we are suppose to change the oil on our bikes? WTF!? i got 5k miles on mine, why didnt you FOCKERS TELL ME!!














syke... but seriously, that oil filter "socket" works great... $3 at walmart! :thumbup:, if i remember correctly, (atleast my walmart) only had 2 and its the bigger one... if your not sure, take a oil filter w/ u to check (a new one obviously, next time you change oil) just get the old woman at the front (usually has curly white hair, glasses and sitting in a chair, her name is dorthy) to give you a little smiley sticker on it so you dont get upercutted by walmart security

 

[Sawblade]

This thread is classic.

 

[wolfc70]

I had no problems with the filter during the first oil change. It was the stupid drain plug!!! It was on so tight that I had a friend sit on the bike to hold the brakes so it would not roll forward off the center stand!! All subsequent oil changes have been fairly drama free. No matter how I do it, I always get some oil on the pipes.

 

[FZyLarry]

Lonesoldier, you missed one thing that could have made this oil change more fun. I had a filter stuck on the block of an old Ford I owned once and I was using the screwdriver method to get it off. It was also a freezing day (only northern Ohio cold, not Alberta cold). After the screwdriver trick broke the filter loose I was unscrewing it by hand and the hole where the screwdriver went through ripped a wicked slice in my finger. Because it was colder than a well diggers ass in Montana, I bled like a stuck pig.

Maybe you can try for that one next time :cheer:

j/k

 

[MarinaFazer]

hey, at least you hit the drain pan, right? My first oil change, I severely underestimated how fast the oil would drain and it shot right over my pan on to the driveway WOOHOO!!! FIELD GOAAALLLLLL!

And the first time taking off the factory filter was a PITA...I almost took it to the dealer I was so frustrated.

But patience and walking away and coming back with a beer solved everything.

and yes...I dropped my drain plug into the bottom of the container and sadly watched it fill with HOT oil (it was warmer than expected after a 5 minute warmup ride )....nothing like the house kitchen tongs to fish it out! shhhhh, don't tell the housemates

 

[04fizzer]

I have to say it...I've been laughing at you through the entire thread. This is the funniest thing I've read in a long time.

Part of the confusion was your terminology. For our internet safety, and to save you embarrassment another time down the road, o-rings are rubber (or at least rubber like). Anything that's not rubber is a gasket. That'll save a lot of headaches down the road.

Glad you got the filter sorted out. Be sure to get that oil drained before you even THINK about starting the bike. If you don't, you're looking at some SERIOUS engine damage. Fluids don't compress (hence hydraulic systems), and if you try to start the bike, the pistons will come down so fast, and with so much force, that you're looking at breaking a lot of stuff inside the engine.

And next time...(experience talking) read the manual. It has all the fluid capacities spelled out in black and white. Don't trust some croney behind the counter. The very rarely know what they're talking about, especially with a bike that doesn't have much of a following (unlike the R6's and such).

 

[FZ1inNH]

I had no problems with the filter during the first oil change. It was the stupid drain plug!!! It was on so tight that I had a friend sit on the bike to hold the brakes so it would not roll forward off the center stand!! All subsequent oil changes have been fairly drama free. No matter how I do it, I always get some oil on the pipes.

aluminum foil is your friend here. BD43 has a great thread and showed the foil cupped and wrapped to channel the oil into the pan and keep it off the pipes.

http://www.600riders.com/forum/garage-mechanical-help/1573-how-do-oil-change.html

So, thanks again BD43!

 

[FizzySix]

aluminum foil is your friend here. BD43 has a great thread and showed the foil cupped and wrapped to channel the oil into the pan and keep it off the pipes.

That's pretty clever.

In my drain pan I keep a funnel for refills (easier than trying to aim) and a small piece of aluminum, probably 8"-10" long and 3" wide, folded at 90-degrees along its length. What that makes, then, is an 8"-10" long gutter. That is propped underneath the drain hole to guide the oil into the pan, and keep it off the rest of the machine. I use it for the bike, the lawnmowers, the snowblower, you name it. Almost any small engine I've had seems to have something underneath the drain hole that you don't want to get oil on, and this inexpensive tool has become indispensable.

 

[wolfc70]

aluminum foil is your friend here. BD43 has a great thread and showed the foil cupped and wrapped to channel the oil into the pan and keep it off the pipes.

http://www.600riders.com/forum/garage-mechanical-help/1573-how-do-oil-change.html

So, thanks again BD43!

That is what I have been doing. But for some strange reason (mostly my bad luck :spank, oil flows upwards on the foil. That way when I remove it, it dribbles on to the pipes. Either that or my garage is cursed, small simple projects always seem to go wrong quickly. Besides, it is not an "official" project unless your blood is spilled. Murphy's Law:bow:

 

[FZ1inNH]

That is what I have been doing. But for some strange reason (mostly my bad luck :spank, oil flows upwards on the foil. That way when I remove it, it dribbles on to the pipes. Either that or my garage is cursed, small simple projects always seem to go wrong quickly. Besides, it is not an "official" project unless your blood is spilled. Murphy's Law:bow:

Roll the end that goes under the engine to make a dam/curb so when you lift if out, the oil cannot retreat! :thumbup:

 

[FZ1inNH]

BTW, I accidently overfilled my bike with an extra QT once. I did not start it. I then took a small hose and removed the dipstick to siphon off 1 qt into the Yamalube bottle. The fishtank airhose works great for this.

Make sure the bike is on the side and not the center stand though because with the extra QT, it WILL pour out the dipstick hole when you remove it!

 

[Mattberkshire]

man that guy at the dealer told me 4L and to use it all. i should go hit him in the face or something.

:rof::rof::rof::rof:

Laughed throughout the whole thread. there's nothing like realising you weren't the only one to do these things.

My first oil change I completely f****d the filter, my tool snapped just after putting a hole in the filter making it extremly slippy. I eventually got it off with a belt! I then cracked the sump after overtightnening the drain plug.

I also overfilled my old Fazer 600 with oil. It was towards the end of a long, tiring, day riding around London and I was knackered. That model fazer had a sight glass instead of a dipstick and what I didn't know at the time was the oil had stained the inside of it so I thought it was empty but it was actually overfull. Must have put about 1.5 litres too much oil in. 5 miles later the extra pressure of the oil blew a massive hole in the engine casing.

 

[Hellgate]

That was a cool thread. Made my day. Lonesoldier I'm glad everything turned out okay.

Throttle body sync is next, right? J/K...

Nice rally! :thumbup:

 

[Gilo-FZ6]

glad you got there in the end..i did somrthing simillar with my car..while swapping my std turbo for a higher performance one,i managed to forget to re attatch the drain pipe from the turbo to the sump...end result ..warped head ,scored pistons and cylinder wall,all 16 valves melted beyond recognition and a brand new turbo requireing new seals

 

[lonesoldier84]

LOL

well I am glad I entertained a few of you at least in return for the help. Honestly, if I was solo I wouldnt have had the guts to do what I did. I would have been too afraid of messing something up. Thats why I paid for my first few oil changes.

Next ones will be SO MUCH easier now that I know what Im doing.

Went to dealer today. The oil filter I bought came with an O-ring so no need to open it up again.

Here are some more entertaining bits I left out in my haste to get the job done:

_______________________



So I start the whole procedure by warming up the bike and oil. After idling the bike and occassionally revving it up for about 30 minutes or so, I decide it is probably warm enough. For whatever reason I come to the conclusion that idling the bike wont heat it up so much and it will only be mildly warm. As I am outside and there is a cool breeze it doesnt occur to me how hot the bike has gotten. I reach out and touch one of the bronze pipes in front of the engine. I actually GRAB one. WOW. no fingerprints on about 10% of my right hand. The rest of the job I am doing with first degree burns.

Then, I cut out a massive water jug to serve as an oil pan. After the drain plug is open......I see that I underestimated just how much oil the container would hold. Seemed to me it would hold at least 3L. Well....it didnt.....I run over to other end of garage and back and swap it out for the larger portion which doesnt actually fit under the bike.......:



Then, there was the whole problem with removing the oil filter on the bike. Eventually I manage to get it off. It looks like this now:



and midway through the job when all is open, I forgot to clean it, but it doesnt look so dirty so maybe thats not so critical:



Then after I close it all up, O-ring is not lubed and at the time I thought the O-ring was the steel washer....which you see I was actually had fitting very snugly in the MIDDLE of the oil filter as seen here:



Needless to say the filter would not screw on this way....but I sure did try to do just that for about 20 minutes......rofl wow.

Well, after decided this supposed "O-ring" would not allow the filter to screw in I decided to install the filter without it and put it on the drain plug just because I wanted to use it somewhere. I took off the old washer and oriented it the way the other one was.

Then I cleaned it all up with some old bathroom towels and tucked the bike back into the corner.....after filling it up with 1.2L too much of oil......



Now I am going to jump in the shower after having just returned home from the day's work and will be removing the excess oil with the help of a friend. Will just fill up a single litre bottle of oil and then a little bit more out of the drain plug.

Wow. What an experience. Next one will be WAY easier. But the bike will get much better treatment as now i wont try to delay oil changes to save money.

I did not change the oil after riding season had ended as I had no way of getting it to the dealer. The past 4-5 months or so I would feel so guilty about it every time I thought about the bike...which was pretty much constantly. It was like I was corroding on the inside myself. After seeing how black the oil was on draining it and getting it filled up with fresh oil, felt so relieved.

But I was overcome with emotion as I was finishing up. It was wild. Like seeing your own child in pain and then fixing the problem. I apologized to ye ole fizzy and swore id make it up to her with regular oil changes for life now haha. wow.

Well, before I packed it all up.....I kept this as a memento from my first season of riding. And this wasnt the oil I was a total noob with. It was the oil that for the first time I really stretched my legs as a motorcyclist. The oil on which I took my first spill after hitting gravel, the oil on which I first made contact with my toe sliders on asphalt, the oil on which I first flipped the bike from side to side going through a series of corners, the oil on which I really and TRULY got to know the bike:



:canada::Sport:
Hooray!!!!! Huzzah!!!!

Weeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!