Chain case oil mistake

Nortorious · Apr 30, 2021

Hey folks. I did my first oil change and misunderstood the directions. I drained oil from what I believe is the chain case. I unscrewed the screw circled in red in this image and drained the oil. I suspected I messed up and found it's dry after refilling engine oil.

So I'm hoping you can tell me what I drained, what goes in there, and where do I fill it (the giant bolt above?)

I'm lacking the right language to search and figure this out here or in the manual. Thanks so much!!

Tornado · Apr 30, 2021

That is the oil level bolt....you fill into the inspection port ( large cover plate middle of the primary cover, directly above your circled bolt) until oil drains out the level bolt hole. Bikes needs t obe on the center stand, level ground for this. Alternatively, you can fill with the prescribed amount listed in the workshop & Rider's Guide books, assuming you've completely emptied the case. The only way to empty this case is to remove the outer cover entirely, or rig up some kind of suction pump & hose.

And to be clear, this is just the primary chaincase, which is separate from the engine oil tank. Some folks like ATF fluid in the priimary case, easier to tell what is leaking when seeing puddles (it's red) and lighter, less problem for the clutch plates than engine oil.

Nortorious · Apr 30, 2021

I got some more info. Any more details still very welcomed.

Nortorious · Apr 30, 2021

Thanks! So two more dumb questions. What's the best way to loosen those giant bolts if I lack a giant screwdriver? Also, the manual is pretty vague about the oil. I'm using Royal purple 20w50 HPS for the engine. What sort of oil should I use for the chain case?

MichaelB · Apr 30, 2021

That bolt above is the fastening bolt that holds the outer cover on. Yup, one bolt.
As mentioned, the drain bolt is actually an oil level bolt. There is still oil on the primary, the correct amount.
If you had an excessive amount of oil come out....
1. It was overfilled by the PO.
2. Leaky cank seal allowing engine oil to sump into primary.

BERT · Apr 30, 2021

Nortorious said:
Hey folks. I did my first oil change and misunderstood the directions. I drained oil from what I believe is the chain case. I unscrewed the screw circled in red in this image and drained the oil. I suspected I messed up and found it's dry after refilling engine oil.

So I'm hoping you can tell me what I drained, what goes in there, and where do I fill it (the giant bolt above?)

I'm lacking the right language to search and figure this out here or in the manual. Thanks so much!!

Hi Nortorious. You may not have made a mistake yet. Before you undo any bolts or add fluids, you need to get a manual, the Norton workshop manual and the parts catalogue are excellent references, with concise dialogue and really good drawings. I am sure they will be vital for you to get to know your machine. They will also be handy for parlaying description using this forum for mutual understanding for assistance.

Tornado · Apr 30, 2021

Nortorious said:
Thanks! So two more dumb questions. What's the best way to loosen those giant bolts if I lack a giant screwdriver? Also, the manual is pretty vague about the oil. I'm using Royal purple 20w50 HPS for the engine. What sort of oil should I use for the chain case?

A large washer, suitable thickness and work to open those large cover plates. Never use screw drivers as they will chew up the nice slots. There is a proper tool you can purchase for doing these as well.
I use ATF in my primary.

Tornado · Apr 30, 2021

Nortorious said:
I got some more info. Any more details still very welcomed.

Note that your image from the book is showing the primary case figure F8 but the text is describing the gearbox oil change procedure, Figure F6.

gortnipper · Apr 30, 2021

ATF Type F in the primary.

http://britmoto.com/manuals/Manuals/850_man.pdf

http://britmoto.com/manuals/Manuals/850parts.pdf

Tornado said:
A large washer, suitable thickness and work to open those large cover plates. Never use screw drivers as they will chew up the nice slots. There is a proper tool you can purchase for doing these as well.
I use ATF in my primary.

Nortorious · Apr 30, 2021

MichaelB said:
That bolt above is the fastening bolt that holds the outer cover on. Yup, one bolt.
As mentioned, the drain bolt is actually an oil level bolt. There is still oil on the primary, the correct amount.
If you had an excessive amount of oil come out....
1. It was overfilled by the PO.
2. Leaky cank seal allowing engine oil to sump into primary.

When I unscrewed that bolt a lot of oil came out. So hopefully it's not a leaky seal. We'll find out.

Checked a different manual and found this diagram. Looks like I'll have to remove the cover to fully drain it.

What "solvent" is good for cleaning the inner gear case? Will brake cleaner do the trick or cause issues?

baz · Apr 30, 2021

Nortorious said:
When I unscrewed that bolt a lot of oil came out. So hopefully it's not a leaky seal. We'll find out.

Checked a different manual and found this diagram. Looks like I'll have to remove the cover to fully drain it.

What "solvent" is good for cleaning the inner gear case? Will brake cleaner do the trick or cause issues?

When you removed which bolt?

baz · Apr 30, 2021

A "C" spanner that is used to adjust the rear shocks can fit quite well in the large inspection screws on the chain case if you don't have the correct tool

elefantrider · Apr 30, 2021

Do not just pour solvent in there. If you are really concerned, open the cover and clean the bottom sludge, if any, with a rag.

Do not overtorque the center cover bolt.

Always read the workshop manual and use the correct tools or you will be damaging parts.

Nortorious · Apr 30, 2021

baz said:
When you removed which bolt?

The level bolt. So it must have had too much in it.

I'm considering the strategy of filling it, draining it, filling it, draining it. That will freshen the fluids without risking damage to the seals and case.

Removing and getting in there to clean could be nice but maybe for another day.

Tornado · Apr 30, 2021

Nortorious said:
When I unscrewed that bolt a lot of oil came out. So hopefully it's not a leaky seal. We'll find out.

Checked a different manual and found this diagram. Looks like I'll have to remove the cover to fully drain it.

What "solvent" is good for cleaning the inner gear case? Will brake cleaner do the trick or cause issues?

The central hex bolt is the only one holding the outer casing on (there are a couple of dowels as well to position it). So releasing that bolt, will open the rubber sealing ring squished between inner & outer casings, and the oil will come out all along the lower edge...a real mess. I use a motorcycle drip pan (long and flat) underneath to try to capture as much as possible but it usually goes all around the header pipe, frame rail etc.

Yes brake cleaner does a good job. But I usually hit it first with SimpleGreen or similar to mop up most of the oil residue, final cleaning with brake cleaner (which is typically alcohol based).
If you are replacing hte large rubber "o-ring" sealing band, it can be quite difficult to stuff in the outer cover lip groove. Got to realyl compress the seal not only into the groove but along it's length to make it "shorter" and not loop out. Some folks use silicone sealant on the rubber ring to help make a better seal.

baz · Apr 30, 2021

Nortorious said:
The level bolt. So it must have had too much in it.

I'm considering the strategy of filling it, draining it, filling it, draining it. That will freshen the fluids without risking damage to the seals and case.

Removing and getting in there to clean could be nice but maybe for another day.

Very often people put too much oil in the chain case
Or it could be coming from a failing seal on the crankshaft
When you get familiar with the bike you will pop that chain case off in seconds
It's a very good design imo

Nortorious · Apr 30, 2021

Any tool suggestions for the chain case filler cap? I don't want to damage it.. I found this, but not sure if it's what I'm looking for

L.A.B. · Apr 30, 2021

Nortorious said:
Any tool suggestions for the chain case filler cap? I don't want to damage it.. I found this, but not sure if it's what I'm looking for

Any suitably shaped piece of steel will do, or a shock C spanner as baz suggested (I also have a thinner one for the timing inspection cap) with assistance from an adjustable spanner where necessary or there are various 'special' tools.

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andover-norton.co.uk

gortnipper · Apr 30, 2021

Nortorious said:
The level bolt. So it must have had too much in it.

I'm considering the strategy of filling it, draining it, filling it, draining it. That will freshen the fluids without risking damage to the seals and case.

Removing and getting in there to clean could be nice but maybe for another day.

Put it off either stand and with a drain pan under the open level screw hole, lean the bike over as far as you can safely hold it (maybe with another set of hands) and it will empty well.

Put some plastic around the exhaust pipe to keep it clean.

baz · Apr 30, 2021

Nortorious said:
Any tool suggestions for the chain case filler cap? I don't want to damage it.. I found this, but not sure if it's what I'm looking for

That looks to me like it only fit's the small blanking screw
And you will need both

Chain case oil mistake

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