F%$# it, Stripped sump tread. :-(

So I dropped the old oil out today and as luck would have it, near all of the alloy tread from the sump plug hole came out too.  
I'd say that the previous owner had semi stripped it, or fully stripped it and used some type of tread fix.
It's just pulled the tread out like it was only glued in.  

So, Any ideas on how to fix it???????

There was a thread on here last year about this.

I think the conclusion was either a helicoil or tap it out larger and use a larger bolt

As madmax said, there is a thread already on it somewhere, but personally, I`d take the sump off and re-tap an over size, or helicoil etc:

I would never do it in situ for the case of swarf getting lost in the sump..not good!!

Bad luck Reardo. Drop the sump belly. Get, or order a new gasket. If there is enough "meat" around the hole, get it helicoiled. If not, you could get a tread tig welded in.  Best of luck.

Cork and silicon . Ah maybe not .

When I was welding up charged water mains we would drive a round tapered pine peg into the hole then cut it off and weld a plate over it. That will work for you

Drop the sump and visit a wreckers or have it rewelded and retapped mate  :albino:i

Sorry to hear that mate. Helicoil or a second hand sump, if you can find one that is.

Ive used a time cert kit before. They are better than helicoils. Last much longer. Just not sure howd they go into that material.

Cool, Thanks for the advise lads.

They are interesting kits Cam. I never seen them before. It maybe the fix for me! 
A kit on eBay

Have  a look here .  http://www.timesert.com/html/drainplug.html

If you lived closer I'd fix it at work for you.

Hammy wrote:Bad luck Reardo. Drop the sump belly. Get, or order a new gasket. If there is enough "meat" around the hole, get it helicoiled. If not, you could get a tread tig welded in.  Best of luck.

Hey Hammy. Have you dropped the belly pan before? If so, is there any tricks to it. Or is it straight forward, Unbolt and drop?

Same here, would value any info on removing the oil pan because going to have to do it myself.

Fortunately the Haynes manual I ordered should be here sometime this coming week.

SolomonKane wrote:Same here, would value any info on removing the oil pan because going to have to do it myself.

Fortunately the Haynes manual I ordered should be here sometime this coming week.

Here some info I've looked up so far. I'll post the pic's as big as i can. If you can't see it all, Try clicking on it.











https://www.kessnermotorcycles.com.au/partsfinder/

Excellent! Thanks mate.

Searched online last night and rang a few places today. Best price overseas was around $170 but then you have to add on shipping cost. You had to go through the whole ordering process to do that so I have no idea what the cost would be. My local Suzuki Dealer can get it for me within 48 hours for $220.

However, I've decided to go with getting a new hole drilled. If I take the pan off myself they'll only charge me about $50 to do it. The mechanic thinks heli's make it weaker, the wrecker I spoke to today said it makes it stronger if the pan has enough meat on the bone.   Based on the positive posts I've read online it seems perfectly acceptable way to go.

Good luck guys. Helicoil should work perfect

Thanks mate, appreciate another positive for the helicoil.

When I was still working on the tools as a mechanic i used heli-coils dozens of times, I never saw one fail in over 15 years.

Loving it, thanks for the additional vote of confidence. All organized, will set to removing the oil pan tonight when I get home from work. All being well I'll drop it off at the bike shop tomorrow morning before heading to work. They said it take a couple of hours so I should be able to pick it up tomorrow afternoon. Could actually be back on the road by Thursday, Friday at the latest.

Should only take 15mins to do. Drill hole , tap hole , screw in helicoil , job done.

I'm guessing that they're factoring in other jobs in front of mine or any unforeseen delays.

I'll usually add 30 to 50% when estimating time required for eLearning development.

There are Light Aluminium rods on the web and instructions on how to repair threads in aluminium using the rods. I've got a few and it's pretty easy. The rods melt quicker than the alloy so all you do is put the steel bolt in the hole, heat the alloy (not the rod), and push the rod into the hot alloy around the bolt thread. It melts in and forms a new thread as new.

Interesting. Thanks, I'll look that up tomorrow.

Started at around 8pm due to not getting away from work early as planned. Called it at around 11pm.

I've managed to get all 14 bolts undone, some of them took a bit of thinking to find a way to get the leverage required to move them. Two of the bolts you can't remove completely if the exhaust is still on.

The problem now is that the oil pan won't drop. So what am I missing, what is it that I don't realize I have to unbolt or remove for the oil pan to separate? Or is it just that the oil pan is stuck because of the gasket? If so, is there some technique you use to break the seal?

If no one knows no worries, I'll call the mechanic tomorrow and ask him.

How about you Reardo, how are you going with getting yours fixed?

I'd tap round the edge of the pan with a rubber malet, more than likely it is just the gasket keeping it stuck together.  Don't use too much force and tap all the way round.  You might also need to get your thin scrapper in to break the seal, just be careful not to score/scratch the mating surfaces.

barry_mcki wrote:I'd tap round the edge of the pan with a rubber malet, more than likely it is just the gasket keeping it stuck together.  Don't use too much force and tap all the way round.  You might also need to get your thin scrapper in to break the seal, just be careful not to score/scratch the mating surfaces.

if you haven't got a rubber mallet put a block of wood against the pan and give that a firm "tap" with a hammer

Have a rubber mallet but there is no way to get at the join line of the sump. Tried the end of the wood handle for the metal hammer striking the top with the rubber mallet, that enabled me to reach it in a few places but not many. Didn't seem to have any effect. As for a thin scraper have yet to get to a store to buy one, was focused on getting the oil pan off, but will try and get one today.

Tonight I'll take some photos and upload them just to make sure I've got it right.