Oil Leak from Kickstarter Shaft (R51/3)

[vechorik1373]

While in theory, the kick start seal can be replaced without tearing the gearbox down, but it is just about impossible when the transmission is in the bike, due to lack of space.
And the dangers are, After you remove the kick start lever, if you blindly poke screwdrivers along the sides of the kick start shaft, to pry out the seal, there is a high chance that you will nick the shaft where the lip of the seal runs. If you think it is leaking a lot now, wait until you nick the shaft and then drive a new seal in!

You can run 80 - 90w GL4 only gear oil. Do NOT use GL-5 it has a sulfur compound in it, that attacks and degrades brass, and you have brass/bronze bushings on the gears.

If you do use gear oil, be advised that in cold/cool weather, it will be difficult to shift until the oil in the gearbox warms up. Not a big deal, just be aware of that.

[Slash2]

Can anyone speak to the driveshaft bellows tolerance of hypoid gear oil? These rubber boots seem to deteriorate rapidly and I’m wondering if hypoid gear oil could be a contributing factor.

[Micha]

While in theory, the kick start seal can be replaced without tearing the gearbox down, but it is just about impossible when the transmission is in the bike, due to lack of space.
And the dangers are, After you remove the kick start lever, if you blindly poke screwdrivers along the sides of the kick start shaft, to pry out the seal, there is a high chance that you will nick the shaft where the lip of the seal runs. If you think it is leaking a lot now, wait until you nick the shaft and then drive a new seal in!

You can run 80 - 90w GL4 only gear oil. Do NOT use GL-5 it has a sulfur compound in it, that attacks and degrades brass, and you have brass/bronze bushings on the gears.

If you do use gear oil, be advised that in cold/cool weather, it will be difficult to shift until the oil in the gearbox warms up. Not a big deal, just be aware of that.

Thank you very much for the exhaustive explanation and information.

[Micha]

I'm back to update.
Today I disassembled the gearbox and checked it thoroughly. The oil retainer is indeed leaking and after I disassembled the kickstarter, this oil returner literally "fell" out from Bush bearing. It is obvious that it did not sit well in its place.
So, I can see 3 options here:
1. poor quality oil retainer seal
2. normal wear that happens over time
3. something else is happening here
What bothers me most, is the fact that until now I did covered some 60 miles with the bike, probably even more, and nothing happened regarding oil loss from there, so I'm a little skeptical about the possibility of "low quality" seal. Never the less, that retainer did fell out now and was not holding tight in its place.
Anyway, the new seal will be placed with some engine seal RTV.
More inputs/ideas are mostly welcome and thank you all in advance.
Michael

[Seek]

Check if the hole where the seal goes had clean and undamaged walls. If so, install the new oilseal without any RTV or whatever. That stuff is a bit slippery and the seal could easilly slip out again. Those seals are designed to be installed dry on the outside and with a smear of oil on the inner, oilsealing, lips.