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I have very little experience with this problem. So, like you, I’ll wait for others to weigh in. You don’t have much room as far as resale value for the truck, and it’s always a risk to put money into a vehicle when you don’t know what is going to happen next. How much do you think a truck of this age is worth? This vehicle in particular is quite hard on fuel. All that said, I certainly understand the notion of keeping old vehicles on the road with a little effort. I would go over the vehicle carefully to be as sure as you can that you won’t face more bills to the future.
I have very little experience with this problem. So, like you, I’ll wait for others to weigh in. You don’t have much room as far as resale value for the truck, and it’s always a risk to put money into a vehicle when you don’t know what is going to happen next. How much do you think a truck of this age is worth? This vehicle in particular is quite hard on fuel. All that said, I certainly understand the notion of keeping old vehicles on the road with a little effort. I would go over the vehicle carefully to be as sure as you can that you won’t face more bills to the future.
Overall I agree with the above remarks. I suspect the idea of coating with oil comes from the general standard to smear a dab of oil onto the gasket for screw-on oil filters. If you don’t do that, there is a risk that the gasket may grab and stretch, distorting the shape of the gasket to resemble that of an oxbow lake from above. You get a radial bulge in the gasket, which could leak. Coating with oil markedly reduces the chance of that.
The other common circumstance where you use oil or grease is when you need to slide a dry shaft through a new seal, and of course that is a similar situation where you could damage the new seal from excessive friction.
For most face to face gaskets, there is no radial spinning or excessive friction before the gasket is seated, so I don’t see any reason to coat those with oil. Opinions vary about RTV, but I never use oil except in the special circumstance of a filter or nut that spins on, possibly twisting the gasket. For example, with A/C gaskets, A/C oil is commonly smeared on new O-ring surfaces at the point where the contact nut and O-ring screw into place.
Overall I agree with the above remarks. I suspect the idea of coating with oil comes from the general standard to smear a dab of oil onto the gasket for screw-on oil filters. If you don’t do that, there is a risk that the gasket may grab and stretch, distorting the shape of the gasket to resemble that of an oxbow lake from above. You get a radial bulge in the gasket, which could leak. Coating with oil markedly reduces the chance of that.
The other common circumstance where you use oil or grease is when you need to slide a dry shaft through a new seal, and of course that is a similar situation where you could damage the new seal from excessive friction.
For most face to face gaskets, there is no radial spinning or excessive friction before the gasket is seated, so I don’t see any reason to coat those with oil. Opinions vary about RTV, but I never use oil except in the special circumstance of a filter or nut that spins on, possibly twisting the gasket. For example, with A/C gaskets, A/C oil is commonly smeared on new O-ring surfaces at the point where the contact nut and O-ring screw into place.
Gee, with a problem under load I would be chasing ignition or maybe drivetrain issues rather than vacuum leak, which is typically more an idle problem. You may need a labscope diagnostic to track this one down….
Gee, with a problem under load I would be chasing ignition or maybe drivetrain issues rather than vacuum leak, which is typically more an idle problem. You may need a labscope diagnostic to track this one down….
On a car, my next step would be to remove the alternator and test it on the bench, but I don’t know how difficult that would be on a bike. This video, by mrmaxstorey, is a great starting point for charging system diagnostics on a bike. I find him very approachable if you send him a message directly, he’s a great resource.
On a car, my next step would be to remove the alternator and test it on the bench, but I don’t know how difficult that would be on a bike. This video, by mrmaxstorey, is a great starting point for charging system diagnostics on a bike. I find him very approachable if you send him a message directly, he’s a great resource.
With the focus of the above discussion on testing, I’m having trouble understanding the problem you noticed leading up to your testing. What symptom prompted you to reach for your multimeter? The alternator has to be at least partially working or you wouldn’t have a resting voltage of 12.6V. Also remember that when you measure voltage drop across a resistance, no drop will be recorded if current is not flowing….
With the focus of the above discussion on testing, I’m having trouble understanding the problem you noticed leading up to your testing. What symptom prompted you to reach for your multimeter? The alternator has to be at least partially working or you wouldn’t have a resting voltage of 12.6V. Also remember that when you measure voltage drop across a resistance, no drop will be recorded if current is not flowing….
I’d be much more impressed with oil selection if somebody did a randomized blinded trial showing longer engine life with a new kind of oil. That kind of trial would be fairly easy to conduct, and it could swing millions of consumers to a product. Trouble is, if result is negative (or even worse, showing a worse result with the new product) it may be hard for a corporation to conceal the findings. I suspect it doesn’t make nearly as much difference as oil corporations want you to believe.
I’d be much more impressed with oil selection if somebody did a randomized blinded trial showing longer engine life with a new kind of oil. That kind of trial would be fairly easy to conduct, and it could swing millions of consumers to a product. Trouble is, if result is negative (or even worse, showing a worse result with the new product) it may be hard for a corporation to conceal the findings. I suspect it doesn’t make nearly as much difference as oil corporations want you to believe.
Your story sounds like noisy lifters, to me — that would be a common problem in many vehicles. My old Suburban has done that for over a decade in cold weather, but since we’ve moved to a warmer climate it doesn’t happen. I suppose a switch to oil with better cold weather properties, maybe synthetic, might help. The real question is whether this might be a warning that something more serious is about to happen. It’s hard to be certain, short of going through the expense of cleaning and replacing lifters. The previous owner might be honest enough to tell you how long it was going on before he sold it to you. And it wouldn’t hurt to get a pro to have a look.
Your story sounds like noisy lifters, to me — that would be a common problem in many vehicles. My old Suburban has done that for over a decade in cold weather, but since we’ve moved to a warmer climate it doesn’t happen. I suppose a switch to oil with better cold weather properties, maybe synthetic, might help. The real question is whether this might be a warning that something more serious is about to happen. It’s hard to be certain, short of going through the expense of cleaning and replacing lifters. The previous owner might be honest enough to tell you how long it was going on before he sold it to you. And it wouldn’t hurt to get a pro to have a look.