Service tips and washer sizes?
 

Ok i've had my xtr a while now and have been doing plenty of little jobs while i've had it, but the more i'm doing i'm begining to question if it had the major service they say it had when i purchased it.

I've a week off coming up soon so to be safe i'm planning on changing the oil and filter, the spark plug, and checking the valve clearances, i've already replaced the air filter so i'm not concerned about that, and if i have time i may renew the brake fluid and change the coolant too.

My first question is what sizes are the 2 washers for the oil drain plugs?
Are those quick connector oil plugs worth the money? http://www.off-the-road.de/en/XT-660...e-M14x1-5.html

And is there any other things i should consider checking while i'm there?

Washer sizes (internal dia x external dia x depth)...

Sump drain bolt: 14mm x 16mm x 1.5mm (aluminium)

Tank (frame) drain bolt: 8mm x 14mm x 2mm (copper)

Air bleed bolt (top of filter housing): 5mm x 9mm x 1mm (copper)

TIP: Get yourself half a dozen of each when you buy them so you've always got a ready supply; they only cost a matter of pence.

Cheers for that

Searching the interent i can find the bleed washers no problem but as for the other 2 oil washers i can only find similar sized items, i take it it's not a problem to much if the washer size is slightely out on the OD? or if you know where to get them online with going to yamaha i'd appreciate it.

Also is the oil tray in the tool kit worth trying to get hold of? my bike didn't come with a tool kit so i don't have one.

It doesn't matter too much about the outside diameter as long as the mating surface is proud of the casing (which they are). If its too big then the bolt head will tend to cut into it when tightening it.

I get all my bits and bobs like that from the local motor factor, or local fastener shop. You should be able to find one easy enough near where you live. In fact I think even Halfrauds stock them?

If going on line I'd try here or on ebay. BTW 9/16UNF is the same as 14mm aluminium sump drain washer, they are often quite easy to source.

However, all the washers are only about 25-50p each from a Yamaha dealer!

I've only looked through genuine parts from places like suttons who in some cases wanted �3 for a washer, but i will have a word with my local yammy dealer in the week and see what they say.

Cheers for the help

You've got to watch AJ Sutton as all their prices include postage, which makes little things like washers etc. appear very expensive!

Try wemoto. They have all three crush washers for pennies (but obviously you'll have to add postage, which I think is �2.50 for a small packet). Worth it if you get a half dozen of each though if you can't easily get to a dealer.

I have never changed them. After 8 years, there are no single drop of oil. But, maybe next time.

Indeed you can reuse them. I have (usually when I haven't had a new one to hand) and never had a leak. They can get work-hardened over time though but you can easily anneal them and make them soft once again; the copper ones are easy, the aluminium ones are a bit more tricky if you're to avoid melting them (the old soap trick works well).

soap trick?
 

Hi, whats the old soap trick for aluminium?

Basically, when you're annealing aluminium, what you don't want is a pool of molten metal on the floor - which is very easy to do as (very inconveniently) aluminium doesn't change it's colour as it's heated (unlike copper, brass, steel etc.) to give you an idea of the temperature you have reached.

The idea with the soap trick is to coat the washer (or whatever aluminium part you want to anneal) with soap, the old school hard stuff is best, from a block. Rub it all over the surfaces. What this does is allow you to get a visual tell-tale when the aluminium is up to the right annealing temperature as the soap will soot and turn black. At the point where the soap turns black, you're done. Remove the heat and quickly quench in cold water. You need to quench quickly as even after removing the heat, the temperature of the metal will continue to rise further for a short time.