need help with head gasket

[99tjrockcrawler]

I need help bad!!!  Just had a porting job done by eric gorr and now I can't get head to seal.  Fairly new bike with no leaks before.  I am on my third gasket now and still no luck.  Using moose gaskets with no up or donw marks.  Last attempt I used copper spray gasket on gasket and still leaking.  Don't think the head is warped as no leaks before porting and I checked the head with a straight edge the best I could and did not notice anything.

Any help? or just keep trying gaskets which is getting expensive.  Is there a place you can buy just the head gasket alone not OEM which is $46.  Whole top end moose kit is 33.

[2001KX5]

Ya nothing worse than sealing issues.  Check the head and cylinder like you were doing with a straight edge and a feeler gauge to make sure you are with in spec. Can't see Eric Gorr f**king it up like that....................hope not, my top end is there now

Check and make sure you are running the proper heat range plug and make sure your jetting is not lean causing some detonation, overheating and blowing your head gasket.  I would prefer to have an oring set up but we have no other choice than use the metal sandwich type gaskets, but these are still stout gaskets.  If you over heated badly since you put it back together, thats all it take to warp the head..........been there done that in a turbo charged honda civic I had.  Good luck, and keep us posted.

[gowen]

Check the head like '01KX said. You might have over torqued the head. Are the bolts coming loose? You might consider lock-tighting them. I was having the same issue and it was the bolts coming loose. I ended up having to send my head off because I warped it pretty bad. I had EGorr do my KX500 twice, head, porting, boring, ect. My Cr125's (both 144 kits), and my CR250 (260cc). So far has not screwed on me yet, just alot of wait. But it was worth it.

Check your heads alignment. Also use a different gasket from Moose. I use the super thick gasket with huge success. Try cosmetic, best stuff in my oppinion.

[gowen]

BTW, why do you think your head is leaking? Have you done a compression check? Mixing water with gas? Just curious so we can help you.

[YUNGGUNNAZ]

also note hump on gasket goes up.my oem gaskets are about 13.00.why so high out there?make sure to torque in cris-cross fashion.i do triangle patterns when possible.

[2001KX5]

I should of also mentioned that I had some seepage on my KX250 and just untorqued the bolts, used thread lock and re-tourqued them..........criss cross pattern taking off and putting on, diden't have an issue after that.
If its still an issue try to get a leak down test done.

Yeah I thought that was pricey for the OEM HG also. Don't forget you can get different thickness HG's also, stock thickness is probably best.

[99tjrockcrawler]

BTW, why do you think your head is leaking? Have you done a compression check? Mixing water with gas? Just curious so we can help you.

Why???  Because water is running down the side of the jug...    

As far as the bolts coming loose..I don't think so..  All the nuts tightened down the same as far as how many treads are sticking through the nut...even if the stud was loose, the nut tightened down to spec and that should apply the required force on the head...by the way after starting the bike it leaks within 2 minutes just at idle and I did try to retorue the nuts and yes I do criss cross always (used to be an aircraft mech so I am used to it)

[99tjrockcrawler]

also note hump on gasket goes up.my oem gaskets are about 13.00.why so high out there?make sure to torque in cris-cross fashion.i do triangle patterns when possible.

Moose gaskets have no hump...if my gaskets were only $13 I would not care so much and I would go buy a handfull....


Is there anywhere I can get just the head gasket alone??

[KXcam22]

99,
  A bit basic but ,your leak can only be caused by: non-flat cylinder, non-flat head, poor gasket fit/quality, pulled cylinder stud.  You might try lapping the head with some #600 and a piece of glass for a flat surface.  I once had a cylinder stud that pulled out slowly over time. Would torque fine and run for 30 minutes before loosening off enough to blow the head gasket. Took me forever to find it!  Best check is to torque the head, run it till it leaks and then carefully check torque again. One of the studs might show up as being not as quite as tight as the others. Hope this helps. Cam.

[2001KX5]

I had issues with a stud also. So I hauled them all, used lock tight and problem solved. But obviously if your leaking once the bike gets up to operating temp then your seal between your head and cylinder can't hold the cooland pressure.  Also check the gasket to make sure is not leaking from the cylinder bore into the coolant chamber then from the coolant chamber out.  

I had issues with a stud also. So I hauled them all, used lock tight and problem solved. But obviously if your leaking once the bike gets up to operating temp then your seal between your head and cylinder can't hold the cooland pressure.  Also check the gasket to make sure is not leaking from the cylinder bore into the coolant chamber then from the coolant chamber out.  Make sure the dowels were installed also so the head don't shift around on the cylinder.

You can buy single gasket.

1004A: GASKET-HEAD,STEEL,T=0  534916-001      $24.42

www.bikebandit.com

[5dracing]

You might want to check and make sure the radiators and such are not blocked cuasing an overpressure in the system. Are the gaskets blowing out from bore to water jacket or water jacket to outside of cylinder? Kinda sounds crazy, but could'nt hurt to check all passages to make sure they're open.

[FIVE-HUNGE]

I had same problem with an '87 500 and '01 500
Tried everything, after multiple head gaskets, cylinder and head resurfacing, and studs. and Not to mention a master machinist (who builds world class drag motors) scratching his head wondering why such a simple dirtbike motor could be such a dilema.
Don't waste your time looking with a straight edge. Just have it resurfaced.
my last try with success was a resurface, OEM steel head gasket, a thin film of Yamabond 4 around the edge of the cylinder and head where it would leak. tourque wrench in the correct pattern and it was a done deal.
Once you get the problem fixed DO NOT REMOVE HEAD FROM CYLINDER when doing top end replacement.
I feel your pain, at it's worst moment I would have a fresh cylinder, head and gasket properly torqued down and coolant would leak out all around the cylinder and head as fast as I would pour it in the radiator. It's enough to to drive you to smash the motor with a sledge hammer and buy a new bike. The only thing that kept me comming back was the thought of the evil grin that appears under your helmet when you twist the happy grip..
nothing satisfies like the KX500 when in good working order.
good luck

[KXcam22]

The K5 must be finicky in that respect or possibly doesn't have the best factory "flatness".  Given the type and thickness of the head gasket I'm suprised that they would leak easily.  On some engines it doesn't take much to seal. On an RD350LC roadracer I built, the heads were milled, then lapped to the cyl with valve grinding compound. It used NO head gasket, only a smear of RTV.  No leaks.  If you don't want to resurface the K5, lapping does a great job and it's easy to see your progress by the pattern.  Got to pull out all the studs though, no fun. Cam.

[2001KX5]

Cam can you give us more info on this lapping you speak of?

All I know is orings are the bomb! But we ain't gots any