If compression was leaking past the head gasket and pressurizing the cooling system,then it would have carbon particles and compression by products in the water/anti-freeze? Just thinkin A 300 I had did that once and there were black spots floating in the radiators.
That's pretty much what I was figuring. The bike has definitely been showings signs that the cooling system is pressurized. Hope this cures it.
Are you back riding bikes again----Last I saw you had your bike up for sale---thought you were going to dune buggies or something? ANyway It's good to see you posting again----We appreciate your sharing your knowledge and experience.
So I just installed the Highflo Water Impeller tonight somewhat dark out, did it on my own (I usually get my dad to help me but I've decided to try and learn to work mechanically on my bikes on my own). First off it was all easy until I had to find a way to get the first gasket on, then the orange metal piece, then the final gasket along with the pump cover. So I got it all back on, installed correctly and as should (don't have a torque wrench so I applied enough torque I thought needed so nothing would loosen or overtighten) anyway so I started the bike and it sounded fine, no leaks, and no new noises other than the stupid cam chain that I need to replace. Should there be anything I need to watch out for? I was confused on the water impeller because as I tightened the nut it kept going back and back so I kept tightening and did not want to tighten it all the way to the back, was this a mistake? It's somewhat tight now and obviously there needed to be room but I was unsure if the washer behind the impeller was what caused it to somewhat get tighter so I stopped. I am doing the coolant recovery kit tomorrow and I was unable to hook the rad hose back up to the cover fully on but enough so no leak and etc. but tomorrow while the gas tank is off I'll have room to fully slide it on but while I have it all off tomorrow I wanted to check to see if I might've screwed up along the way of putting the impeller on and etc.
Dang,learning to work on bikes with out a torque wrench or a clear idea of what your doing with internal engine bits can get interesting. Best be careful. Simple things can lead to disaster.
Well I talked to my mechanic friend and he said the water impeller should tighten on it's on but I tightened it a good bit and ran it for awhile now, and went out flying on it today and no issues or leaks. My mechanic buddy has been working on dirtbikes for 35+ years and he doesn't always use a torque wrench either if you know what feels good then it should be tight enough, my next project is the DirtTricks came tensioner. I have a separate question, I've had no oil issues at all BUT I don't know if any previous owners did the oil seal correction or if this bike even has that potential problem since it was the early 08's and some 09's, I read later 08's were corrected though. The question though, is combining the tranny and engine oil better? Any good picture threads on how this is done? Does it require machining? Cost?
A mechanic who sees no need for a torque wrench is what you call a shade tree mechanic,guessing with really expensive Austrian bike parts isnt a great idea. If it isnt broke I wouldnt fix it as far as the oil transfer issue,many 08's are still going strong with out oil transfer issues. Not many guys have combined the oil galleys on these bikes,I would run it as the factory built it and not worry.
That's what I figured, I just didn't know if the combining was worth it or not and until I see an oil problem I'm not going to be concerned about it I am however going to do the oil pump upgrade and get teh Samco thermostat bypass kit soon as well since I don't need the Thermostat down here in southern Mississippi.
Many have done the single sump, including the factory rider who were racing them. I'd wait till a crank job unles you have an incurable issue with transfer. The oil pump upgrade is worth it, I deleted many of the suggested parts, my shaft was fine, the O rings were clearly thinner than the upgrades. I think you can cut the fat to under a $30 job.
I recently picked up a 2010 530 with just 22 hours on it - it's now got about 36 hours. Runs great, fun bike, but I have one nagging problem. When I pull the clutch lever all the way in, there is still a surprising amount of drag from the clutch. For instance, if the bike is not running but in gear, I can't pull in the clutch and roll the bike around - the rear wheel will drag, not roll. I have to shift it to neutral to get it to roll. In addition, I can't start the bike while it is in gear - there's too much drag and the starter motor can't spin the motor fast enough to get it to fire. Unfortunately I tend to stall the bike a fair amount on hills, and I've got to get it into neutral to restart - which can be a pain when stopped on a steep hill. When I'm riding, the bike shifts fine and gives me no trouble or concern. I've tried adjusting the lever position, but that hasn't helped. The bike came with an aftermarket clutch lever, so I suppose it is possible that it doesn't have the same "throw" as a stock lever. I'm a noob when it comes to dirt bikes, so I'm kind stumped at this point. Any ideas or suggestions?
If it is a midwest mountain engineering lever it needs more travel to do the same amount of work, thus the easier pull. The drag with a dead engine is pretty normal.
I get the drag on mine too as do all of my friends with these bikes. When I first start the bike, I can't just put it in gear, it stalls. I have to let it warm up a little bit and give it more revs when doing the first shift into first. After the first one it's fine. I haven't read of anyone finding a real fix for this.
My 450 does the same thing, never worried about it I just let the bike warm up reallly really good or after a normal warm up I rev it up a little and use the clutch to go (Rekluse EXP installed).
My 2011 530 clutch drags just enough to be irritating on singletrack,switchbacks can mean stalling the engine with the clutch all the way in. I am going to try bleeding the clutch really well and see what that does. Maybe turning up the idle just a little might help on tight trails.
Same here. Almost all our KTM's have done that. In fact, think my 450 with a Rekluse might be the only one that doesn't. That, and not having to find neutral are probably the only things I really like about it though. It's a finicky bitch.
Thanks for all the replies on the clutch - I guess I'll stop worrying about it. And work on not stalling it so much in the first place!
Your Rekluse is finicky? I had a revloc auto clutch on my last 300,I really liked it at first but gradually realized I like having full control of the clutch myself. It threw my timing off on tight singletrack or just trying to go fast,it didnt suit me.
I didn't care for the Rekluse either. I did not care for it going into freewheel when going down tricky downhill sections where you want engine braking. Also didn't like not having full control of the clutch. Sent with mind control...