Wouldn't you be pissed!

[GreyFox]

Just threw a rant about spending $60 for oil to replace a leaking drain plug. Boy was I stupid. Just hope I can get some help replacing the parts. Take a look at the movie and judge for yourself. Not high quality but you can get the point.

 

[Toystoretom]

??????

I can see the drip, but is it a bad gasket on the drain plug, or did the drain plug strip or ??

At any rate, I probably would have pulled the drain plug and emptied the oil into a clean pan and saved it. If it had metal in in from a stripped drain plug or whatever you could always run it trough something like a coffee filter. $60 is a chunk of change.

 

[Kmutt]

Im with tom. Get a clean pan and drop the plug. Was it the crush washer? Or the actual plug leaking? That sucks. I just did my first service and had no problems. Although I did notice that the "crush" washer had an impression in it and I took great care to line it up before applying torque pressure!
Good luck!

mutt

 

[Baggage1]

Were the washers replaced? They are the crush type and need to be changed with every oil change. If you did that then it may be helicoil and RTD time.

 

[GreyFox]

Nope, I believe the angle and mirror is throwing confusion into the problem. The oil is coming from the CASTING! It is leaking through the area above the drain plug and collecting on the drain plug itself. I have new seals on the plug because that is where I thought the problem was. I have sent the video and explanation to Triumph Dealer who will send it to the reps in GA. Wish me luck.

 

[Sidecar Flip]

I don'twant to throw water on your fire but....

Was it leaking before you changed the oil?
Did it leak after?
Did you torque the plug to specification or did you just 'tighten' it without a torque wrench?
Thereis a specific torque value associated with both drain plugs....25Nm. That's not a lot and it's easy to exceed that if you don't use a torque wrench and especially if you reuse the old washer because an old washer is work hardened and has no 'give'.

The reason I bring all this up is simply that more than one owner of a late model Triumph motorcycle, has cracked their sump by overtorquing the drain plug.

I've never seen it on a Rocket but I've seen quite a few on 790 and 855 vertical twins.

In all those cases, Triumph did not warrant the replacement as far as I know.

Anytime you are working on the bike, a torque wrench and the shop manual or a list of recommended torque settings is your friend.

 

[HeR3tic]

I believe the recommended 25nm or 17 pounds foot is unnecessary on the aluminum sump threads. I have no basis for that except my liberal feelings. I put 10-12 fp with no leaks.

With your oil change, clean thoroughly the drain whole and plug mating surfaces and apply a film of new oil on the mates. Run it up finger tight to the hilt. And that's important. Always run plugs in with fingers. Then there comes torquing to 10-12fp without a torque wrench. IT really isn't that much and you have to have a nack to dial in that much muscle and that much alone. It's kinda like fishing a 30 pound King Salmon on 12 pound line. It is possible to dial-in intense.

 

[Sidecar Flip]

I believe the recommended 25nm or 17 pounds foot is unnecessary on the aluminum sump threads. I have no basis for that except my liberal feelings. I put 10-12 fp with no leaks.

With your oil change, clean thoroughly the drain whole and plug mating surfaces and apply a film of new oil on the mates. Run it up finger tight to the hilt. And that's important. Always run plugs in with fingers. Then there comes torquing to 10-12fp without a torque wrench. IT really isn't that much and you have to have a nack to dial in that much muscle and that much alone. It's kinda like fishing a 30 pound King Salmon on 12 pound line. It is possible to dial-in intense.

...and I agree. If 10-12 Ft. Lbs works, so be it. It's all a matter of not leaking which brings us to the sump plate again. At least the sump plate is easily replacable. The one thing that I've tried to ascertain from the video is that it looks like the plate itself is slightly mangled right next to the drain plug boss...what gives with that?

Sort of like the final drive drain plug and overtorquing. Snap, crakle and there goes the plug.

 

[Triple Trouble]

I hear of so many people stripping the drain plugs nowadays. I wonder if it could be that the bolt is upside down and the bolt is simply tightened instead of loosened? I've witnessed guys doing this and really heaving on the wrench until I pointed out what was happening.

 

[Sidecar Flip]

The Bevel Box drain plug is unique in that it's bored for a magnetic insert and necked to clear the edge of the casting which makes it really fragile and that makes it imperative to use a torque wrench...an inch pound wrench. The sump plate plugs don't suffer from that condition but you can crack the sump plate casting through the use of excessive force. If it does spring a leak, it's not too hard to remove or replace but you'll need a new gasket and don't forget to torque the sump plate bolts to the proper torque (again that ugly word...torque and proper....., in this case, 12Nm.

I'd suggest a thorogh cleaning, a competent welder and a follow up dye scan. Magna-Flux makes a dandy dye checker. The plate is pressure die cast (like all the aluminum parts that comprise the engine block). It quite possible to weld shut the crack but it's no a job for the do-it-yourself home welder. It takes skill and having the right equipment.