[Abhishek3001]

Originally Posted by ashwinprakas

without a properly functioning battery/charging system you'd face such issues.

Got a new 14 AH Exide battery and no more misfires. Also thankyou for bringing your charging systems thread to my attention.

Originally Posted by srini1785

What type of DIY are you doing?. Ground up restoration?.

I am just sorting out the basics, not a ground-up restorations by any stretch of the imagination.

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by Abhishek3001

Got a new 14 AH Exide battery and no more misfires. Also thankyou for bringing your charging systems thread to my attention.

Good to see that your issues have been resolved.

This obvious fact somehow didn't pop in my head before, but the presence of an Ammeter makes life a lot easier for you(and other Bullet owners) with respect to gauging the real-time status of the motorcycle's electricals.

Do keep an eye on it.

Cheers,
A.P.

[DriverNo.420]

I'm not sure if this is discussed already.

When I start my Thunderbird in the morning, and let it idle at around 800rpm, there is a knocking sound from the left(clutch) side of the engine. If I raise the revs a little bit(to 900 or 1000), the sound goes away. And comes back again if I let go of the throttle. It only happens when the engine is cold. Can anyone explain what is this sound and tell if this is serious?

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by DriverNo.420

I'm not sure if this is discussed already.

When I start my Thunderbird in the morning, and let it idle at around 800rpm, there is a knocking sound from the left(clutch) side of the engine. If I raise the revs a little bit(to 900 or 1000), the sound goes away. And comes back again if I let go of the throttle. It only happens when the engine is cold. Can anyone explain what is this sound and tell if this is serious?

Hydraulic Tappets.

As the name would suggest you need sufficient oil flow for them to work, oil flow depends on engine speed and temperature.

Set Idle to manufacturer recommended value.

[JoeTheWanderer]

Hello everyone,

I noticed a minor oil leak from the rocker cover of my 2017 Bullet 500 a few weeks before the lockdown last year.

I took it to the service centre and they advised me to replace the rocker cover gasket. Since it was a very minor leak (no affect on the engine oil level) I thought I'd get that done after some time with the next service. Lockdown hit and so the job was postponed.

Last month, I finally replaced the rocker cover gasket on my own and I thought I'd share my experience here.

This is an intermediate level DIY job provided you have the right tools, the required spares and some patience.

Spare parts required

1. Gasket kit rocker cover (part number 888297, MRP ₹ 97)
2. Washer seal rocker cover (part number 573907/A, MRP ₹ 70).
Please note that out of the 4 washers required, 3 are of the same size and one slightly larger as seen in the photos below. The part number listed is for a kit that contains only 2 washers - I don't have the part number for the other 2 washers. The service centre guys opened this packet and put 2 extra washers inside it.

Tools required

1. Number 5 allen key. I used the one in my Taparia BS31 Steel Bit Driver Set (₹399 from Amazon).


2. AmazonBasics Mechanics Socket Set (₹1499 from Amazon).
You can easily use the allen key (and all the other bits and bobs) from the Taparia set with the AmazonBasics socket set.

Other items needed

1. A few pieces of soft cloth for cleaning.
2. Engine de-greaser if you have to remove any muck from the engine while the rocker cover and fuel tank are removed. (optional)
3. A torch or other source of light if you're doing this in an area with less natural light. I use a USB LED light connected to a power bank as a simple work light.

Time taken: About 45 minutes assuming you have the right tools and none of your nuts & bolts are stuck. I combined this with an engine oil change so it took me a little longer.

Note: The steps I've listed below are based on my own experience & observations. I have limited experience with motorcycle maintenance so, please do not follow these instructions without doing your own research.

Procedure

1. Remove the seat and set aside.
2. Remove the fuel tank and place it carefully so as not to damage the paint. I did the job next to my car so I placed a couple of towels on the seat and put the tank on it.
Before you remove the tank, turn off the fuel supply and start the bike for about 5 - 10 seconds. This ensures that you don't have a lot of petrol in the fuel pipe when you disconnect it from the tank.

2. Disconnect the spark plug caps. No need to remove the spark plugs.
3. Remove the bolt and switch marked in the image and keep this assembly aside. Also, remove the cable ties holding the various pipes and cables together.


4. Remove the 4 rocker cover bolts.

• These are sometimes tightened insanely so be very careful when removing them. Take your time to ensure you don't strip them.
• The largest bolt (the one on left-front) is a little hard to reach due to the bike's frame. Use an extension rod with your ratchet.

5. Remove both the rocker covers carefully and wipe everything with a clean cloth.
Inspecting the old gaskets, I could see that the rubber had become very stiff which explains the leak.

6. I had a lot of old oil mixed with dirt that had accumulated on the engine. I used an engine degreaser and a toothbrush to clean it.

All the dirt and old oil that had to be cleaned.


Looks much better after cleaning.

• Rather than spraying the degreaser directly on the engine, take some in a clean container and dip the brush in it. This prevents overspray from reaching any unwanted areas.
• Make sure you wipe it off quickly with a clean cloth.

7. Put the new gasket on the rocker cover and assemble everything in reverse order.

• When assembling the washer seal, the metal side should be placed facing up i.e. in contact with the bolt head.
  
• Be careful when placing the rocker cover back. If the gasket isn't seated properly it may become dislodged which will result in an oil leak.
• Before you secure the bolts, take a light and inspect the gasket from all sides. You should see a thin black line (i.e. the rocker gasket) running all around between the engine head and the rocker cover. I didn't check this and just placed the rocker cover back, tightened the bolts and assembled the fuel tank. Lo, and behold I could see spurts of engine oil leaking from the rocker cover. Fixing this effectively doubled the time taken for the job so be very careful at this stage.
• Make sure the accelerator cable is routed and secured properly. If not, you may face a situation where turning the handlebar to one side automatically increases throttle input - which can be very dangerous on the road.

8. Torque the bolts to spec (if you know the specs).
- I was unable to find the torque spec for these bolts in the Haynes manual. And although I have tried multiple times, I have failed to secure a workshop manual from Royal Enfield.
- I tightened them by feeling i.e. when I felt some resistance in tightening the bolts I stopped and then tightened them just a little bit more.

If anyone knows the torque spec for these bolts I would appreciate it if you could share that.

9. Before assembling the fuel tank, try and turn on your bike. In my case, I had enough fuel in the carb to run the bike for about a minute or so.

• After turning on the bike, take a light and take a good look at the rocker cover from all the sides. Doing this ensures that if there's a leak from the rocker cover you can catch that before assembling the tank.
• Also, when the engine is turned on, move the handlebar to both extremes a few times and see if the engine RPM increases on its own.

Doing these 2 checks allows you to quickly catch the potential issues highlighted in point 7.

10. Assemble the remaining parts and bask in the glory of a DIY job well done.

[Abhishek3001]

Originally Posted by JoeTheWanderer

Torque the bolts to spec (if you know the specs).

If anyone knows the torque spec for these bolts I would appreciate it if you could share that.

Hi,
The torque spec for the rocker cover bolts is 10NM.
You can find the workshop manual for the classic 350 & 500 models here :
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-U...FRUDZRSDQ/view

The torque specs for the classic 500 should apply to the bullet as well.

Cheers,
Abhishek

[JoeTheWanderer]

Originally Posted by Abhishek3001

The torque spec for the rocker cover bolts is 10NM.

Thanks Abhishek, I'll check if the bolts are torqued to spec.

And many thanks for the link as well.

[ArizonaJim]

Originally Posted by Abhishek3001

Hi,
The torque spec for the rocker cover bolts is 10NM.
You can find the workshop manual for the classic 350 & 500 models here :
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-U...FRUDZRSDQ/view

The torque specs for the classic 500 should apply to the bullet as well.

Cheers,
Abhishek

People making repairs to their Royal Enfield rocker arm cover seal may think that 10 NM (7.4 lb/ft) is not very much and tightening it to a higher torque would make the gasket seal better.
This is not the case.

The bolts used to retain the cover are "shoulder bolts". Shoulder bolts have a body that is larger than the thread. When they are tightened, the larger shoulder bottoms out against the cylinder head and tightening them further does not increase the force that the bolt head applies against the cover. It only increases the force the shoulder applies against the cylinder head.
If the bolts are overtightened, there is a good chance that the threads in the aluminum head will be stripped out so, please do not try to tighten these bolts more than the recommended amount.

[KkVaidya]

This may have been posted earlier but could not find.
The high beam of my Bullet Electra is going towards the left so tried adjusting the two screws on left and right after loosening the Rim holding screw on top but no success.
The two screws on the sides do not seem to impact the beam adjustment much. Has anyone done this?

[KPR]

Since last few days I'm having an issue with my rear brakes in my TB500. When I start my ride for about 20 km one way after say 7-8 km the rear brakes gets numb or useless. There is no braking at all yet pedal compression is there. Later while I start my bike after few hours braking of rear seems to be normal. This has happened twice in last 6 days. Today morning once again I rode for 20 km absolutely no issues with rear braking. Looks like some thing has started to fail in rear brake/disc. Any reason of such behaviour?

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by KPR

Since last few days I'm having an issue with my rear brakes in my TB500. When I start my ride for about 20 km one way after say 7-8 km the rear brakes gets numb or useless. There is no braking at all yet pedal compression is there. Later while I start my bike after few hours braking of rear seems to be normal. This has happened twice in last 6 days. Today morning once again I rode for 20 km absolutely no issues with rear braking. Looks like some thing has started to fail in rear brake/disc. Any reason of such behaviour?

You've got air in your system.

If this is not the result of improperly bleeding the system then I'd suggest a proper rebuild is due.

And when rebuilding do keep in mind to scrap the hose and get a new one if its older than 3 years, recommended interval is 2 years but who are we kidding?

[meetarin]

Need some expert advice here and hoping someone can be of help.

I have a RE Thunderbird 350x of August 2019 make, purchased in Bangalore. I have ridden the bike for about 8000 kms now and it has not run much since the last six months or so due to COVID, barring few short trips to the tune of 250 kms. However it has been serviced regularly at authorised RE service stations.

Yesterday, I went for a quick ride of 50 kms and while returning, the rear wheel froze for 4-5 seconds and a loud noise came out. It was dark and I was in the highway, so I could not stop. The speed was about 35-40 kmph at that moment, otherwise I dont know what would have happened. I reached home in another 10 mins and inspected the bike and found out that the O rings are coming out from one side of the chain. As a result, the chain is getting stuck and the wheel is stuttering.

I took the bike to an ASC today (in Kolkata, because I moved to Kolkata temporarily for WFH situations). The mechanic put the bike on gear in a stationary position and saw all the O rings coming out like flakes on the ground. He mentioned this is something he is seeing for the first time and said, something corrosive came in contact with the chain due to which this is happening. However the fact is, the bike has always been serviced in ASC and the chain regularly lubricated by Royal Enfield lubricant in every 500 kms or so.

He told me this doesnt come under warranty but he would still try to speak to the ASM and ask for approval. He called me a while back saying the ASM denied to cover this in warranty. Also, their interest was a bit underwhelming since the bike was purchased elsewhere.

Now I am in a bit of trouble figuring out what to do and till that time, cant ride my bike too. I dont believe chain needs replacement in just 8000 kms. Can someone advice me why this happened and what can be done? Any escalation points or contacts in RE West Bengal/Kolkata, if required? Prima facie, the mechanic admitted that it happened because of negligence of someone in the Bangalore ASC and the penalty should not be imposed on the customer.

Thanks in advance.

[escape velocity]

Hi all,

As I'd asked this question a few years earlier also, the moderators are kindly requested to not remove it.

A serious spine ailment is going to keep me away from riding for atleast one year which is why I have finally decided to sell my motorcycle. You are requested to tell me how much should I expect ? The details are as under:

1. Model:Classic 350
2.Year of Manufacture: 2013
3.Mileage: 14,800 kms

The bike is in a very good condition with a few minor scratches here and there.Tires are 08 years old with good tread.Battery is a brand new Exide 14AH.

The bike is in stock condition and used for office commute. It was a first hand buy.

Regards

[bblost]

Originally Posted by meetarin

Need some expert advice here and hoping someone can be of help.

I am sorry that I am unable to help out in this issue, but am curious if anyone used WD 40 on this chain?

[meetarin]

Originally Posted by bblost

I am sorry that I am unable to help out in this issue, but am curious if anyone used WD 40 on this chain?

WD40 is a degreaser and should not be used on this chain in my opinion. You can use the standard cleaner+lube that comes from Enfield.