Mystery Oil Puddle

[antsaint]

Just got back from vacation, and instead of getting caught up properly on here, I've instead got to ask a bloody mechanical question! Darn RPOCs



So I rode Sveta over to see a buddy of mine. He calls me a couple of hours after I get home, to tell me there's this oily puddle and track from where the bike was parked, and it's obvious that the front tire tracked through it and left a trail as I backed out the Ural when I left.

I'd checked Sveta's oil that morning, and she was full. I checked it again this morning, and it was still full. There's no oil on the garage floor. I looked under the bike, checking around the final drive, the oil drain plug, the oil filter housing and the gearbox and gearbox oil drain, but didn't see anything that looked like an oil spill. Couldn't discern any cracks or seepage around the engine either. I just took Sveta for a quick spin too, and she ran and felt as fine as ever.

So... is there something I should check that I haven't checked? Or could this have just been some weird coincidence where I just happened to park in someone else's puddle and just didn't notice?

[JohnBG]

Check your engine oil, transmission oil and FD oil and if they all seem normal you prolly just drove thru someone else;s puddle.

About the only thing that'll make a puddle that big (aside from a missing drain plug) on a Ural is a cracked engine block, transmission housing, or oil pan.

[pigdog]

Are you sure one of your friends isn't playing a little joke on you?

Quite common here at the firehouse.

[IRON NUTZ]

Are you sure one of your friends isn't playing a little joke on you?

Quite common here at the firehouse.

or that was there already before you got there ,but you would have seen that first,right

[Bilgekeeldave]

Tell your buddy he's a 'Skoolete' (Russian for whiner) Russian bike don't leak, they mark their territory!

Dave

[berger]

Ditto what John said. That is a lot of oil and you would have noticed there was an issue when you holed a piston.

Berger

[Mud Pie]

I'll trade you your mystery stain for my well documented blown main seal !!

I just found out yesterday that it'll cost me 750 smackers to get the seal replaced !! Ouch !!

[seth]

motorbike oil? looks more to me like a spilt beer.
seth

[JohnBG]

I'll trade you your mystery stain for my well documented blown main seal !!

I just found out yesterday that it'll cost me 750 smackers to get the seal replaced !! Ouch !!

Wow! $750 for a one day job and a $10 seal??? Damn!

[antsaint]

Well, I think there's something going on. I got under there last night and checked all the drain plugs. There was a bit of clean oil around the gearbox drain plug. Couldn't tighten it much, but I wasn't having much luck gaining leverage for the wrench, either. Will probably snag a 19mm ratchet bolt and try again, see if that does any better.

How do you check the oil level for the gearbox? I took off the fill plug (wiped off a bit of fuzz, too, but only a little), but couldn't see a way to gauge the oil level in there. What am I missing?

Will post some pix up shortly of what it's looking like under there.

[a1930ford]

Obviously, you are into square foot gardening as promoted by John and Bill. Yup, start marking the oil spots in that lay out you have pictured and before long you should see some squash and carrot growth as well.

I'd be overly cautious on how much physical oomph you give to tightening any oil drain plug on a Ural. If you check the cds you will see the fellow rapping the plugs gently before removal, but nothing about overly tightening them when he re-inserts them. He does use about 4 turns of teflon tape on the drain plugs before re-inserting them, I believe. That may be just the ticket for your stopping any leakage, if it is coming from the actual drain plug area. Me, I use the wrenches provided on the rig instead of going to anything that can easily allow me to use too much oomph in retightening things. My mits just ain't so good at recognizing how much is too much until my brain says, "Ahhhhhh, $hit!"...snap.

Be sure to turn the tire sideways to allow your wrench more play area for loosening or tightening the plug.

[JohnBG]

How do you check the oil level for the gearbox? I took off the fill plug (wiped off a bit of fuzz, too, but only a little), but couldn't see a way to gauge the oil level in there. What am I missing?

Ya don't. Just fill it to the bottom of the threads on the top port that ya the pour oil into.

Or do like I do, keep filling it until oil pours on the floor...

Transmission dipsticks are fer sissies...

[antsaint]

Ya don't. Just fill it to the bottom of the threads on the top port that ya the pour oil into.

Or do like I do, keep filling it until oil pours on the floor...

Transmission dipsticks are fer sissies...

I shoulda known it'd be something like that. It crossed my mind, but it was one of those, "nah, it can't be that simple" moments.

So the takeaways are...

- When I change the gearbox oil at 2500km (about another 1000km) clean the drain plug and wrap in 3-4 turns of Teflon tape
- Don't overtighten the plug - which is no worries, I hadn't gotten back under there yet, and will now leave it be
- Top up the gearbox oil till I'm dumping dino on the chrome. Well, I guess that's one way to turn it black!

Thanks lads. Will let you know if anything else comes up...

[antsaint]

BTW, here are some pics of what it's looking like around the gearbox plug and up around some of the housing. Anything look out of whack?

[a1930ford]

BTW, here are some pics of what it's looking like around the gearbox plug and up around some of the housing. Anything look out of whack?

I'm thinkin' that you have the demodulator valve spring cross-threaded with the left muffler bearing spacer, but I could be viewing things a bit upside down and it may just be that the hiney nut cotter pin isn't cinched down correctly and it interferes with the glossimer timing chain. It is a simple fix though, but you must have the Russian BFH to properly adjust these fittings and alighn. If you don't have one, a simple blow to the chrome hubcap assembly with a standard dead blow hammer usually does the trick. If all else failes, straighten the license plate and adjust the air pump stored in your trunk and you are probably good to go.
Hey, every single lie of this is the truth, I swear!