SR500 Engine Give Away, Part 1 Disassembly

SR500 Engine Give Away, Part 1 Disassembly

Part 2: Engine Disassembly Part 1

 As the video says this motor will be a give away to you, the 500 community. Along the way I have been very fortunate to receive gifts from motorcyclists like you. Engulfing myself in the motorcycle community has been one of the best things I have ever done. Our community has been very gracious to help me through out the years, provide me with info and be very patient while teaching me new skillsets. Now that I have the opportunity to give back, I am excited to do so. So I will be giving away this engine build in the first week of January 2023.

If you would like to enter to win the engine please subscribe to our KEDO Parts USA email at the bottom of this page for 1 entry, or any purchase over $100 will give you 3 entries...$200 = 6 entries....$300 = 9 entries and so one, there is no limit to your amount of entries.   

Thank you all, 

Chad Goings

 


The first part of any moto build is the engine. I got this motor from a friend so I didn’t do too much inspection, I doubt he did either based off the initial inspection. If you are going to purchase a project, make sure you do basic inspections, any cracks in the engine, if the motor turns over, how easily it turns over, if it shifts through the gears or if the shifter splines are stripped…


A good indication of the quality of a Yamaha XT500, TT500 and or SR500 engine is how much ware/oil is on the engine itself. Some people will try to hide this by washing or cleaning the old oil, unless they are a true scammer, you should be able to see brush marks behind bolts, or odd oil spots that shouldn’t be there. Make sure all the cooling fins are in place, also a good indication of the engine health is the engine oil itself. A lot of you have seen in recent cases of metal fragments in the oil pan. Always take off the engine oil plug, to inspect the oil. ( I am much more of a fan of copper washers as they can be reheat-treated) One should check the oil screen as well for any large foreign particles.

 

 



Once you do this, start doing basic disassembly, there are different methods. But for this tight timeline tonight, I inserted all the bolts into their original through hole parts to keep track of them. If the bolt was spent I put it in the female portion of the part. Be sure to note any odd bolts or anything that seems abnormal to the rest of the bolts. This isn’t rocket science, if one bolt is off/tight/abnormal there is probably something wrong. Inspect the bolt carefully to observe an issue. Look for fresh aluminum/steel threads, or if a bolt has rust then part of it is shiny. The shiny part could be the issue. Most likely someone over tightened the bolt/nut, this is a common issue. Once you strip out every bolt and nut from your dad's lawn mower can you truly understand the feeling of over tightening a bolt/nut. So as our holy mechanic once said "it's-not-going-to-fall-out Nm of torque" 

 

 

(Here is a good example of a spent, allen head on a SR500. I had to insert a 12 point torques key to loosen the bolt, *****I am a big fan of 6 point sockets and allen keys, as they put less wear marks on the fasteners and they are what assembly mechanics would have used while assembling our bikes*****)

 

 

Also now is a good time to see if you overlooked anything like a missing exhaust stud…

 

Once you have done this carefully document everything you have done or just leave it in it’s place then come back later and document it. Photos also help when assembling these Yamaha TT500, XT500 and or SR500 engines for reference. 

 


The next step I will take is checking the valves to document them. Even though on this Yamaha SR500 engine build I will be replacing the valves, it is always a good practice to document everything for the engines next care taker. I will also document and organize each bolt section (side case/intake manifold) in its own manila envelope. 

 

 

On these old engines always check your o-rings if there are flat spot. Plastics/rubber will eventually hold it's shape it has been pressed into over the years. Be sure to inspect these and change when capable.

 

 

Last but not least, protect yourself and be safe. I have worked in motorcycle shops most of my life. I look up to all those who have taught me everything I know, but it is amazing to me how many experienced mechanics have poor hearing due to the lack of hearing protection. I always wear ear protection when using air tools, or around a dyno. I use a dust mask around dust, and an apron if I am carrying anything. No need to ruin my $10 denim shirts!

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