Mysterious oil leak 1996 bandit 1200

[hrnyseany]

hi all I need your expertise on a mysterious oil leak

I recently bought a bandit 1200 with 23000 miles on the clock.
very clean and tidy you wouldn't believe its 16 years old.
any way onto the problem.
I seem to find after a ride out that my right boot has flicks of what feels like oil on it. it can't be losing much oil as it isn't going down.
I just can't seem to find where its coming from all the engine panels on the right side I run my finger round where the gasket join is and no evidence of oil and visually no oil coming from anywhere. I'm well and truely stumped.
I have noticed that it seems to happen after racing thru a gear but I say this because after riding thru 40mph speeds there was no oil on me boot. butafter highway speeds there was.
can anyone figure this weird one out for me?

[Bezzer]

If it is oil then it's probably from the block area and being blown back, on a Bandit places to check are the cam cover gasket, the two cam cover side bolts and sometimes the spark plug drain holes on the front of the motor when the cam cover/spark plug gaskets leak.
If it is oil then there must be some trace from where it's weeping from, clean everything up and keep checking to find the source.
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I used to be indecisive but now I'm not quite so sure.

[hrnyseany]

thanks for your reply, ill give her a thorough wipe down and look in the places you've mentioned, I've just bought a torque wrench so I can tighten all the bolts to what they should be too incase that has anything to do with

[Casper]

Also check your fork seals.

[hrnyseany]

I think I managed to trace a minor leak to the rocker shaft plug, and the signal generator cover. the signal generator ive sorted but the rocker shaft plug is this safe to remove, clean up and install with new sealing washer without affecting the internals?

[Pete.]

Won't hurt anything.

It'll probably be the leaking cover. At speed, air rushes over the surfaces causing a low pressure that will draw out oil. Happens to me on my 'busa scavenge pump and I've had it happen on my brake reservoir cap too.
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a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[Kickstart]

Hi

The rocker shaft plugs just go into the head and don't bolt anything together. Just likely needs a new copper washer.

On my 1200 a mystery oil leak turned out to be a split rocker cover gasket right behind the oil feed pipe on one side at the back. But the oil was mainly visible on the side of the head.

All the best

Keith
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Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[Pete.]

On a bike that old also inspect the oil cooler pipe ends - they have a nasty habit of corroding away to nothing and might be cracked.
____________________
a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[hrnyseany]

I think I managed to trace a minor leak to the rocker shaft plug, and the signal generator cover. the signal generator ive sorted but the rocker shaft plug is this safe to remove, clean up and install with new sealing washer without affecting the internals?

[Bezzer]

Yep it's safe, it's just a short blanking bolt that doesn't fix to anything. It's just sealing the hole you have to use remove/install the rocker shafts.
____________________
I used to be indecisive but now I'm not quite so sure.

[hrnyseany]

since applying instant gasket to the pulse generator it's sorted the oil flicking on my boot which is great as it's solved the issue, just weird how it left no trail to make it easy to spot Lol and there is still a very very minor weep from the rocker shaft plugs but that still have to wait as it snapped the bit I was using trying to undo it.... thanks for your help everyone much appreciated