New Member - 03 WR450F with troubles

[VTForester]

Hello all, new to the forum.  Ive been lurking and reading a ton lately and thought it was time to say hello!  Im not a new rider, though it has been years since I've ridden dirtbikes.  I did as a kid, and have been on street bikes several years. 

 

I got the itch to buy a dirtbike again just to goof off/trail ride.  I first borrowed a friends newer crf250x.  It was a fun ride but seemed lacking on power after a few hours so I went looking for something I wouldn't get tired of as quickly....Long story short I bought a 03 WR450F that (supposedly) just had the top end rebuilt and looked to be in generally good shape except for a few little projects. I'm told +/- 8 hours on the bike since rebuild.

 

I didn't pay much for the bike so I expected to spend some money on getting it back to good shape...I'm posting today though because it looks like it may be a little more in depth than I expected.

 

What I was told for parts:

Kibblewhite valves

HotCams

Wiseco High Compression Piston

White Bros Exhaust

Clarke Tank

 

Supposedly(there's that word again) rebuilt by a certified motorcycle tech.

 

I rode the bike when I bought it and very briefly when I got home, runs great, needs a little fine tuning on jetting but otherwise good.  The next evening after work I was all set to change oil, coolant etc and just go over the bike with a fine tooth comb. I stupidly never pulled the dipstick when I went to look at it. ?

 

I ran the bike a few mins then drained the oil and about choked...Milky White Oil.  So I changed the oil and ran it around our property maybe 10 mins.  Drained again and it is less milky but definitely still there.

 

My first thought was it must be a head gasket but I also read about water pump seals causing the problem.  Is there an easy way to settle on which it is?  I cant seem to put my hands on a leakdown tester except possibly the harbor freight variety, it is cheap but is it worthwhile for diagnosing this?

 

It is hard for me to believe a headgasket is blown if the bike runs so well and had even a halfway competent rebuild done but...???  Thoughts, Suggestions etc?

 

New Tires(dirt), chain, and a few other things are in the mail.

 

 

Also, since we all like pictures:

 

[JVP]

If the bike is running good, then it may only be a gasket issue.  However, you are going to have to tear down the motor, the head to start out with to find out what is going on.  If it is a gasket, you will see where it is leaking.  Hope you got the bike the for a good price.  Maybe you should contact the seller and get the name of the "Certified Tech" and have him warranty his work.......

[VTForester]

If the bike is running good, then it may only be a gasket issue.  However, you are going to have to tear down the motor, the head to start out with to find out what is going on.  If it is a gasket, you will see where it is leaking.  Hope you got the bike the for a good price.  Maybe you should contact the seller and get the name of the "Certified Tech" and have him warranty his work.......

 

It was fair, though I would have certainly argued for less if I had had the good sense to pull the dipstick and find this problem.

 

I thought about seeing if the guy would stand behind his work but nixed the idea.  For one, I'm a little dubious of his abilities at this point and second IF it is just a gasket then it would take longer for me to return the bike to him than to just pull the top end down and fix it.

 

So I started last night after work just to make a little progress while I wait for gaskets:

 

 

[VTForester]

So as in most things I touch I got a little carried away....

 

First, The source of the coolant leak was rather easy to work out after puling the top end down:

 

In the end it will be good to have pulled the bike completely apart and started fresh, I found lots of other little things I wanted to correct.

 

If parts arrive as promised then the rest of this should be done in time to ride this weekend:

Fluidyne radiators (because leaks in both and beat to hell)

Silicone Radiator hoses

Renthal chain and sprockets

Rear Brake master cyl rebuilt

New brake pads front and rear

JD Jetting kit

Acerbis Handguards

Kenda Tires - Trackmaster II

Tusk brake pedal - Factory one was MIA

Odi V2 grips

All fluids and filters changed

[JVP]

If the bike is running good, then it may only be a gasket issue.  However, you are going to have to tear down the motor, the head to start out with to find out what is going on.  If it is a gasket, you will see where it is leaking.  Hope you got the bike the for a good price.  Maybe you should contact the seller and get the name of the "Certified Tech" and have him warranty his work.......

I love being right!.......

[VTForester]

I love being right!.......

You certainly were.

This has turned into quite a project bike but the limited riding I've gotten in has been a blast.

New issue...fork seals. Another quick fix but another thing to work on nonetheless.

Also going to rebuild both calipers. The rear isn't terrible but the front is a mess. Front master cyl rebuild as well.

I'll have a brand new 2003 model before long

Edited March 13, 2016 by VTForester