Hi to all, i was wondering what the general consensus is regarding the emptying of accumulated oil from the sump after a layup of say 2 to 3 months ? I have a sump with a built in drain plug so it presents no problem as such! Any guidance welcome. Thanks. Dave.
depends on how good your ball and spring valve is. if its good and only an egg cup not a problem as the scavenge system will remove, if its like my A10 smokes like a trooper with half an oil tank in the sump.
I was in a circle with the A10, drain sump, clean carb, charge battery before thinking of getting it off the ramp and starting. If one or all took too long, it wouldnt get started, then round and round again next time you wanted to start it.
Hi Dibble,
It really depends on how clean the oil is. If it looks like new and the receptacle and funnel etc. are clean then it may be OK. Any contamination makes it a No No.
If it is the whole tank full then I can understand the expense of what would amount to an oil change every time.
One tip I have picked up from the Forum is to leave the engine with the pistons at or close to TDC. This reduces the syphon affect of the crank and having tried it on my bikes it does greatly reduce the amount that gets in to the sump.
Dave.
Without wet sumping, when the oil has drained from the working surfaces of the engine the sump will contain about 100 ml.
You need some oil in the sump before starting to make sure oil gets to the rockers as soon as possible.
BSA recommended addding 1/2 pint of oil to the A65 sump after removal of the sump plate to clean the filter. Good practice for the A10.
Even my more modern bike (35 years old) wet sumps and I know that, if I leave it more than a month, there will be enough oil drained into sump to make it difficult to start - and that's with an electric start! Therefore, I know I will have to unscrew the drain plug, remove the oil and pour it back into the tank before trying to start the engine. However, the oil condition is always just as good whether it has remained in the tank or drained into the sump and so I only change the oil once a year.
Now would be a good time to check for wet sumping having been laid up for 2-3 months you will be able to judge by the amount of oil that comes out as Julien says there should be about 100mls if it is there is say 300mls then you have wet sumping and I would suggest you start the bike up at least every 2 to 3 weeks and you should have no problems. I have an A7 and an A65 the A7 doea wet sump but if I start it up every 2 to 3 weeks no problems the A65 does not wet sump even left for 2 to 3 months. Also wet sumping is only minor problem in the winter as the bike gets used in the summer.
Hi,
As previously said by others, if there is 1/2pt or less in the crankcase don't drain it, (see BSA service sheet 137 for clarification).
If there is more oil, or the bike is wet sumping its worth trying to solve the issue in the long run.
Best wishes...
Hi, well I've bought an extra anti wet sump valve, it fits into the crankcase, and the oil feed pipe joins to it. Not tested yet, as rebuilding a B31 bought as a runner. Nuff said.
One time I started my Super Rocket having forgotten to drain the sump. It blew out the main crankshaft seal and filled the primary case with engine oil. I immediately detected something was not right and stopped the bike to investigate. Now I ALWAYS drain the sump before starting if it's been sitting more than a couple weeks. By the way I like the fact that my bikes wet sump and fill the sump over the winter. After all, the big end bearings are now sitting in oil all winter, so when I start it in the spring (after having drained the sump) I know the bearings are not dry for those first moments when it fires up. I always put in fresh oil before laying up for the winter.
I forgot to mention that all 3 of my A10's have the SRM sump plate installed so that draining the sump is easy. Having to remove the original sump plate every time you start up is DEFINATELY out of the question.
Gentlemen i thank you all for your helpfull advice. Im quite excited now,i might run a book on the amount drained! Any takers? Thanks a million. Dave
On my other more modern bike, I recently drained 2L out of the sump before attempting to start the engine out of a total of 3L capacity in the oil tank. As said, if the engine is started every few weeks, there is not a problem but leaving it for a few months unused over winter definitely needs a sump drain :)
There is a thread related to wet sumping at
https://www.bsaownersclub.co.uk/bsaoc_forum/index.php?topic=13775.0
Is there a sump plate with a drain plug available for an A65 that uses the original mounting studs I seem to think 2 of my studs may have been helicoiled in and don't want to upset things,Roy
Hi Roy,
The sump plates with magnetic plugs are all cast/machined thicker in aluminium. I think the SRM one comes with longer screws for fitment. As the plate will not be removed as often as the original there should be no problem with your helicoils. An alternative could be fit a magnetic plug to a standard plate by brazing a nut that will take a replacement magnetic plug which are available.
Dave.
Thanks Dave I know a guy that can do that, Roy
I altered the existing plate on my A7 I made a boss cut it at an angle wlded it to the plate it has a 10mm drain plug works perfectly, but be warned if you attempt this you have to remove the mesh from inside the cover it is soldered in place when refitting be careful to align the hole in the mesh with the scavenge pipe.