NotVeryCreative16

Never mind. I’m an idiot. I needed to back the preload all the way out before installing the fork caps.

No, I haven’t. That would be the next step. I just figured someone from this forum might have a simple answer. I didn’t have this issue when I originally installed the cartridges so I’m assuming I’m just making a dumb mistake.

I’m not sure if I installed something in the wrong order/orientation or if I’m just not doing something right but I can’t get the fork cap to screw back on. The part with the threads in that picture doesn’t seem to be sticking up far enough for me to thread the fork cap back onto it. Any help is appreciated.

That’s very interesting. Makes total sense now that I think about it that way. With the pinch bolts loosened, it was comically easy to crack open the fork top caps. I appreciate the input from everyone as always.

Wow, I’m such an idiot lol. Makes sense I guess but it’s crazy that a pinch bolt tightened to 19 ft lbs is enough to make it impossible to spin the fork cap. Glad I asked before I completely stripped the thing trying!

It doesn’t sound silly because no, I didn’t loosen either pinch bolt. Maybe I’m an idiot, but I don’t understand why this would stop the fork cap from turning. I did install them myself but that was 2 years ago and I really don’t remember how tight I made them. I do know I tightened them with the same spanner that I’m trying to loosen them with though so it shouldn’t be this difficult. I’ll try it with the top pinch bolt loosened. I guess the compression is enough to stop the cap from turning? I appreciate the advice.

I have K-Tech 20IDS carts installed on my 2015 FJ-09 and can’t for the life of me loosen the top caps with the spanner (https://www.ktechsuspensionusa.com/p-19860-k-tech-suspension-front-fork-tools.aspx). I’ve tried WD-40 and heat to no avail. I was going to try to use a piece of pipe as a cheater bar for more leverage, but on my last attempt, I chipped part of the top cap with the spanner so I thing k cheater bar is probably just going to make it worse. I’m not sure if I’m doing something wrong like the preload or rebound/compression should be set to a certain setting. I’m thinking I need to get one of these sockets: https://www.ktechsuspensionusa.com/Yamaha-FZ09-2015_p-19765-k-tech-suspension-front-fork-tools.aspx Thoughts?

Okay, I was wrong. This hole is where coolant was leaking from at the end of my 2 hour drive yesterday. I just dropped the radiator guard to get a better look and it is actually squirting from the very top of the front of the radiator, underneath the hole. There doesn’t appear to be any damage to the radiator though so this is confusing.

My coolant has been boiling up out of this small hole in the top of the radiator. The engine does not overheat until the coolant level is low. It was only a little at first and I noticed it at the end of the first day of a 3 day trip so I just added coolant at the end of each day but it has gotten much worse. I limped it home which was a 2 hour drive and noticed the coolant just boiling over and pouring out of the hole in the top of the radiator by the radiator cap. Does anyone know what could be causing this? Thanks in advance.

Can you give me a quick run down on the APE tensioner kit? Is this something I should do while I'm in there and am currently in need of the #33 bolt that's like $50? I've thought about this, but it seems like I'd have to take the cylinder head out to have it machined properly. At that point, I might as well just replace the damn thing cause I'd have to order the whole cylinder head to get the camshaft cap. What do you think about the high temperature JB weld? It's a 7 ft lbs torque bolt so I'm not asking much of in that regard but obviously it will have to withstand the heat and oil. It's rated to be able to withstand continuous 2400 degrees.

Yeah, I'm realizing now this is probably not the best solution since it is aluminum and the welding would probably warp the cap and mess with fitment. I'm strongly considering high temperature JB weld to make new threads as it only needs to hold 7 ft lbs. I've read about others having this same issue with a valve cover bolt hole and fixing it with jb weld with no issues for years. Thank you for your detailed reply. Helicoil and high temperature JB weld are the two solutions I'm considering at this point. The problem with a helicoil is that the collar around the bolt hole is broken, so I think I would have to put JB weld around that portion so there's not a portion of the helicoil exposed. Or perhaps this wouldn't be a problem? I'm really not sure what to do at this point, but I can imagine that purchasing a new motor and paying someone to swap it for me would be slightly out of my budget.

The problem is it's not the valve cover that is broken; that would be a $130 fix and I would probably just eat that. It's the camshaft cap with the broken collar/stripped threads which the bolt that goes through the valve cover secures into. I would have to replace the entire cylinder head assembly which is almost $600 brand new. I'm going to swing by a couple when I have time this week and see what they think and how much something like that would cost. They were closed today for Memorial Day. I am going to call them tomorrow, but I'd be shocked if they offer any resolution - worth a try though. The shop is about 4 hours away from where I live now so I don't know how feasible taking them to court will be, but I will certainly threaten them with that option. I will call Yamaha also and see if I have any lucky there.

Yeah, that's definitely a concern of mine. I'm probably going to take it to a fabrication or welding shop tomorrow and see if they can fill the hole/crack and then drill/tap out new threads. I'm fairly confident that it was done during the CCT replacement also, but I can't help to worry that the piece that broke off the collar didn't fall off until I was removing the valve cover and is now floating around somewhere in the engine.

Perhaps I wasn't clear with my wording. The broken bolt hole with the collar is for the bolt that goes through the valve cover and the camshaft cap. All 16 of the bolt holes going just through the camshaft caps are fine. You're correct that they would not have been touched during the CCT recall work. The broken bolts are the ones that would have been removed when removing the valve cover. Perhaps. That's definitely a thought.

After taking some time to clean out the various parts and play around with them, it seems like I'm just going to need to get the one bolt hole fixed (the one in the 3rd picture) as the other ones are not stripped like I originally thought; the one just had the broken piece of bolt that I was able to remove and the other two just needed to be cleaned out - I jumped to a conclusion a little prematurely when I found two broken bolts. The concern is whether or not the bolt hole in the 3rd picture can be repaired properly since it is split down the side. My bike is currently disassembled in my garage so I would just be taking the one camshaft cap into a machining/milling shop to hopefully have it repaired. If I was paying someone to disassemble everything like you mentioned, I would probably lean towards your solution. You may be right that a helicoil won't give me satisfactory repair job in this exact instance, but I have read countless reports of people using helicoils in their camshaft covers and cylinder head covers with no issues. I do appreciate your input. I'm going to wait a little longer to hear if others think it can be repaired properly and will take the camshaft cap to a shop or two to hear what they have to say. If it can be repaired, my only issue is whether or not any of the metal shavings/pieces have fallen into the engine. I'm not exactly sure what to do in that regard. I would assume that it will drop into the oil pan at some point, but I'm not sure if I would have to run the engine to get it to do so and if I run the risk of damaging something in the process.