So apparently I work on motorcycles now
...beats getting hit by them I guess
Neighbors kid bought a '19 Rebel 300 (ABS) brand new about two years back
Apparently it's a glorified scooter dressed up to look like a real motorcycle?
I don't know the profile of bikes and riders, I just swing the wrenches
Said kid decided to do standard stuff of sticking lights and this and that on it, nothing wrong with that I suppose
Then the set about changing the oil, that's where the trouble started
It's two years old with 650 miles on it, so not exactly heavy use
He did the oil change, rounded the drain plug, somehow changed the filter, used oil of indeterminate type (he threw away the bottle)
Now it's got a tick/knock at idle
Now I don't know too much about bike engines, but by any engine standards it didn't sound good
Kinda rod knocky
It goes to neighbor across the street who's an avid rider with multiple sport bikes, apparently he "adjusts the chain"
No difference
I inquire about why I don't see him on it much anymore, I thought maybe he got bored with it?
He tells me the whole story, I say bring it up the block to my house, no guarantees, you may have already done irreparable damage
I've never worked on a bike before, but I thought being a small Honda it can't be that far off a pressure washer or lawn mower?
When in doubt, OEM parts is my motto, so I ordered up some service items from Babbitts online
Plus the NGK plug it calls for in the owners manual, thought I'd treat it
I drain the oil, it looks reasonably new and clean, level seems right, the problem was a Fram filter, and a extra unnecessary O-Ring I found in the oil filter housing
There was also light metallic streaking around in some places (think draining a break in fill)
Cleaned it all out, new filter and gasket, new drain plug and crush washer, 1.5qt of the Honda GN4 10w30 as per the manual
Cranked it up and the noise disappeared
Here's how it sounded when it arrived
Here's after work
So now I put it to those with more bike knowledge
What was that noise?
It had a correct amount of an oil in it?
It had a filter?
Is this a wet or dry clutch?
What in that engine could possibly get that upset about the wrong oil?
I'm buttoning it up today, he's over the moon that he's not gonna be in for an engine on a bike he paid $5k for new two years ago
I told him he can do all the lights and stickers he wants, leave the mechanicals to me
...beats getting hit by them I guess
Neighbors kid bought a '19 Rebel 300 (ABS) brand new about two years back
Apparently it's a glorified scooter dressed up to look like a real motorcycle?
I don't know the profile of bikes and riders, I just swing the wrenches
Said kid decided to do standard stuff of sticking lights and this and that on it, nothing wrong with that I suppose
Then the set about changing the oil, that's where the trouble started
It's two years old with 650 miles on it, so not exactly heavy use
He did the oil change, rounded the drain plug, somehow changed the filter, used oil of indeterminate type (he threw away the bottle)
Now it's got a tick/knock at idle
Now I don't know too much about bike engines, but by any engine standards it didn't sound good
Kinda rod knocky
It goes to neighbor across the street who's an avid rider with multiple sport bikes, apparently he "adjusts the chain"
No difference
I inquire about why I don't see him on it much anymore, I thought maybe he got bored with it?
He tells me the whole story, I say bring it up the block to my house, no guarantees, you may have already done irreparable damage
I've never worked on a bike before, but I thought being a small Honda it can't be that far off a pressure washer or lawn mower?
When in doubt, OEM parts is my motto, so I ordered up some service items from Babbitts online
Plus the NGK plug it calls for in the owners manual, thought I'd treat it
I drain the oil, it looks reasonably new and clean, level seems right, the problem was a Fram filter, and a extra unnecessary O-Ring I found in the oil filter housing
There was also light metallic streaking around in some places (think draining a break in fill)
Cleaned it all out, new filter and gasket, new drain plug and crush washer, 1.5qt of the Honda GN4 10w30 as per the manual
Cranked it up and the noise disappeared
Here's how it sounded when it arrived
Here's after work
So now I put it to those with more bike knowledge
What was that noise?
It had a correct amount of an oil in it?
It had a filter?
Is this a wet or dry clutch?
What in that engine could possibly get that upset about the wrong oil?
I'm buttoning it up today, he's over the moon that he's not gonna be in for an engine on a bike he paid $5k for new two years ago
I told him he can do all the lights and stickers he wants, leave the mechanicals to me