oil leaking from alternator cover

[Kram]

Hi All,

I'm getting a small amount of oil leaking from the alternator cover on 1979 CBXZ.
It's not a big leak but am wondering if this would be the oil seal at the back of the unit (Part 91216PA003) needing replacment?
Is there anything tricky about replacing this seal?
I think oil might be getting into the front of the unit through this seal although i am not getting any battery charging issues at this point.
thanks,
Mark.

[daves79x]

Yes, if oil is into the 'dry' side of the alternator, the center seal is bad. But there may be a reason for that. Make sure your clutches are in good shape and have not splintered off shards of metal that may have trashed the seal. Whilst in there it's a good idea to replace both bearings and the seal.

Dave

[NobleHops]

Hey Kram, welcome to the site if I didn't say so already . We've had a lot of new guests recently, which is great. A refresh of your alternator is a worthy and fun project, and the parts aren't a lot of dough. Ross (ajs350) did a great write-up of the process in a thread here:

viewtopic.php?f=21&t=6781

...and if you use the search function (upper right) on any specific issues you'll find a lot more. For sure though, don't be shy about posting questions. Helping folks get these sort of issues fixed is what we like to do for fun around here.

Tim's CBX can sell you all the little parts you need, bearings, seals, and brushes, and if you do end up lapping the plates to get them flat (recommended), be certain to shim that spring that is behind the drive plate. You'll understand what I'm saying once you get in there. Last thought: An impact driver for those three screws and an air wrench for the big nut on the dry side are pretty helpful.

Again, welcome!

N.

[Jeff Bennetts]

You can get the front cover bearing out by heating the cover on a hot plate or a heat gun on high, then slam the cover down hard onto a block of wood, to instal the bearing heat the cover and throw the bearing in the fridge, the bearing will drop right in.

Make sure you clean all the brush dust and contaminates from the alt internals before re-assembly or you could short out the alt, check the alt plug for any overheating, if you see signs of of overheating remove all the pins, inspect them and replace any that are burnt or frayed at the crimp, replace the connector if it's deformed, all the pins and connectors are available and inexpensive.

If you need to true the clutches make sure you chamfer the edges of the oil slots so they don't have a sharp edge to them.

Bob Franzke from CBXPerformance is a good source for parts.