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On a previous thread I was tossing up about fitting O/S rings etc, and am curious about what the workshop manuals say about re-using bolts, etc. I really don't want to use my brand new bolts and gaskets trying something that may or may not be successful. So.....is it actually feasible to re-use con-rod end cap bolts, flywheel bolts etc that the manual very specifically says 'NO" to, and can the head gaskets be refitted for a minimal amout of time, temporarily at most, ( to check oil consumption etc). Any advice appreciated. My financial overheads are killing the money left over for my bike right now i.e homelessness, divorce, forced to drink red wine instead of beer, eating road kill etc ......

For most, Pattern, motorcycles are a bit of a luxury to start with, even if we've come to view the machinery as important to our self-identity. Cheapness is, of course, a well-known (but not well-regarded by the motorcycle biz) trait of airhead owners, but if money isn't there to support the thing, giving it up for a while is OK.

While I'm sure that all of those things have been reused on more than one occasion in the event of a field repair required to get back to civilization or a more well equipped shop, the time to do the job twice and the relative cheapness of bolts and gaskets, not replacing them in the first place is false economy. Like you say, if it worked, you'd still want to go in and replace them again. Like khittner says, if you can't afford to do it correctly now, maybe it's best to wait until you can. I lived on the road on my first BMW for almost 3 years, so it is doable, but that was back in the 1970s, and things were much cheaper then... Leaks are easy to feed.

I wouldn't hesitate for a second to re-use a head gasket just to test something if I were planning on taking it right back apart. If it fails, what's the damage?

Likewise, if a rod fails, what's the damage?????

A reasonable risk assessment tells me that the rod and flywheel bolts aren't worth being cheap on, while the head gasket is risking nothing other than my time.

Thanks for the feedback. The thing is, I live in the middle of nowhere, and do all my own work normally ( it NEVER sees a bike shop). I've never used bolts more than once, and wondered whether or not it was a BMW thing to get you to buy more spare parts instead of recycling??? I need my bike for work and can't have it off the road, but am not about to risk throwing a rod through the block trying to save $10.00. I'll stick to what has worked for the last 25 years and 1/2 million kilometres and do things properly. Maybe if I claim refugee status and stop working full time, the Australian government will pay for my bike maintainence.........

Pattern14 wrote: Maybe if I claim refugee status and stop working full time, the Australian government will pay for my bike maintainence.........

Let us know how that works out

Things happened sooner than I think. The heads I had done up less than 10,00 k's ago decided to drop the valve seats out on the left side a couple of days back. Pulled it down to find the valves bent and piston crown pretty dented. I tried contacting the machinist, but still no answer. Not much else to do except recycyle the old head i had in a box, put another spare barrel and piston from a another box and re-use the old head gasket etc. It fired up straight away, runs smoothly and does not leak or blow smoke . I'm pissed off that no-one is returning my calls and emails, considering the money i spent ( although to be fair ANYTHING could have happened to the machinist who lives interstate ) I emailed and rang a couple of specialists who were recommended to me, but still no word from then either.

At least it goes ( and goes well), although I may be the exception to the rule whose bike is a necessity, not a luxury, and does nor define who I am. If it stops, I'm stuck, and live too remotely for public transport or someone giving me a lift. Thankfully, its a 70's BM and not a modern two wheeled computer that would leave stranded with no hope of fixing things myself.

Pattern14 wrote: I tried contacting the machinist, but still no answer.

Perth, WA, by chance?

ME 109 wrote:

Pattern14 wrote: I tried contacting the machinist, but still no answer.

Perth, WA, by chance?

Or Nimbin perhaps. We have lousy roads due to high rainfall and no public transport. As everyone knows, NSW stands for Newcastle, Sydney, Wollongong, forget about the rest!!! I do have a machinist and a great BMW mechanic in my back pocket.