When's the last time you dropped your oilpan?

I was putting my motor back together after renewing the connecting rod big end bearings and a valve job. With one side buttoned up, I was trying to rotate the crank to bring the other onto the compression stroke. The crank was reluctant to move, so I helped nudge it with a spare bolt, pressing against one of the holes on the crank as I pulled on the rod. Of course, the bolt slipped and disappeared into the bottom of the motor.

Oops! But easy to fix, and I should have been using a long-handled instrument anyway.

Now it gets interesting. I dropped the oilpan to get the bolt, and found the remains of a rocker arm needle bearing. But all of my rocker arms have their needle bearings in place... I checked before bolting the rockers back on this afternoon. The remains must be from a previous owner, how did they even get out of the rockers? And what two-bit mechanic replaced them but didn't chase down the lost bits? I'm sure glad those BMW engineers built our motors with such deep sumps.

At first, there's no indication of anything amiss... just some sludge.

But as the oil settles to one side, evidence of something unpleasant emerges from the ooze. Several of the needles were broken, must have been a rough passage through the spinning parts. I suppose there are other bits lodged in remote parts of the motor... sigh.

I've long suspected abuse at the hands of previous owners, the motor tells many stories with its broken fins, stripped exhaust port threads, scratched pistons, etc. But it runs so smoothly, it's a testament to the ruggedness of the design...

I'm looking forward to riding the bike and seeing what difference the new valves and valve guides make. I've been getting spoiled on the Oilhead, it's time to get back to basics.

- andrew johnson, Berkeley CA, 4 March 2001