Best practices for repair and maintenance work.

[film842]

Since I hope to do a fair amount of maintenance and perhaps repair on my '04 RT, I'm wondering about whether or not to oil/grease the screws/bolts or use any other thread preparations on reassembly? Or does it matter?

 

I'm assuming that if Loctite or some other compound is to be used, the manuals will say so.

 

What do you do for everything else?

[AndyS]

good afternoon film842, welcome to the forum.

May I suggest that the haynes, BMW maintenance manual, clymer and the many online resources be your guide here.

Many fasteners and fixings need lubrication, many are totally dry and likewise many need a thread locker of a given sort. So it does matter and you need to know when it matters.

 

The last part of your question is very 'open ended' I tend to like toast with my tea!

 

You are certainly on the right forum for good advice in very quick response time. There are some good guides in the FAQ section of the forum too.

see also:

http://www.ibmwr.org/r-tech/oilheads/R11Manual/Oilhead_Maintenance_2-25-02.pdf

 

Remember as you go along there are many common things between the R1100RT, but also many differences.

[Danny caddyshack Noonan]

Use loctite or any thread lubricant with great caution.

If it is a structural joint, do whatever they did in the factory.

 

Loctite and anti-seize can drop the friction so low that the joint preload skyrockets when the recommended torque is applied. (Most joints are analyzed for dry assembly) This exceeds the intended load in the fastener. As a result, you can get into a situation that the fastener or clamped material is yielding and subject to failure.

 

If a non-critical joint, loctite can be applied and then torque just enough to close the joint or get the fastener to seat....with caution.

[NonComp]

I find that the BMW service manual is a good source of info for documenting which bolts/screws need loctite, and which type of loctite to use.

 

It also documents which bolts must be heated (and to what temperature) to soften the loctite for disassembly. This is important in the case of the pivot pins for the paralever, which can strip the threads on the swingarm if they are not heated during disassembly.

 

For most procedural stuff, I use the Haynes book, with the BMW service manual as a backup reference. The Haynes book is a how-to manual and includes wiring diagrams. The BMW service manual assumes you know how and does not include the wiring diagrams.

[Ken Denton]

I have an 04 1150 rt that I have done all the basic work on. Have not pulled a transmission or anything but so far no need for any locktite.

 

Ken Denton

[jjg3]

"Best practices for repair and maintenance work."

 

Maybe straying from your primary question,

 

I would suggest you take plenty of photos and post them where you can share. In this digital age it's easy to do, although it is just a bit of a PITA to try to get each meaningful step. But I think it pays-off in many ways.

 

To help in reassembly, to show what the part coming off looked like (for the shop mech or the parts counter person, or before any of that to post here and ask questions), and most especially, to help those who come along behind doing the same thing.

 

There's hardly anything you might do that hasn't been photo-documented somewhere, but in doing it again (yourself) you might just show a better way.

 

As they say, "A picture is worth ..."