Thanks for the compliments on the bike! I am excited to get this thing back together with some light restoration and back on the road again.
Larry, I am rebuilding the top end because I was leaking a lot of oil. So far, most of the engine components look to be in great shape (the bike has 23,000 mi.), so I am hoping that replacing all the gaskets, seals, and related rubber parts will do the trick. I am also under the impression that I should replace all the dowel pins. Do any of you know some tricks for coaxing dowel pins that seem stuck? Also, I had a nightmare of a time removing gasket residue from the bottom of the cylinders. I had to use a razor blade, and as careful as I was I still have a coupe of tiny nicks in the aluminum. I've noticed a lot of people saying gasket sealant clogs oil-ways, but should I use a drop of sealant at the nicked areas? Any other recommendations for taking care of surface imperfections on the gasket surfaces other than re-machining? In the past, when I replaced my girlfriend's clutch I had similar difficulty with the clutch cover gasket, but the couple of small scratches didn't produce any leaking. I am hoping for similar luck...
edit: Oh, and I do have a printed version of the manual for my engine.
