Help needed: ailing Excalibur

[Nigelcb]

Just bought a 92 Excalibur 350 rlx which looked really good at point of sale. However when taking it home, at the first fuel stop, I noticed it was spewing oil all over (from oil filler and cylinders I think) and also one of the carbs was leaking dramatically (no fun with a hot engine and re-fueling). So my question is how do I tackle this? Should I buy new fuel lines and the carburettor kit off ebay, and also new base and head gaskets? Btw the bike actually ran quite well on the way home and still starts first time. Any help much appreciated as I am returing to Morini ownership after nearly 30 years and was really looking forward to re-capturing the unique Morini experience. N

[ringer]

Hi Nigel,

Welcome back to Morini ownership. You are just discovering that 20-30 year old bikes tend to leak and generally fall apart unless they are very well looked after. Not quite (but not too far off) your original experience all those years ago, eh?

Reference oil leaks. Check the engine oil level - is it overfilled? Check the breather pipes from top of cylinder heads - are they blocked? Don't just check the pipes - check the holes where they fit as well. Wipe clean all surfaces, take the bike for a short run, then recheck the surfaces to see exactly where the leaks come from. I have two or three leak points on my engine but I seem to lose very little oil from the engine - only had to top up once. It leaves a bit of a mess but it is liveable for the short term. Most important factor here is, make sure the oil doesn't find its way onto your back tyre.

Carburation. Yes, get an overhaul kit for the carbs. No doubt they have not been touched since new, and if the bike has been standing for any period of time longer than a couple of months then the carbs are probably partially gunked up. You may just find one of the floats is a bit sticky and so remains partially open, leading to the leaking you witnessed. Take off the fuel pipes and assess them. I was about to replace mine until I checked them out off the bike - they are still reasonably flexible and do not leak. Only replace if necessary.