INVADER 340 OVER OILING

[IraqvetUSMC]

So I had an issue with the invader over the winter stalling out on me and had to much oil in the left jug. I let the sled sit for a couple months and I got around to starting it the other day and after running it for a minute it had oil all over the left jug spark plug. The right jug spark plug was clean. Both throttle cables and oil injection pump lever seem to actuate at the same time and be in sync. Any ideas?

[5kaws]

A bad check valve?
Been there before........

[rminier]

  Pop the belt guard out of the way and remove the drive belt so you can clearly see the oil injection pump. There are 3 outlet tubes coming out of the oil pump....1 goes down low to the center of the crankcase, and the other 2 go to each cylinder.
  You should see 2 outlets coming right from the top of the pump...The 3rd one is down on the side.
  Of those 2 coming straight up out of the pump, the one closest to the motor should go to the low fitting at the center of the crankcase. This outlet puts out twice as much oil as the other 2. That specific outlet is designed to send oil to the center crank bearings.
  If it is incorrectly connected to the left cylinder.....there's ur Sign
 
  It's entirely possible some previous owner has messed something up......no, could never happen!  There are 3 identical Banjo fittings that the oil outlet tubes hook up to where they attach to each cylinder and the crankcase. They have a tiny ball check valve in them, and a very slender tube that controls oil flow. Maybe someone has hacked one of them up.
  You could flip/flop the banjo fittings for the left and right cylinders to see if the problem moves to the right side. Those banjo fittings are probably pretty cheap on eBay, or a search on this site will show they are still available a few places.
  Lastly, it's easy to mistake too much fuel as being an over oiling problem....The plug will be wet and oily.
  If all checks OK with the oil injection system, look closely at the carb floats to be moving on their pins very freely, and that the needle and seat are not leaking by, and the float height is set correctly....whew...that's plenty to think about for now.

[Boomologist]

Perhaps this will help explain the oil pump fittings.

http://www.gothotrocks.com/manuals/oillines/oillines.htm

[rminier]

  Wow, perfect illustration Boomologist. I knew I had seen something similar on this site or over on the John Deere site, JDsleds.com. A couple quick searches....I didn't find anything. Much clearer illustration than what's in the service manual.
  IraqvetUSMC, my memory had failed me a lil bit over the years....go figure
  The attachment points of the 3 oil tubes to the 2 cylinders and the crankcase are actually 2 vital components. The brass colored check valve, and the bolt which holds it in place. That bolt actually is extremely specialized and has the nozzle that distributes the oil flow.
 As 5Kaws mentioned, that check valve can fail. And, did someone switch the bolts in previous years?
  I think you are planning on pulling the motor to change the crank seals, so this should be easy to check. You really should do that this summer.
  Remember my "towel rule". Always put a big towel beneath the motor when you're working on something like this with the motor in the sled. Murphy, of " Murphy's Law" fame, is my lifelong, mortal enemy. 
  WHY is it, if I'm in a hurry and don't put a towel below the stuff, I inevitably drop something down into the belly pan?
  If I do put a towel underneath what I'm working on, I NEVER drop anything!
  That's Murphy at his best....
 
 

[Boomologist]

Also, if memory is correct, the nozzle for the center seal is different than the nozzles for the cylinders. The one for the center seal allows more flow than the others.

[IraqvetUSMC]

Sorry so late. Thanks guys I will check this out and get back to you. I appreciate the help. And where would the check valve be located at? Sorry for my ignorance haha.

[IraqvetUSMC]

Sorry missed where the check valves are at, duh haha.  The info you guys have sent me makes perfect sense. This whole issue of over oiling & causing my sled to die out occurred while I was climbing a really steep hill coming off of the ice. I think it could be possible that a check valve is hanging up. I am or should I say was using 5 year or older 2 stroke oil in the reservoir so it may be a little gummy haha. But I really appreciate all the help from you guys. Yes I do plan on changing the crank seals this summer. I was looking at my sled the other night and this engine looks like a PITA to pull out. I am sure everything is rusted up. Are these engine a pain to pull? Thanks

[rminier]

  No, they're not too bad to pull. The first thing you need to round up is a drive clutch puller. Check mfgsupply or Dennis Kirk, or maybe on eBay for the best price.
  Once you get the drive clutch off, the motor comes out pretty easily.
  The motors on these were assembled in Japan, so everything on the motor is metric, so metric wrenches, or sockets, and Allen wrenches.
  The next pain will be removing the flywheel. If you don't have any kind of puller, maybe a local shop or motorsports dealer would remove it for cheap.
  Most everything from there on is pretty straightforward.
  One more thing to buy, borrow, or whatever, is a torque wrench. You don't need a fancy, expensive digital one. I have used the old beam type torque wrench forever.
  While I have put lots of stuff together over the years just cranking down "that feels tight enough"...a motor that's gonna spin to 8000 RPM is a lot more important to torque down correctly.
  I know you're on a budget, so perhaps a neighbor, co-worker might have one you could borrow when you're ready to put the motor back together.
  Just think how much fun if you get the old girl back together and running great, and we get LOTTSA snow next winter!

[IraqvetUSMC]

Since I have never worked on a sled before and I found on vintagesnow.com that they have a free service manual for a 78 Invader 340, would I be able to use this manual for the procedure of removing the drive clutch? I do have some 2 & 3 finger pullers at work that I could use for the flywheel. Would they work on the drive clutch or is that special? I do agree that torque specs on a high rpm motor are must or bad things will happen lol. I am a little OCD in the clean dept lol which is why I want to pull the engine and clean out the belly pan and spray the hardware with PB blaster to loosen everything up. I am sure I will be drilling and tapping some bolt holes. I would like to install a gasket where the expansion chamber meets the head because someone has used red silicone as a sealer and I do not like that at all. I also plan on going through the carbs. You are right I may be thinking this is an over oiling issue from the oil pump when it could actually be a carb related issue where its running way to rich in one cylinder and fouling out the plug. I got the sled for free and I think the invaders actually look kind of cool. If the sled hood design wasn't as cool looking I don't know if I would consider putting any time and effort into it and actually invest in something like a ZR600 haha. But their is something about this sled that makes me want to clean it up and maybe find a new hood and keep it for a long time. I hope we get lots of snow as well and it stays cold all winter so I can ride on the lakes that we have around us.

[rminier]

 Outstanding...not too many sleds out there that are cooler looking than an Invader...still today.
  Yep, you gotta have the proper drive clutch puller to get that thing off....I don't know any other way to do it without breaking stuff.
  I would be happy to send my puller in the mail to you if you pay the postage to send it back. I don't need it all summer. Send me a PM with your address. The least I could do for a fellow "Hoosier" and an ex Marine vet.
  There are a couple tricks to help ease the process of popping the drive clutch off, when you get to that point...let us know.

[IraqvetUSMC]

That would be awsome and I appreciate your kindness. What part of indiana are you from? now I am assuming that it's impossible to change the crank seals without pulling the engine? Can the clutch drive come out as a whole unit. I would really hate to break it and have to find a new drive. When I get a chance this summer I will send you a message if I can't find a puller online or at the local sled shop. Just a little info on my miiitary background, I was in the core from 2004-2008 and served 2 tours in Fallujah Iraq, once in 05 and the other in 07. I was a M1A1 tank mechanic. If I see what this puller looks like I may be able to rig one up. Everyone on the forum makes it seem like the seals are not bad to change and they never mention a special puller.

[Gilson435]

First off, Thank you for your service Iraqvet!! Here is a link for a clutch puller.
https://www.denniskirk.com/parts-unlimited/clutch-puller-kawasaki.p28146.prd/28146.sku

How'd that seat ever turn out??

[IraqvetUSMC]

Your welcome bud. And I really haven't had a chance to do the seat cover yet. I am trying to get some time but I work a lot an have a baby at home so free time is hard to come by lol. I'm just gonna use a heat gun to heat the plastic up to get the staples through and if that don't work or looks horrible I may spend the money and have the local upholstery guy do it for me and cut and sew it right.

[rminier]

What part of indiana are you from?
 

The big town of Delphi....pop. around 3000. About 20 miles Northeast of Lafayette.