LC8 front cylinder base gasket replacement

Time to check the front cylinder base gasket since the rear had developed a leak.

This time I removed the the engine from the frame.

And once up on the bench and all hoses and starter motor removed cleaning begun. Not much dirt but still some in all the “wrinkles”, ear cleaners are helpful, pipe cleaners are also good for cleaning:

Once locked at TDC for front cylinder cam bridge and cams were removed along with cam chain tensioner.

After that cam chain sprocket carrier has to come out:

Can be a bit tricky getting the chain around the sprocket.

Undid the cylinder head nuts in steps, almost forgot about the fifth nut on the side:

Lifting the cylinder and a rag down the crank and a toothbrush (also good for cleaning) handle in the clip to reduce risk of it flinging across the shop:

Some wear can be seen and felt on the cases in the same areas as the rear cylinder:

While the front cylinder was out of the way some silicone was added around the rear base:

Some extra sealant on the damaged areas:

And back on with the cylinder sliding the piston pin back and use a rag since the clip is really hard to get back in place:

After torquing the nuts to spec, excess sealant was wiped off and silicone added:

A piece of wire used to get the cam chain and sprocket back in place:

Hopefully this will hold up for some more miles!