82-430 Foaming oil

82-430XC is 'foaming the oil". I have a clear vent tube and you can see it climbing up the tube, ends under the tank. I suspect a crank seal but I'm hoping for something simpler! I thought maybe it was the oil, guy I got it from ran straight 30W. I just got through putting a clutch in it today and refilled it with Scheaffers 50W synthetic trans oil, as I run in all my Husky's. Doing the same thing with 30W and the 50W trans oil so I'm ruling out a oil issue. Any ideas? magic wands? or is it time to split the cases for a reseal? Thanks in advance, Scott

The only outright failure of a crank seal I have had worked something like this. Bike started fine and about a mile or so later it would flame out or kind of kick back and smoke came out the transmission breather. It was the seal you have to split the cases for, the other seal you don't have to split the cases for would smoke out the alternator area. That engine probably had the lower end fill up with some liquid like race gas or water and gasoline and had some strange pitting corrosion on the rod. It was also 10 or so years ago and the basic same year engine. I generally have black hose and can't see any foam. My idea of foam would mean water in the oil but you stat you put in fresh oil. Maybe others have a different experience but it would be a pain if you were 20 miles out and had a flame out and it didn't want to start until it cooled and then you could only go a mile before repeating the drill. Perhaps tie a baloon on the end of the tube for amusement and see what happens.

I also have the same bike and thought i had a problem,oil was actually coming out of the tube,but when the outdoor temps got warmer the problem went away.
I believe the oil was just thick in the cooler temps and maybe from stuff spinning under that vent nipple was pushing oil out.
Hope this is of some help.

Fran, thanks for the info. I had my 84-WR500 do the same thing. I had a waterpumper clutch cover on it with a soft plug in the pump shaft hole. It actually "blew" the plug out, trying to start bike again would just pop and have smoke come out the hole.....I'm glad you told me that because I was indoubt of myself on that one.

Beuford, thanks for the help. I'm going to put the exact amount of oil in it aslo, just filled it up to the next to the last line by the fill plug. I'll measure the oil out and see if that helps also. Seems like a crank seal I would see some "pulseing" with the oil in the vent tube with the combustion cycles?

Not sure if this is your issue but I would check it out.

There is a Service Bulletin from March 30 1981 about excessive oil overflow from the crank case breather. It is for the CR, XC 430's. It says (short form) that the breather tube needs to be of approx 9mm ID and not pushed to far into the case. Also says to vent it away from the cases to the ground. (I would run a catch can and keep the "Greens" happy!)

It's something I will be checking on my XC in the next few days. Again I am loving this site! Lots of info if you look around..........

Thanks for the info. I modified it to curl around under the side panel and go between the swingarm, with the carb overflow tubes. I have a clear line so when I first started it up I watched it start to climb up and then it stopped and never did "puke out" like it did when it was under the tank. I also drained the oil and measured it, it was about 200cc overfull so that may have had a effect on it also. Ran a tank of gas through it today and love the 430's power

Hey i have a 1983 cr500 motor in a 1984 wr500 frame and it pukes trans oil out the vent tube.My tube is shaped like a upside down J and is attached to the frame tube any ideas on how to cure this ?

Husq.fleet- it's the overfill, too much pressure in the gearbox pushed it out (I know from first-hand experience and thought the worst too but it ended up being too much oil)

Thanks, I rode it again last weekend and it was fine. Cold I could see it climb up the tube a inch or so then settled down and wasn't a problem. Scott