Motorcycle Repair: Shift Shaft Seal, shaft seal, car mechanic


Question
I know you don't have any expertise on Kawasakis, but my question as far as I know is one that isn't too deeply involved. My Ninja has a seal built into the crankcase that sits around the shift rod. That seal is leaking out oil pretty badly. Have you ever in your past experiences replaced one of those or something like it? I'm a car mechanic and know nothing of bike engines and transmissions. In your opinion do you think it's something I could do easily (i.e. just pop out the seal) or would it be something technical (like ripping out the engine to take it out)? Like I said I know this isn't your expertise but any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Answer
Matt, on Hondas that's a pretty easy fix.  I'd just take a screwdriver or seal puller and pop the old seal out and put the new one in using a piece of plastic pipe to drive it in.  I'm not sure about Kaw's.  Just be careful not to damage the lip seal when you push it over the splines on the shifter shaft. Use a lot of grease or put some tape over the splines.

Regards
Rich