Motorcycle Repair: OIL LEAK, crankcase blowby, combustion gases

Question
I GOT MY 1976 HONDA GOLDWING GL1000 RUNNING TODAY NOW OIL IS LEAKING.ITS COMING FROM RIGHT SIDE JUST ABOVE THE SHAFT DRIVE.IT LOOKS LIKE A WHITE BOWL WITH RUBBER HOSE GOING FROM SIDE AND IT GOES UP NEXT TO GAS TANK,ANOTHER HOSE GOING OFF THE OTHER SIDE AND HANGS DOWN UNDER MOTOR, WHEN MOTOR RUNS OIL LEAKES OUT.WHY IS OIL LEAKING OUT OF HOSE AND IS SOMETHING SHOT,YOUR HELP WOULD BE REAL HELPFUL AGIAN. THANK YOU...

Answer
Randy, that little can is the crankcase breather.  There's only a couple of reasons that will have oil coming out of it. First, you could have overfilled the crankcase with oil or the carbs could have leaked gas down into the crankcase. Check the dipstick and see if it's overfilled or if the oil smells like gas. If so, change the oil.

If that's okay, it's possible you have a lot crankcase blowby.  That means that combustion gases are getting past the rings and carrying oil vapor with it out the breather.  This could be caused by stuck rings, scored cylinder or a piston that has been damaged.  The first thing I'd check (assuming it not an overfilled crankcase) is a compression check.  That will tell you if you have a serious ring or piston problem.

If the blowby is caused by stuck rings, it may improve with running the engine a while with one of those special oil additives that is intended to remove carbon around the rings.  If it stuck because of rust, the additives won't help and you're looking at an engine overhaul.  Splitting the cases is a significant amount of work on a GL.  I hope is something simple like gas in the oil.

Good luck
Rich