Valve Clearance Check

[jbfla]

I have read the CSC tutorial on adjusting the valves....:hmm:

but it looks like half the bike needs to be disassembled.

I can do it....but...

Do I really need to check them at 500 miles as in the Owner's Manual? Or can I wait until the 1,000 mile oil change?

CSC told me they check them as part of the setup.

Do they really check them?

Thanks.

jb

[rjmorel]

I checked mine first and only time around 2000 miles. Have around 6200 on it now. Whats that saying " If it isn't broke , don't break it Rob", so if it starts and runs good you should be OK. I am
lazy , rj

[Jay In Milpitas]

I'm not going to say yes or no.

But I will give you this tip, pay attention to which body fastener came from which hole, primarily the Allen head ones. Some are white/silver colored and some have a green coating. After I did mine the first time, I noticed the next day I was looking down at different colored screws on the tank.

One type is magnetic, the other type is not, so likely a stainless alloy. Mechanically it doesn't matter which goes where.

Another tip is to spread a single colored bed sheet on the ground under the bike. All those little Phillips screws seem to like to jump around and flee when you try to install them. The sheet helps to keep them from rolling/bounding away and the single color makes them easier to spot. By the way, the points on those little things can actually penetrate clear in to the patella. They do thread back out easily though.

Regarding the sheet, yes, I have an old one I keep in the garage just for that purpose for working on all my vehicles. My wife freaked out the first time she saw that, not even noticing it didn't match any of the household bed linen. I'm not completely stupid.

[SpudRider]

I agree with Rob. ;) You can certainly wait until 1,000 miles. :)

[detours]

When you're almost ready to do your valve check, run the fuel tank almost empty. It will be much lighter and easier to remove.

[Weldangrind]

Regarding the sheet, yes, I have an old one I keep in the garage just for that purpose for working on all my vehicles. My wife freaked out the first time she saw that, not even noticing it didn't match any of the household bed linen. I'm not completely stupid.

That was not lost on me. :D

[jbfla]

Thanks for the tips.

What I meant to ask is:

Those of you that have completed a valve clearance check, at what mileage did you do it, and how far was the clearance out of "spec", if any?

Thanks.

jb

[dave92029]

Thanks for the tips.

What I meant to ask is:

Those of you that have completed a valve clearance check, at what mileage did you do it, and how far was the clearance out of "spec", if any?

Thanks.

jb

+1 I have almost 3,000 miles since my last adjustment, and the bike is running great. I was thinking of doing the valve adjustment tomorrow, but it's getting cold outside (Mid to upper 50's...this is southern california ;)).

Thanks

[keithmaine]

+1 I have almost 3,000 miles since my last adjustment, and the bike is running great. I was thinking of doing the valve adjustment tomorrow, but it's getting cold outside (Mid to upper 50's...this is southern california ;)).

Thanks

Cold outside :lmao::lmao::lmao:

[SpudRider]

My smallest feeler gauge if 0.04 mm. If you run the bike at higher rpms, you should check the valve lash every 2,500 miles. Based upon my experience, the original maintenance schedule is better than the revised schedule of 5,000 miles.

I have ridden my RX3 over 13,000 miles. Checking the valve lash every 2,500 miles, the intake valves were frequently too tight for my thinnest feeler gauge. If the bike becomes even slightly difficult to start, or the bike stalls while decelerating, the valves are probably tight.

If your bike is running okay, you can wait until 1,000 miles for the first valve inspection. However, I wouldn't wait much longer, and I wouldn't be surprised if the valves are tight.

[Jay In Milpitas]

Thanks for the tips.

What I meant to ask is:

Those of you that have completed a valve clearance check, at what mileage did you do it, and how far was the clearance out of "spec", if any?

Thanks.

jb

Each individual engine is going to have variances.
Although I don't have near the miles that Spud has, I do ride mine on the freeway at "considerable" speed.
Upon delivery, I checked the clearances and found one (right exhaust, I think) was a snug .04mm so I opened it just a bit. My set has .04, .05, .06 and then larger. The other 3 were less than .06 but more than .04.

Continuing out of curiosity I kept checking about every 250 miles. I expected some change at 250, but none needed it, so as break in concluded and rpm's ran higher I expected to see change at 500. Nope. Same at 750, too. At 1000 there was measureable change, but ALL FOUR were still well within spec. No adjustment needed.

I will do them again after 2500 miles have passed, and at that time I will decide whether to do them at 2.5 or 5k mile intervals.

The gage set I've had for so many decades I don't remember where I got it, and the company doesn't show up on a web search.

And for you who scoff, mid 50's IS COLD in coastal California. I can see my toes turning blue through the sandal mesh. My triple shot caramel mocha latte' don't stay hot for long in the cup holder, either. We have it rough, too.

[jbfla]

Each individual engine is going to have variances.
Although I don't have near the miles that Spud has, I do ride mine on the freeway at "considerable" speed.
Upon delivery, I checked the clearances and found one (right exhaust, I think) was a snug .04mm so I opened it just a bit. My set has .04, .05, .06 and then larger. The other 3 were less than .06 but more than .04.

Continuing out of curiosity I kept checking about every 250 miles. I expected some change at 250, but none needed it, so as break in concluded and rpm's ran higher I expected to see change at 500. Nope. Same at 750, too. At 1000 there was measureable change, but ALL FOUR were still well within spec. No adjustment needed..........

Thanks, Jay.

That's what I was looking for.

jb

[SpudRider]

...The gage set I've had for so many decades I don't remember where I got it, and the company doesn't show up on a web search.

And for you who scoff, mid 50's IS COLD in coastal California. I can see my toes turning blue through the sandal mesh. My triple shot caramel mocha latte' don't stay hot for long in the cup holder, either. We have it rough, too.

I use these feeler gauges from Harbor Freight. :tup:

http://www.harborfreight.com/32-piece-sae-metric-feeler-gauge-32214.html

Rub it in, Jay. :wtf: It snowed 5 inches in Spudville yesterday. :cry:

:hehe:

[woodlandsprite]

And for you who scoff, mid 50's IS COLD in coastal California. I can see my toes turning blue through the sandal mesh. My triple shot caramel mocha latte' don't stay hot for long in the cup holder, either. We have it rough, too.

Freeze warning here in the desert. As for your fancy latte, you need to put it in a thermal jug ;)

I'll probably go ahead and drain the tank (hello siphon) so I can do my 500mi valve check over the holidays - the bike seems slow to start after its been sitting around for a bit.

[Lee R]

Out of the two I've checked both were less than .04mm on both intakes at 500 miles. The exhausts were still a little over .06 so I left them to tighten.

[Jay In Milpitas]

One more thing, JB. On the day you do decide to do the valves for the first time, I suggest setting aside an entire day and take your time.

While you are taking off the pieces to access the valves, look around at everything else while it's exposed. Check that the harness from the rear brake switch is clear of the exhaust pipe, check hose clamps are snug, things like that.

This forum is a wellspring of info. Make notes of what you've read & learned so you will remember what to check on your day of getting intimate with your Zong.

To quote Woodlandsprite, that does sound a bit dirty. But in the good way.

[SpudRider]

As usual, Jay has provided excellent advice. ;) Budget a lot of time for the first valve adjustment of the RX3. Don't worry; the job gets easier, and goes more quickly each subsequent time you do it. :)

[jbfla]

One more thing, JB. On the day you do decide to do the valves for the first time, I suggest setting aside an entire day and take your time.

While you are taking off the pieces to access the valves, look around at everything else while it's exposed. Check that the harness from the rear brake switch is clear of the exhaust pipe, check hose clamps are snug, things like that.
.....

Thanks again, Jay.

I planned to take a whole day going over the bike.

That's the main reason I haven't done the valve check. I'm having too much fun riding every day.

I'll be going out of town for the holidays. So I will set aside a day before I leave, so the bike will be ready to ride when I return.

jb

[jbfla]

....I suggest setting aside an entire day and take your time....

I finally checked the valve clearances at 850 miles....and it took me two days....but that included messing with the air filter access, checking wiring connectors, and tightening assorted bolts.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e341/mascioj/CSC%20Motorcycles/valve%20check/bike%20apart%20for%20valve%20check_zpsn40npjko.jpg (http://s42.photobucket.com/user/mascioj/media/CSC%20Motorcycles/valve%20check/bike%20apart%20for%20valve%20check_zpsn40npjko.jpg .html)

To be certain of the original valve clearance, I contacted Gerry at CSC, and he verified that:

"The valves are adjusted to .003" during set up."

Notice that the measurement is in thousandths of an inch, not the .04 - .06 mm that is in the manual.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e341/mascioj/CSC%20Motorcycles/valve%20check/intake%20valves%20with%20feeler%20guage_zpsrergyxo v.jpg (http://s42.photobucket.com/user/mascioj/media/CSC%20Motorcycles/valve%20check/intake%20valves%20with%20feeler%20guage_zpsrergyxo v.jpg.html)

The .003 " feeler gauge slid under all four valve tappets.

There wasn't as much "drag" as I thought there should be, but the .004" feeler did not slide in.

So I left all four as there were.

I am not looking forward to adjusting the exhaust valve clearances when the time comes:

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e341/mascioj/CSC%20Motorcycles/valve%20check/exhaust%20valves_zpsyk9gvscs.jpg (http://s42.photobucket.com/user/mascioj/media/CSC%20Motorcycles/valve%20check/exhaust%20valves_zpsyk9gvscs.jpg.html)


One of other things I noticed was the bolts on the fuel pump cover were not tightened enough.

I could unscrew them with my fingers. I didn't have the torque specs, so I used a short handled 1/4" drive socket and used 2 fingers on the handle to tighten them.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e341/mascioj/CSC%20Motorcycles/valve%20check/tank%20bottom1_zps09hozk5q.jpg (http://s42.photobucket.com/user/mascioj/media/CSC%20Motorcycles/valve%20check/tank%20bottom1_zps09hozk5q.jpg.html)

The spark plug looked good:

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e341/mascioj/CSC%20Motorcycles/valve%20check/spark%20plug_zpsxhvjyr2n.jpg (http://s42.photobucket.com/user/mascioj/media/CSC%20Motorcycles/valve%20check/spark%20plug_zpsxhvjyr2n.jpg.html)

The second day I put everything back together.

I had only one missing washer...not too bad. Usually I have parts left over.

To be honest, this was no fun at all.

It took much longer than I expected, even longer than that the valve adjustment on the Triumph Bonneville where I had to remove the whole cam assembly and change out shims.

jb

[detours]

Thanks for the pics. That's one clean, organized workspace!

Valve checks are definitely not easy (at least on the exhaust side), but I guess that's the price you pay with a compact motorcycle. My 2nd check went much easier.

[SpudRider]

Indeed, thank for posting the nice photos. :) Also, thanks for the tip regarding the fuel pump bolts; I will check mine the next time I remove the fuel tank. ;)

Indeed, the job is a little tedious, but it will go much faster the next time. :) Nevertheless, I budget 3 leisurely hours for a valve adjustment. ;)