Valve Clearances..

[Varcon]

Hey guys,

Its time to do the valves clearnaces on the zx6r...im really wanting to do them myself this time as it pretty much the only bit of bike maintance that i havnt/cant do yet.

I have got the bike manaual, so i can follow this to do it, but i dont have a garage or place that i can do it, and id also quite like to have someone who knows what they are doing around too, just incase i go a cock something up. Anyone fancy giving me a hand sometime, who might have a garage that i could take over for a few hours to do it in? Of course theres a crate of beer and a massive thankyou if anyone can!

[billinom8s]

myself and gav did the valve clearences on his SP-1 last year. He also has had one of the kwakas.

So i have the garage and the tools, just gotta convince him now.

Any use to u ?

[Funky]

Can I come watch, as I'd like to learn how to do mine too...

I'll even wear a pinny.

[billinom8s]

Can I come watch, as I'd like to learn how to do mine too...

I'll even wear a pinny.

yep no worries, can it be a full pinny with an air tight zip ? i believe they call them body bags

[Dynasangel]

I wouldnt think Gav would mind it gets him out of the house work

[Varcon]

myself and gav did the valve clearences on his SP-1 last year. He also has had one of the kwakas.

So i have the garage and the tools, just gotta convince him now.

Any use to u ?

That would be billiant! Just let me know when it would be best for you - bearing in mind that id have to ride the bike there aswell...so i guess it would need a while to cool down!

[tutton]

Not to sure if i remember this right but shouldnt bikes be not ran for 24hrs before doing valve clearances?

[Varcon]

Not to sure if i remember this right but shouldnt bikes be not ran for 24hrs before doing valve clearances?

I think the engine just needs to be at room temperature - 24 hours seems a bit extreme!

[tutton]

Quote from some famous motorbike repair website

The engine must be dead cold before we can adjust anything, so let it sit overnight

[DynaMight]

I'm up for it, I've fancied trying it blind folded.

The engine does need to be 'stone' cold, which would take quite a few hours in these temps. Get there early, turn on COD, sort bike in the afternoon (hopefully they're in spec!) and sorted.

Heres a guide (for a J1 but pretty much the same, clearances maybe different so need a Haynes for those)
http://www.themcdonalds.net/~themcdo/ri ... Clearances

[billinom8s]

cool, a mechanical/xbox day - job done !

i will check my work rota and then get in contact with you ed - GAME ON !!!!

[bambam]

I'm up for it, I've fancied trying it blind folded.

The engine does need to be 'stone' cold, which would take quite a few hours in these temps. Get there early, turn on COD, sort bike in the afternoon (hopefully they're in spec!) and sorted.

take all the fairing off and stick a couple of fans on it as well to cool it and shouldn't be a problem

[Scotty]

A good trick when doing valve clearances and some need changing is to cable tie the camchain onto the sprockets before removing the camchain tensioner (make sure it's tight so it can't jump a tooth) - that way you don't need to mess around trying to ensure that you re-time it correctly - oh, and don't turn the crankshaft whilst you've got the cams out like this or the chain could move round the crank sprocket.
Get hold of a decent vernier caliper or micrometer to measure the shim thicknesses if you're changing any - as new they have the thickness etched on but that could well have worn off. Measure them all and keep a record of them. You can save money by swapping any that need changing with others that need changing but are the size needed elsewhere. They normally progress in steps of 25µm. Take care when lifting or replacing buckets with a magnet - the shim will normally stick inside the bucket by a film of oil - oil shim and bucket before replacing, and take care not to knock or catch the bucket when removing it or the shim could ping out - they're small and easily lost - at best, inconvenient as you'll need to replace it, at worst catastrophic if it drops into the engine and disappears from sight - it could re-appear at a most inconvenient time and get wedged between moving parts and if that happens when the engine's turning at speed it'll wreck it
Have fun

[meganall]

i've got a few shims for a zzr6 but should be the same at 4.8 mm so if you need a couple let me know you could be waiting ages for them to get them in

[Varcon]

cool, a mechanical/xbox day - job done !

i will check my work rota and then get in contact with you ed - GAME ON !!!!

Ideal, just drop me a text sometime and we'll see if we can work out a day when we are all free!