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Valve lash

Started by Scottie1, November 02, 2018, 02:51:46 PM

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Pat Conlon

Quote from: T Legg on November 03, 2018, 10:08:14 PM
when you get old the problem is you can't see what the feeler gauge says period.

....or you transpose the numbers when writing them down.
.....or you forget how to read the tables (despite doing it correctly several times thru the years)
.....or when you do remember how to read the table, you read the intake valve table while working on the exhaust valves.

Scottie, I am glad you posted. These guys here have saved my bacon many times.
My motto: When in doubt, ask. If something does not seem right, ask.

Thanks Joe for that little nugget. :good2:
1) Free Owners Manual download: https://tinyurl.com/fmsz7hk9
2) Don't store your FJ with E10 fuel https://tinyurl.com/3cjrfct5
3) Replace your old stock rubber brake lines.
4) Important items for the '84-87 FJ's:
Safety wire: https://tinyurl.com/99zp8ufh
Fuel line: https://tinyurl.com/bdff9bf3

krusty

I have a question. Isn't it time you Stateside guys went fully metric and avoid all this silly conversion stuff?   Runs for cover.  :shok:  :bomb:
91 FJ1200
84 FJ1100 x 2
85 FJ1100
89 GL1500
76 CB750F1
72 CB350F
63 C92 x 2
59 C76
62 C100
63 C100
60 Colleda 250TA x 3
63 Suzuki MD50
77 DT125E
77 DT175E x 2
79 DT250F

Tuned forks

Krusty, we were supposed to go metric back in the seventies.  I was being taught metric at school and was looking forward to the conversion because of it's base ten.  Pat probably remembers the speed limit signs that had mph and kph on them.

Anytime Pat.  Glad to help since Robert was so helpful to me.

Travis, I have to take my nearsighted eyeglasses off to read or work up close.

Scottie, here's something else to consider.  I rented the valve lash kit from RPM.  It has most of the shims you need plus comes with the tools you need too.  I "think" it's only available to people that donate to the site?  Still, the value seems good to me.  Robert or Pat will correct me if I'm wrong about the donation.

Joe
1990 FJ1200-the reacher
1990 FZR 1000-crotch rocket

Pat Conlon

Joe, you are correct.
http://www.fjowners.com/index.php?topic=8968.0

Membership has its privileges.

Yes Krusty, you are spot on.
1) Free Owners Manual download: https://tinyurl.com/fmsz7hk9
2) Don't store your FJ with E10 fuel https://tinyurl.com/3cjrfct5
3) Replace your old stock rubber brake lines.
4) Important items for the '84-87 FJ's:
Safety wire: https://tinyurl.com/99zp8ufh
Fuel line: https://tinyurl.com/bdff9bf3

Tuned forks

The instructions alone were worth the $40 to me.  Youtube was a help too.

Joe
1990 FJ1200-the reacher
1990 FZR 1000-crotch rocket

T Legg

It's well worth learning to do your own valves. In most places you can't find anybody willing to work on an old bike and if they do i always wonder if they got it right(unless you have some one who is an established professional like R.P.M.).When i first got my bike i thought it ran great but over time after adjusting my valves cleaning and re-jetting and readjusting my carburetors now my bike feels incredible especially at Oakdale's elevations.
T Legg

ribbert

Quote from: krusty on November 03, 2018, 10:47:30 PM
I have a question. Isn't it time you Stateside guys went fully metric and avoid all this silly conversion stuff?   Runs for cover.  :shok:  :bomb:

From previous discussion here, I don't think anyone would be sad to see the end of imperial measurement. Even the country that introduced it (UK) has abandoned it in favour of the Metric system.



Anyone who thinks Imperial is just fine has never worked in metric. I started work exclusively with the former and finished almost entirely with the latter, so I have worked with both. If you can count to 10, you have the metric system nailed.

I can't see it happening though.

Noel
"Tell a wise man something he doesn't know and he'll thank you, tell a fool something he doesn't know and he'll abuse you"

TexasDave

Yes one of the only countries still on the imperial system. The only country to walk on the moon. Must work pretty good.

Was going to install a gas pump on the engine block of my 1983 AMERICAN Chevrolet van many years ago. None of my tools would fit. Called up my good friend John who knows all things automotive to question him. He started to laugh. I asked him what was so funny. He informed me the chassis was imperial and the engine metric. I did not think it so funny. I don't mind one or the other but mixing them? Got out my motorcycle tools and finished the job.

Yes the metric system is a lot easier but here in the USA if we have to count higher than 10 we have to take off our boots.

Dave 
A pistol is like a parachute, if you need one and don't have one you will never need one again.

ribbert

Quote from: ryanschoebel on November 03, 2018, 08:41:24 PM
Quote from: oldktmdude on November 03, 2018, 04:27:52 PM
  Should you be doing your own clearances if you can't tell the difference between metric and imperial measurements?

C'mon man, no judgement here. No need to put someone down for learning, hes asking questions. I still don't know how to do valve clearances, so props to him for trying. No need to slam on someone just because they don't know something you do.

You're both right!

Ryan, I think you are reading Pete's comments as criticism, rather than concern. Yes, this is a place to learn, extend yourself and have a go but sometimes people's own words suggest they're taking on jobs too far beyond their current skills.
It is very easy to get swept up by the encouragement, enthusiasm, offers of help and the safety net of the forum but at the end of the day, it's still just you with a handful of tools, by yourself and little to no idea of what you're doing. It is prudent to show some caution with what you tackle.
There are plenty of examples here of owners turning simple tasks into a horror stories, sometimes with many chapters.

With the member's best interest in mind Pete has good reason to voice his concern about the poster's ability to carry out that task after the comments he made, there is plenty of opportunity for stuff ups, even on that job.

I know Pete, there is not a malicious bone in him (unless you forget to put the beer in the fridge), his posts are always positive and helpful and he is the salt of the earth when it comes to helping owners with their bikes in the flesh, expecting neither fanfare nor public praise. It was not a put-down as your response implies.

Can I say, after a lifetime of working with both imperial and metric systems, that trying to work with a mish mash of both on the one job, converting as you go, is a recipe for disaster. The specs are metric, the shims are metric, the manual is metric - spend a few bucks and buy a set of metric feelers and stop converting back to inches!

Noel
"Tell a wise man something he doesn't know and he'll thank you, tell a fool something he doesn't know and he'll abuse you"

ribbert

Quote from: TexasDave on November 04, 2018, 04:49:49 AM

.... None of my tools would fit......

Dave 

Australia had mostly British cars until the 60's, they were "Whitworth," this required every mechanic to have yet another full set of tools besides AF and Metric.

Anyone remember these?



Tiny sets of ignition spanners for distributors.

Noel
"Tell a wise man something he doesn't know and he'll thank you, tell a fool something he doesn't know and he'll abuse you"

ribbert

Quote from: T Legg on November 03, 2018, 11:20:05 PM

It's well worth learning to do your own valves. In most places you can't find anybody willing to work on an old bike


The only thing "old" about our bikes, and throws the odd mechanic, is the carby's.

Noel
"Tell a wise man something he doesn't know and he'll thank you, tell a fool something he doesn't know and he'll abuse you"

Motofun

Many, if not most, nuts and bolts on American cars are now metric.  BUT, just to be ornery, they standardized on 13 and 15 mm not 12 and 14 like everyone else!  OH, and just for the record, every decent feeler gauge I have has both metric and Imperial dimensions stamped on them.....
'69 Honda Trail 90
'75 Honda CB400F
'85 Yamaha RZ350
'85 Yamaha FJ1100
'89 Yamaha FJ1200
'09 Yamaha 125 Zuma
'09 Kawasaki KZ110 (grand kids)
'13 Suzuki GSXR 750 (track)
'14 Yamaha FZ-09
'18 Suzuki GSXR 1000R (track)
'23 Yamaha Tenere 7
SOLD: CBX,RZ500,Ninja 650,CB400F,V45 Sabre,CB700SC,R1

Tuned forks

Dave, I remember the bad old days when our domestic vehicles were half Imperial and half metric.  If the part was designed before the attempted metric conversion it was Imperial, if it was designed after then metric.  Mechanics would have to bring both types of sockets and wrenches to work on these vehicles.  I still own a few as I like the old stuff.  It's actually nice to know that modern vehicles and our FJ's need only one type of tools, metric.

Noel, my Dad owned a number of British bikes and cars way back when.  The last was a '66 BSA.  We still have his set of Whitworth tools.  That map you posted is really eye opening! :shok:

Joe
1990 FJ1200-the reacher
1990 FZR 1000-crotch rocket

red

Hey, if you want weird, don't forget the SAE (British) tooling.  We got a pair of airliners in for work once (Vickers Viscounts), and almost NONE of our tooling would fit the SAE hardware.  We had to buy every tool needed for those birds.  Lotsa tool companies stopped talking to us.
   :biggrin:   
With SAE, you don't measure from flat to flat, across a nut or bolt with a caliper, as in Metric or Imperial.  For SAE, you measured the width of one face only with a ruler, from point to point. 
Cheers,
Red

P.S. Life is too short, and health is too valuable, to ride on cheap parade-duty tires.

T Legg

Quote from: ribbert on November 04, 2018, 07:12:49 AM
Quote from: T Legg on November 03, 2018, 11:20:05 PM

It's well worth learning to do your own valves. In most places you can't find anybody willing to work on an old bike


The only thing "old" about our bikes, and throws the odd mechanic, is the carby's.

Noel
unfortunately in my experience in our area the difficulty in finding a shop to work on a 34 year old bike isn't so much lack of knowledge but lack of availability of factory parts and a strong desire to sell me something brand new.when I can find factory parts for my bike it seems like they are cheaper than  factory parts for the  new bikes.I agree that are bikes are amazingly current. when I'm out riding people are always amazed at how old my bike is.   
T Legg