valve adjustment question

[jcalvin1126]

so i'm getting carburetors adjusted today I was thinking about adjusting the valves here within the next 5000 miles and cleaning the crabs and re sync them my question is how do u know when the valves need Adjusting I hear a ticking,noise at idle but it goes away when u apply gas .. my bike is a 93 kat 750 with 22000 miles on it thanks in advances

[bob393]

If the valves or just one is ticking they should be adjusted,
I think the book recommends every 4000 mi.
I'm a 5000 mile, or once a season kind of guy, it's just easier to keep track of.

[jcalvin1126]

alright is it a hard job

[edrawba]

Its not really that hard its just a pain in the butt and its time consuming.

[HungLow]

yeah is preatty ez, specialy after you do it once, but i do it once a year my self.

[yngveny]

+1

Not really hard but takes some time the first time

[TRPUT]

Those guys who are doing valve clearances annually ...

1) are you finding much adjustment is necessary each time?
2) is inlet or exhaust more prone to needing adjustment?
3) do you find the clearances tend to expand or close up between services??? Cheers!

[j tizzle]

^ Would like to know myself.

[ChrisInTexas]

I have adjusted my Kat's valves twice. The first time it took all day, the second time took about 2 hours. After the first time I still heard a little clicking and after doing some research in KatRiders, I found a thread that said to stay on the wider side of the gap. So I adjusted them again using the larger width recommended by Suzuki and it sounds much better and runs better than the first. But I also found some valves that were way out of adjustment already, or more likely, I didn't do a good job the first time. Either way it paid off to do it a second time.

Both times I found that there was no pattern as to which valves needing adjusting or which was out of adjustment the most.

A few things I learned:

1. Be prepared. Read articles and threads on how to do it. And, have the correct tools on hand. This will make things easier and will help shorten the time it takes to complete the job because you are not having to run around looking for tools.

2. Be patient. Remember, the first time will take a long time but you are learning skills that will pay off in the future, when you do it again.

3. If possible, take photos as you disassemble the bike. Especially of wiring, coils, carbs, etc. Makes things much easier to get it back together correctly when you are finished.

4. You do not have to remove the spark plugs, the crank will turn easily if you have the right wrench. But, if you do want to remove the spark plugs, VACUUM OUT THE SPARK PLUG HOLE BEFORE REMOVING THE PLUGS. I promise you there is stuff (dirt, grease, dried mud, etc) in the hole and it will fall down into the cylinder as soon as you pull out the plug. It is not fun trying to get this stuff out of the head once it is in there (guess how I know that?).

5. Some will say to just work around the oil cooler and carbs. I say remove the oil cooler completely. And, unbolt the carbs and move them out of the way (off to the side), but do not disconnect the throttle or choke cable, it is not necessary.

6. Slowly remove the valve cover and go easy on the valve cover gasket. You can probably reuse it, I did and it has no leaks at all (even though I have a new one ready to go).

7. One more thing, use common sense. The intake valves are on the carburetor side of the head and the exhaust valves are on the muffler side of the head. You may laugh at this, but I have seen some "how to" articles with photos that have it backwards.

Good luck.

[niqbales]

I have adjusted my Kat's valves twice. The first time it took all day, the second time took about 2 hours. After the first time I still heard a little clicking and after doing some research in KatRiders, I found a thread that said to stay on the wider side of the gap. So I adjusted them again using the larger width recommended by Suzuki and it sounds much better and runs better than the first. But I also found some valves that were way out of adjustment already, or more likely, I didn't do a good job the first time. Either way it paid off to do it a second time.

A few things I learned:

1. Be prepared. Read articles and threads on how to do it. And, have the correct tools on hand. This will make things easier and will help shorten the time it takes to complete the job because you are not having to run around looking for tools.

2. Be patient. Remember, the first time will take a long time but you are learning skills that will pay off in the future, when you do it again.

3. If possible, take photos as you disassemble the bike. Especially of wiring, coils, carbs, etc. Makes things much easier to get it back together correctly when you are finished.

4. You do not have to remove the spark plugs, the crank will turn easily if you have the right wrench. But, if you do want to remove the spark plugs, VACUUM OUT THE SPARK PLUG HOLE BEFORE REMOVING THE PLUGS. I promise you there is stuff (dirt, grease, dried mud, etc) in the hole and it will fall down into the cylinder as soon as you pull out the plug. It is not fun trying to get this stuff out of the head once it is in there (guess how I know that?).

5. Some will say to just work around the oil cooler and carbs. I say remove the oil cooler completely. And, unbolt the carbs and move them out of the way (off to the side), but do not disconnect the throttle or choke cable, it is not necessary.

6. Slowly remove the valve cover and go easy on the valve cover gasket. You can probably reuse it, I did and it has no leaks at all (even though I have a new one ready to go).

7. One more thing, use common sense. The intake valves are on the carburetor side of the head and the exhaust valves are on the muffler side of the head. You may laugh at this, but I have seen some "how to" articles with photos that have it backwards.

Good luck.

This is great info for n00bs like me even if its in another thread somewhere. I do have a question or rather something to throw out to see what ya'll think...

Suzuki says 4k(quoted somebody who was aparently wrong) which seems like a lot to me. I ride everyday and have put close to 10k on my bike without ever doin a valve adjustment. The bike had a lot of hands on it and it may have had them adjusted at that point. I know some people do there fork seals every so many miles is this the same kinda thing where many people wait till there is a "problem".

I know some people will hate me for the notion of not doing maintenance by the book but I'm curious. I take care of my bike but I'm not a fan of unnecesary maintenance as my time is pretty limited and this is my daily driver...

Another question. My commute is 90% freeway so I don't put a lot of hard miles on her especially this time of year, does that make a difference?

[JayBell]

service manual says every 7500 miles after first service, which is 6-700 miles i believe.

so far, i've done mine twice, and its due for a 3rd time... which suck, cuz its 30deg out

I dont notice if any are out, intake or exhaust, i just check, adjust, turn motor, check adjust, turn motor 2 times, recheck.

[niqbales]

service manual says every 7500 miles after first service, which is 6-700 miles i believe.

so far, i've done mine twice, and its due for a 3rd time... which suck, cuz its 30deg out

I dont notice if any are out, intake or exhaust, i just check, adjust, turn motor, check adjust, turn motor 2 times, recheck.

So do most sensible riders do it by the book(7500 miles) or when something starts to give you a clue? I know I don't want to wait for a loud tick but my bike runs great and I know my valves haven't been adjusted in about 10k.

I could see doin it every 7500 miles btw; I would just do an oil change every 2500 miles and every 3rd one would be an adjustment. I'm willing to do what is necessary for my bike but I don't want to do maintenance that is not necessary.

[jday240]

I will need to adjust the valves on my 06 600 soon as well. I bought the adjustment tool from CP a few years ago but have never gotten around to doing it. I am a good mechanic and generally do most of my own maintenance. That said, I still have a few questions about the process described in the how-to on CP's motorcycle anchor site. I understand the engine is a 16 valve 4 cylinder (2 intake,2 exhaust per cylinder).

After removing the fairings and signal generator cover, I set the "T" to the middle like in this picture:


The cams should then be in line with the following viewed from the left side of the bike:




What is the C and D for in the following picture? The intake valves are in the lower portion of the picture labeled C,D,C,D.



Once I have everything off and the cams lined up which valves should I start with and is there a process from there. I assume I start with the 1st set of intake valves if they are closed/the alternate set of closed exhaust valves and turn the signal generator to close the next set of valves as I go. Any help would be appreciated. I've heard that some use 2 feeler gauges so they can adjust 2 valves at a time.

[TRPUT]

I have adjusted my Kat's valves twice... stay on the wider side of the gap... it sounds much better and runs better ... Both times I found that there was no pattern as to which valves needing adjusting or which was out of adjustment the most.

Thanks for info and experience. Cheers

[yngveny]

I will need to adjust the valves on my 06 600 soon as well. I bought the adjustment tool from CP a few years ago but have never gotten around to doing it. I am a good mechanic and generally do most of my own maintenance. That said, I still have a few questions about the process described in the how-to on CP's motorcycle anchor site. I understand the engine is a 16 valve 4 cylinder (2 intake,2 exhaust per cylinder).

After removing the fairings and signal generator cover, I set the "T" to the middle like in this picture:


The cams should then be in line with the following viewed from the left side of the bike:




What is the C and D for in the following picture? The intake valves are in the lower portion of the picture labeled C,D,C,D.



Once I have everything off and the cams lined up which valves should I start with and is there a process from there. I assume I start with the 1st set of intake valves if they are closed/the alternate set of closed exhaust valves and turn the signal generator to close the next set of valves as I go. Any help would be appreciated. I've heard that some use 2 feeler gauges so they can adjust 2 valves at a time.

The C and D indicates which valves to check with the camshafts in the respective position.
Camshaft in position C (notches pointing away from each other) - check valves marked C
Camshaft in position D (notches pointing towards each other) - check valves marked D

and yes you need different feeler gauges for intake and outlet valves