rotation of crankshaft for valve adjustment

[JasonX]

hello guys,
i'm doing the valve adjustment for the first time and had a question:
i took the cover off of the signal generator to turn the crankshaft and i was wondering to get the "t" mark aligned, would i turn it counter clockwise or clockwise. I turned it counter-clockwise. if i did wrong, would it screw up anything?

Thank you

[The CyberPoet]

The chain slack might give you a bit of a bad reading, but other than that, no. Just turn it back the other way and remeasure afterwards (you should always remeasure after adjusting & rotating the crank anyway -- best way to know you nailed the right value is to check it after the engine goes around 360 degrees).

Cheers
=-= The CyberPoet

[JasonX]

The chain slack might give you a bit of a bad reading, but other than that, no. Just turn it back the other way and remeasure afterwards (you should always remeasure after adjusting & rotating the crank anyway -- best way to know you nailed the right value is to check it after the engine goes around 360 degrees).

Cheers
=-= The CyberPoet

so to make sure, it sounds like i should have turned it clockwise. would that be correct? thx

[The CyberPoet]

Yup. If in doubt, always follow the Suzuki factory service manual.
You can find manuals here:

http://katriders.com/wiki/index.php5?title=Service_Manual

Cheers
=-= The CyberPoet

[tone]

You should always turn the crank clockwise as per the manual & if you turned it the other way you will need to remove & reset your camchain tensioner

The reason for this is by turning the crank backwards the slack created in the camchain will have allowed the tensioner to pop out now making the chain way too tight

If you were to run the bike before doing the above the best you can hope for is that the over tight chain eats away at the guides enough for you to get away with it but the worst case senario involves a destroyed tensioner & a slapping chain or a snapped chain causing a wrecked engine

DO NOT RUN THE BIKE UNTILL THIS IS SORTED

[RossW]

I disagree, turning the engine counterclockwise will press the chain against the tensioner. Turning it clockwise (the correct direction) put the slack by the tensioner which is what you want (the tensioner it supposed to take up that slack). Think of it this way, the tensioner is at the back of the engine. As you turn the crank cw the chain will be pulled taught at the front of the engine, if you turn ccw the chain will be pulled taught at the back by the tensioner and the tensioner can only move in, not out, so nothing bad will happen.

[tone]

Ross
There is very little movement in the chain on the front of the engine due to the closeness of the guide therefore the slack is created in the rear run of the chain exactly where the tensioner & blade is located the tensioner will only move out not back as it is on a ratchet so if you create slack in the rear run of the chain the tensioner will pop out resulting in an over tight camchain hence the BIG BOLD writing in the manual telling us all to turn the crank ONLY clockwise

cheers tone

Quick edit to clarify .... the guides are shaped to allow the chain to pass smoothly in one direction only the chain will hang up slightly if you turn the engine backwards creating the aforementioned slack

[RossW]

Turning ccw there is no way to create slack at the back. you are applying a torque to the crankshaft which is being resisted by the friction on the valves. Chains cannot apply compressive force (they only transmit force in tension). Since turning ccw pulls at the back and pushes at the front the back will tension, not create slack.

[tone]

Turning ccw there is no way to create slack at the back. you are applying a torque to the crankshaft which is being resisted by the friction on the valves. Chains cannot apply compressive force (they only transmit force in tension). Since turning ccw pulls at the back and pushes at the front the back will tension, not create slack.

If you want to believe suzuki who made the thing & produced the manual & haynes or clymer who also produce manuals are wrong along with someone who's beeen messing with oil cooled engines since they were new thats your choice but ................

I also suggest you look at your theory again & have a damn good look inside an oil cooled engine & think of all the variables BEFORE dishing out advice & theory's on here & that way maybe we can prevent someone doing damage to his engine

cheers tone

[RossW]

I want you to explain to me your reasoning. I do not accept things just because "the manual says so". So far you have not presented a logical explanation for how rotating the engine the wrong way will create more slack at the tensioner than under normal operation.

[Shipster]

[tone]

I want you to explain to me your reasoning. I do not accept things just because "the manual says so". So far you have not presented a logical explanation for how rotating the engine the wrong way will create more slack at the tensioner than under normal operation.

As i feel no need to explain myself to you or anyone else i suggest you open up an oil cooled engine & figure it out for yourself either that or accept advice from someone who has done it on many occasions & has already paid the price for thinking as you are now doing

[JasonX]

it appears on the manual that to reset the camchain tensioner, i need to remove then push the spring back in and than put it back in. is this correct? thanks

also, to remove do I remove the 2 small bolts, or just remove the big bolt for the tensioner and spring that's in the middle?

...and do i need to rotate the cams after doing the reset? or check the slack of the chain.

[The CyberPoet]

Jason, what year is your Kat?

Cheers
=-= The CyberPoet

[tone]

it appears on the manual that to reset the camchain tensioner, i need to remove then push the spring back in and than put it back in. is this correct? thanks

also, to remove do I remove the 2 small bolts, or just remove the big bolt for the tensioner and spring that's in the middle?

...and do i need to rotate the cams after doing the reset? or check the slack of the chain.

Remove tensioner from engine, remove end plug & spring, check tensioner operation EG it moves out freely but does not move in, push tensioner all the way back on its ratchet, refit tensioner to engine, refit spring & end plug making sure you hear the tensioner push back out & you are done

Check timing if you are unsure & only rotate the crank clockwise while doing so

cheers tone