keithu

Yep, I already learned about that one. The pivot pin tends to slide out with the cover. In fact I thought it was just part of the cover for a while.

I was able to fire it up last night. There weren't any scary crunching noises and it ran okay, so I synced the throttle bodies. Alas, my idea to reuse the right side crankcase cover gasket was a bad one, because now it leaks like an old Harley. I'm trying to decide if I want to drive up to the Yamaha dealer for a new one, or just use some gasket maker.

Reinstalling the OEM automatic cam chain tensioner (CCT) calls for a special tool, but I was able to make my own tool with a cut-down 3mm allen wrench. The long side of the 3mm wrench should be cut to 40mm long. I cut the short side down to 6mm, but this was too short and it was difficult to use when adjusting the tensioner down against the chain guide. 10mm on the short side should still clear the frame during install. Steps: 1. Insert the tool in the CCT as shown in the first photo. Push against the tensioner with your hand while turning the tool counter-clockwise. Keep turning until the CCT is fully retracted. 2. Leave the tool in the CCT and install it in the engine as shown in the second photo. Apply thread locker to the two 5mm allen bolts securing the tensioner to the block, and tighten to 10 nm / 7.2 lb ft. This photo was taken before I realized I needed to cut the short side of the tool down to clear the frame. 3. Turn the tool clockwise until the tensioner contacts the chain guide. Remove the right side case cover so you can feel when the CCT contacts the guide. 4. Turn the tool 1/4 turn past where it contacts the guide. Remove the tool and install the 10mm bolt in the middle of the CCT. 5. Crack open a cold beverage of your choice.

Even relatively clean tap water has minerals in it which makes the water more electrolytic, and this promotes corrosion. If distilled water was hard to get I would agree that it's not worth the trouble, but I can get it for $1 per gallon at any grocery store.

Maybe tonight after work, if not tomorrow for sure. I need to pick up some distilled water to mix with the new antifreeze. Once it's running then I'll do a TB sync, which won't take long since it's all apart already anyway.

Perfect, just what I needed. I was able to make my own tool from a cut-down 3mm allen wrench; I'll post photos tomorrow. Side note: I almost had a disaster. I used zip ties on the cam sprockets to keep them timed. When I cut one of the zip ties the looped end broke off for some reason and fell down inside the engine. After lots of inspection with a flashlight I found the errant zip tie fragment down along the cam chain. I was able to extract it with my pinkie finger and long needlenose pliers, but it was scary for a little while.

This thing. I've gotten almost all the way through a valve adjustment without the service manual, but I can't figure out how to retract the cam chain tensioner. I read that I need a special tool, but I still don't know what the procedure is. I suppose I could just buy a manual tensioner, but that means another week of down time waiting for a part.

Does anyone know the torque for the camshaft journals?

I had a 2000 Triumph TT600 with famously bad EFI performance at first. Throttle response was harsh, and at certain RPM it would get confused and jerk a bit. Fortunately the issues were fixed with a free ECU update from Triumph. The FJ-09 isn't nearly as bad, but no this isn't a problem unique to Yamaha.

Good news! I had to "find" a couple parts at work this week; I'm starting to feel like supply chain professionals are often people who were fired from government for being too bureaucratic.

That's true, just make sure the cylinder bore isn't damaged.

There was probably some contaminant in the reservoir that got down into the piston, scored the cylinder, and thus damaged the piston seals. The same thing happened to the clutch master cylinder on my Honda Interceptor many moons ago. Naturally I was riding to work in my white Navy uniform when it happened. 😭

Agreed, very common. I think the noise actually comes from the chain, not the transmission. At certain speeds in 6th gear there seems to be just the right torque and speed on the chain to create some resonance.

Mine seems to be reasonably accurate, although that is based on rough mental estimates when I fuel up.

I guess I'm the oddball here. I had the 2WDW flash done. Before the flash I felt A was almost unusable. Now it's much better, but still not perfect. I use B for slow city riding and Standard for most other situations. I've been tempted to send my ECU in again and have it put back to Standard as default.

Current project state is: In pieces. I hit 26k on the odometer so the FJ is torn apart for: * Valve adjustment (all exhaust valves are tight, all intakes are good) * Throttle body sync * Sparkplugs * Air filter * Clutch cable * Coolant flush This also gives me a chance to clean up some wire routing for farkles.

Nice pic! Yes, that is a YZF750. I recently picked it up from a friend who passed away. It needs a lot of work, but that project will have to wait until after the FJ build.

I just checked mine yesterday (odo at 25.9k miles). All intake valves were in spec, and all exhaust valves were tight: || .152 | .229 || .203 | .203 || .203 | .203 || All of them had either 1.88 or 1.89 shims, so I need new shims for all. The Yamaha dealer said a while ago they'd swap shims for me, but when I went over there yesterday I got the regretful look, "Sorry, we don't have enough in the sizes you need..." So I'm just going to order some shims from the shop down the street that I like. My quandary: I believe aftermarket shim kits only come in .05 mm increments. I can fix most of them with 1.75 or 1.8 shims, but for the valve that measured .229 that won't quite work: 1.80 shim = .309 clearance 1.85 shim = .259 clearance Either way I'm out of spec. My thought is I should just go with a 1.8 shim since these valves apparently tend to tighten up anyway. Plus, I need to buy a 5-pack of 1.8 shims for the other valves anyway. Any concerns? EDIT - Maybe I should get a 1.85 shim for that valve. The next size up on my feeler gauge is .254, so in actuality the clearance is somewhere between .229-.254. Thus, if the actual clearance is .235 (for example) a 1.80 shim would yield a final clearance of .315, well out of spec. But a 1.85 shim would yield a final clearance of .265. That's near the minimum, but in spec. I guess it depends on how much I assume it'll continue to tighten over the next 26k miles.

Without question it's the best $500 I've ever spent on a motorcycle mod. With this saddle it's quite easy to ride through a full gas tank without any breaks. I've done many 500-700 mile days, and one 1000+ mile day and the only thing that bugs me is my throttle hand (hence my plan to get cruise control). It is a lot of money but the seat is truly customized to your fit. You will spend a couple of hours in the shop while they build the seat, you test-sit and give feedback, they re-shape it, etc. You'll take a test ride near the end before the final covering. It's a tailored suit for your butt. Tip: If your motorcycle sits outside in the rain, ask Don to add a waterproof liner under the seat cover. Mine sits outside in Corvallis all day when I'm at work, January-December. Rain will eventually seep through the seams and moisten the cushion.

I just ordered a Skene controller. This should improve safety, and I like the feature set anyway.

A still open question is whether using the yellow/black wire to trigger an aux light relay is safe. The other thread suggests that some current feedback from the relay might damage the ECM. A number of people report they've used the yellow/black wire for triggering, and the only person who has reported a problem is FrankQC. He claims to be an "electronics engineer," and he generally seems to know what he's talking about. But anybody can make mistakes and/or experience bad luck. I suppose it's true that the high beam indicator light would be a safer trigger source. It's a light bulb, so it's switched on by voltage. But the light and wiring are inside the instrument cluster, which would make it pretty hard to get to.

I doubt the high beam is using CANbus because there is a separate yellow/black wire going from the high beam switch to the headlight module, and the schematic shows that the switch closes contact between yellow and yellow/black. The high beam switch doesn't do anything else. The whole point of CANbus is to eliminate direct wiring like this and send addressable commands over a network. So I can't say it with 100% certainly, but the high beam wiring schematic doesn't look like CANbus to me. What is the other thread where someone damaged their ECM? Does someone have a link? I searched but couldn't find it.

Ah, right. Sometimes you can pry those up with a small straight slot screwdriver. They are a pain.

Brilliant! Thanks for sharing. A suggestion: get some dense sticky back heat-resistant insulation and sandwich that between the expanded metal and the radiator around the edges. That will prevent the guard from rubbing paint off the radiator and causing corrosion. Lava Lock makes some black felt insulation designed for grills and smokers that would work perfectly.

I'm fascinated by the e-stop button on the fuel pump. Is that normal? It's a good idea but I rarely see them in the USA.