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Valve check


jeravoy

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Hi , just want to notice that there are 2 signs on the crankshaft.
The first looks like - and the second looks like < .
The first is for TDC = checking clearance, the second is for installing the cams = timing issue. 
Thanks 
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  • 1 month later...
Just to clarify, the TDC mark you are referring to is for cylinder #1 only.
The other mark is for installation, and is actually 125 degrees Before TDC #, IIRC.
 
As a rule of thumb, to heck with the timing marks and TDC - the best, and most accurate way to measure valve clearances is when the valve lobe is pointed AWAY from the bucket.
 
-Skip
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  • 3 years later...

Wanted to find the best place to post this.  Hope this is it.

Emissions sticker on my 15 FJ-09. 

Note the exhaust spec. goes smaller than the manual.  Another of many mistakes in the manual.

Can anybody get a pic of a newer Tracer sticker to see what it says?  Mine is under the rear fender where the wheel throws dirt.

Screenshot_20210615-094244.jpg

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6 hours ago, peteinpa said:

Wanted to find the best place to post this.  Hope this is it.

Emissions sticker on my 15 FJ-09. 

Note the exhaust spec. goes smaller than the manual.  Another of many mistakes in the manual.

Can anybody get a pic of a newer Tracer sticker to see what it says?  Mine is under the rear fender where the wheel throws dirt.

Screenshot_20210615-094244.jpg

Off subject, but interesting that your sticker says "95 RON MIN" for the fuel. I don't even know where to get 95 octane gas. 93 is the highest I have near me unless I'm buying 110 race fuel.... now I need to go look at my sticker.

'15 FJ-09 w/ lots of extras...

Fayetteville, GA, USA

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6 hours ago, peteinpa said:

Wanted to find the best place to post this.  Hope this is it.

Emissions sticker on my 15 FJ-09. 

Note the exhaust spec. goes smaller than the manual.  Another of many mistakes in the manual.

Can anybody get a pic of a newer Tracer sticker to see what it says?  Mine is under the rear fender where the wheel throws dirt.

Screenshot_20210615-094244.jpg

My 2019 Tracer GT sticker has the same clearance specs.

 

B3C37B60-12F4-46DB-945C-BBE40B8AF69C.png

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56 minutes ago, duhs10 said:

Off subject, but interesting that your sticker says "95 RON MIN" for the fuel. I don't even know where to get 95 octane gas. 93 is the highest I have near me unless I'm buying 110 race fuel.... now I need to go look at my sticker.

95 RON is the UK designation.  It's equal to 90 R+M/2 here.  USA.

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10 minutes ago, peteinpa said:

95 RON is the UK designation.  It's equal to 90 R+M/2 here.  USA.

I had a feeling there was a reasonable explanation... thanks.

'15 FJ-09 w/ lots of extras...

Fayetteville, GA, USA

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8 hours ago, peteinpa said:

Wanted to find the best place to post this.  Hope this is it.

Emissions sticker on my 15 FJ-09. 

Note the exhaust spec. goes smaller than the manual.  Another of many mistakes in the manual.

 

Screenshot_20210615-094244.jpg

Funny about that, because they don't make feeler gauges in EITHER of those sizes. Which says to me that it's probably a Janglish translation mistake.

(meaning, 0.24mm and 0.26mm feeler gauges don't exist in my world...)

New 9GT has the same specs on the sticker.

-Skip

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1 hour ago, duhs10 said:

I had a feeling there was a reasonable explanation... thanks.

And if you want to go all geeky over the subject, have a look at this for the detailed explanation. 🙂

 

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16 minutes ago, skipperT said:

Funny about that, because they don't make feeler gauges in EITHER of those sizes. Which says to me that it's probably a Janglish translation mistake.

(meaning, 0.24mm and 0.26mm feeler gauges don't exist in my world...)

New 9GT has the same specs on the sticker.

-Skip

So..... just to be clear, for me at least, what is the low reading supposed to be for the exhaust valves? 0.25mm?

This from the book -

image.png.a80fe1b5b0907d3ae8823c9dcda58f8c.png

Thanks.

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5 hours ago, dazzler24 said:

So..... just to be clear, for me at least, what is the low reading supposed to be for the exhaust valves? 0.25mm?

This from the book -

image.png.a80fe1b5b0907d3ae8823c9dcda58f8c.png

Thanks.

Thanks for posting that from the book, that’s exactly what I was referencing.  

If it were me, I’d honestly shoot for .275mm instead of 0.25mm as the exhaust valves always go tight. 
Last time I adjusted mine, there were a couple that were even too loose after swapping shims, bordering on a snug feeling 0.32mm.
I left em like that. They’ll tighten up and be perfect, at least for 10k miles or so. YMMV. 

-Skip

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11 minutes ago, skipperT said:

Thanks for posting that from the book, that’s exactly what I was referencing.  

If it were me, I’d honestly shoot for .275mm instead of 0.25mm as the exhaust valves always go tight. 
Last time I adjusted mine, there were a couple that were even too loose after swapping shims, bordering on a snug feeling 0.32mm.
I left em like that. They’ll tighten up and be perfect, at least for 10k miles or so. YMMV. 

-Skip

Have you checked a motor on its 2nd or 3rd valve check?  If so, were the exhaust valves as tight as the typical 1st check?  Mine were tight at 23K miles and within spec at 44K miles, I will reach 60K this month and wondering if I should stay on schedule for the 3rd check or let it go a little longer until later in the year?  On my previous FZ1 I had over 70K on the motor and they were always in spec.

Thanks, Brian

 

***2015 Candy Red FJ-09***

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1 hour ago, betoney said:

Have you checked a motor on its 2nd or 3rd valve check?  If so, were the exhaust valves as tight as the typical 1st check?  Mine were tight at 23K miles and within spec at 44K miles, I will reach 60K this month and wondering if I should stay on schedule for the 3rd check or let it go a little longer until later in the year?  On my previous FZ1 I had over 70K on the motor and they were always in spec.

Thanks, Brian

 

Following.

'15 FJ-09 w/ lots of extras...

Fayetteville, GA, USA

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8 hours ago, betoney said:

Have you checked a motor on its 2nd or 3rd valve check?  If so, were the exhaust valves as tight as the typical 1st check?  Mine were tight at 23K miles and within spec at 44K miles, I will reach 60K this month and wondering if I should stay on schedule for the 3rd check or let it go a little longer until later in the year?  On my previous FZ1 I had over 70K on the motor and they were always in spec.

Thanks, Brian

 

Only my own, recently. And they were tight again. I have increased the frequency of when I check the clearances as I think my engine may have one of the cylinder heads that seems to wear more than others. I won’t know for sure until after this season. Plan on checking again depending on how it runs and how many miles I get this season. I’d have to check my notes, but like you @betoney I decreased the interval between the first and second check. Went far less than the 26k. 

your clearances are promising if they didn’t go tight again in 20k miles. If it still runs well you could wait till fall. if you want peace of mind stick to your 20-25k intervals. 

i know of another 2015 high mileage bike that will need to be checked soon for a second round. Can keep you in the loop on that one. Those inline 4 engines are hit or miss - some stay perfect every time while others aren’t. There doesn’t seem to be a predictable pattern and few make it that long anyway. 

-Skip

Edited by skipperT
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15 hours ago, dazzler24 said:

So..... just to be clear, for me at least, what is the low reading supposed to be for the exhaust valves? 0.25mm?

This from the book -

image.png.a80fe1b5b0907d3ae8823c9dcda58f8c.png

Thanks.

One other thought just occurred to me @dazzler24...

Sometimes it’s not always about the exact number when setting valves. Sometimes it’s about how the feeler gauge DRAGS when it’s inserted or withdrawn (yeah, yeah I know how it sounds). 

If we accept the 0.26mm number as listed, you could use your 0.25mm feeler gauge as a “tell”.  If it has some drag but feels loose especially when moved side to side, as opposed to straight at the lobe- then you can evaluate the actual clearance you’re measuring. Call it a “loose 0.25”. Then if a .272mm won’t fit or is quite snug and a .227 has no drag at all then that will indicate to you your actual clearance measurement. 

The biggest mistake I think people make is stuffing a larger feeler gauge in between the cam lobe and the tappet and saying “oh yeah it’s in spec” when in fact they’ve pushed to strongly with a stiff enough feeler gauge to compress the tappet/valve spring. That’s not an accurate way to measure the valve lash. Smaller sizes bend more easily so it’s harder to do that with say, a 0.04” (0.10mm IIRC?) gauge because it bends too easily. On our CP3 engines it’s even more important to be aware of and not force the feeler gauges into the exhaust cam clearances because of the tendency for these engines to “go tight” as they wear.

Developing that “feel” makes sense for anyone that’s adjusted screw/locknut type valve trains. But for someone who’s doing this for the first time on a shim-under-bucket design engine, there exists that possibility to not measure the clearances accurately. 

(I hope some of this makes sense.)

-Skip 

Edited by skipperT
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