Many of that era are. I wish I still had my 900ss from 1981 or my Supermono that I bought from Geoff Baines!Originally Posted by ChronoPantera
With an example like that you are allowed to brag ! I bet when you turn up at bike meets you are in a minority of one. When I was at college in the mid 70’s a lad there bought a Z1. A king of bikes in those days, the only bike he was fearful of was a Jota!
In 2015 I hummed and hahd over a lovely “un raced” Monjuic, but passed on it, not one of my better decisions!
Took the Panigale in to have a tracker fitted and somehow ended up buying this!
I actually had a deposit down for one of these a year or more ago but a company decided they were going bust owing me a big sum so it didnt feel right to go ahead with the purchase.
Fast forward a year and its now mine or very soon will be once its had its PDI and some bits fitted.
Anyway roll on next week.
Well doneTook the Panigale in to have a tracker fitted and somehow ended up buying this!
I actually had a deposit down for one of these a year or more ago but a company decided they were going bust owing me a big sum so it didnt feel right to go ahead with the purchase.
Fast forward a year and its now mine or very soon will be once its had its PDI and some bits fitted.
Anyway roll on next week.
First ride of '23 yesterday, and it was amazing just to get out on the bike. I have to say that I feel like I've found my spiritual home with Harley Davidson - the bike really suits my style of riding, and I'm enjoying the whole image and lifestyle thing that goes with the marque (to the extent that I'm going to join the local Chapter in the spring).
A Q&D from when I stopped for a vape...
Great pic Tony and a great looking ride. Just back from France for Christmas and the weather here is bleak to say the least. My first ride of 2023 looks way off yet. I'm definitely not one for the Harley gear with eagles and stuff but riding one is a whole new bike experience. Looking forward to the ride out!
I have one Tony. Great machines, not rapid, but solidly built.First ride of '23 yesterday, and it was amazing just to get out on the bike. I have to say that I feel like I've found my spiritual home with Harley Davidson - the bike really suits my style of riding, and I'm enjoying the whole image and lifestyle thing that goes with the marque (to the extent that I'm going to join the local Chapter in the spring).
A Q&D from when I stopped for a vape...
JW
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yup, that old chestnut, 'the crystal ball what if scenario'.... eg what if i'd bought that green Miura S for £60k when i offered the vendor £55k and he wouldn't take it etc.
my worst one was when i sold a mint original 66 Cooper S 1275 for £2,500
worst one ever... The bloke that sold Nick Mason his 250GTO for £28k in 1978 !! if he's still alive that's got to make a good pub story, how i sold a £60 million quid car for £28K !!
You're going the whole hog then Tony!
Or you could have bought one new between '62 to '64, from the factory, for £6K.
And Mason actually paid £37,000 in 1977 for his which was still a shedload of money for a used car back then, but 250GTO's have done rather well since!
Paid for with the proceeds of a little plastic disc called…………………Dark Side o………….
Walked around his car at Goodwood in 2019, no one near it, I even thought it had a show plate on!! Just shows how much I know about car exotica.
Thanks for the correction - my memory must be going so thought i'd google it - conflicting results as some reports say he paid £35k in 1978
however the point is that's a very good ROI, even taking into account in 1977 or '78 when money went a lot further.
(could have probably bought 3 houses in knightsbridge for £37K which would now be worth the same as a GTO.)
speaking of £6K new, i was lucky enough to meet David Piper, (racing driver that lost his leg whilst filming Steve McQueens' film 'Le Mans')
He had a lot of very interesting stories, including that he bought two 250GTO's brand new directly from Enzo Ferrari, a 1963 series 1, and then traded it in for a series 2 in 1964. He raced both all around the world, and then sold the series 2 in the 60's
however he did hang onto some even rarer Ferraris in his collection, including a P4 which is probably worth £25M now, so it's not all bad !!
I did ask him why all his ferrari racecars were painted green, which was his trademark colour. It was due to his involvement with BP, and he said he like BRG anyway.
DP was a true gentleman and a real pleasure to talk to.
Back to bikes...
Went for a spin today, in the filthy wet. The light usually comes on at about 130 miles, so at 100 miles I start to think about fuel. I refilled at 110.7 miles from last fill up, brimmed each time and the second trip meter reset as a fuel gauge. I used precisely 4.33 litres for the 110.7 miles!
Now, I know people on here are flush as can be and fuel economy doesn't worry anyone else, but it meant that I had enough money for 2 pints as well as a scotch egg!
My tyres are still going strong too - over 29,000 miles from this set so far. I WILL get them to 30,000 miles if it kills me.
Imgur won't let me load the others!
Well being a typical woman. The young lady that owns the engine that’s currently residing in my garage, has ignored my advice to source a second hand motor, and asked that I rebuild the original engine. I’ve managed to source a good used crank, and ordered all new gaskets etc.
And in the meantime I’ve checked all the bearing clearances using plastigauge, so far so good and everything looks to be within tolerance.
Out of curiosity (thought provoked from Enochs post)
Has anyone done valve clearances on a road bike, and they are out of tolerance?
Everytime mine are done they are fine. I can't help but think it's another dealer con
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Before stripping this engine I checked the clearances, and they were all within tolerance.. I will check them again before I button down the cam cover, but really they should be the same.
I do know of bikes that have required the odd shim change but usually well after the recommended intervals.
Really interesting question, in my 30 years of riding (and 13 bikes) I have paid for many a valve clearance check… and not one has needed adjusting.
There is a difference between 'within tolerance' and being 'right'.
If they check the gaps and they are between what the book says, a dealer will leave them as they are within the specified figures, even if they are just a whisker within, and even if they are all different. I like mine to be bang in the middle of the range and all the same. That said, a friend has wracked up 100,000 on his X Country now and he has never had to alter the valve clearances. Those Rotax engines are amazing.
The valve clearances of modern double OHC engines take a long time until wear alone makes them go out of tolerance.
However, in my vintage world of pushrods, rocker arms and tappets everytime I check them they seem to need adjustment!
A good bit of that will have been spent using leaded fuels? That would have mitigated seat wear somewhat?
I was speaking to two lads about 8yrs ago, who had well-used Suzuki 1000 GSXR and Yamaha R-1 (think both were 2004 vintage)
GSXR had done 120,000 miles, the R-1 100,000 miles - both were self-maintained and they claimed to use part worn tyres for the most part.
Only the Suzuki had required valve re-shimming and that was on one valve only.
Had this years ago when my new 750 Zephyr was due it's 1st year service.
I bought the bike from Motorcycle City in Farnborough and rang to book it in, during the booking procedure I specifically requested the valve clearances were checked.
They said fine and I agreed a provisional price subject to shim's used etc.
Before taking the bike in I marked the cam cover bolts with a spot of paint, yes call me cynical but I never really trusted them, due to another story with a mates bike that went in there for work!
Upshot being, bike went in, double checked it was down for valve clearance check and left the bike, service guy said they'd have to let it get cool before checking them.
I returned late afternoon, bike was outside, so i had a quick peek at said cam cover bolts, not one had been touched.
Went into reception and asked if it was ready, a young lad replied yes I think so, but I'll double check and get the guy that worked on it.
Out he came, yes sir it's already, so I asked him, what were the valve clearances like, were any adjustment needed ? he looked very sheepish and mumbled something i didn't quite catch.
I asked him if we could take a look at the bike outside, so we walked out and I asked him again, he replied, yes they were all within tolerance.
So the cam cover was removed and they were all checked then I asked?
He then turned to me and said why is there a problem then? I then pointed out the paint on the cam cover bolts and asked how could they have been physically checked if the cam cover bolts hadn't been removed?
He replied. look sir I just do as I'm told, the service manager said the valve clearances are find, they don't need checking, so i said how did he check them, with his hand cupped over his ear from 10 paces or words to that effect, he went very red and said yeah something like that.
I returned to the reception and asked for my bill and there in black and white was the charge for the extra hours involved, plus a new cam cover gasket and seals, also for 2 new shims, all totally fabricated.
Said service manager was summoned and a rather uncomfortable conversation took place as you can imagine.
This resulted in not only the cost of the fictitious work being deleted from my bill, but also the cost of the 12 month service they had carried out.
They don't call them Stealers for nothing.
Brian.
I reckon things like this are rife in the industry, just wish I knew more about engines and working on motorbikes myself.
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Checking the clearances on most bikes is simple enough.
Cam cover off....feeler gauges in....about an hour max.
But re-shimming can be a bit fiddly, measuring gaps and calculating the +/- required for the new shims, camshafts & buckets out, then reassembling & recheck.
If you want to save money, why not just check clearances yourself and take it in for the adjust?
Of the last three bikes (4clyl) I've done, 20-30% valves were tight.
Only half of that 20-30% were actually out of tolerance +/-, so them adjusted anyway.
Valve clearance checks are definitely not a con. Granted, modern bikes don’t need checking as frequently as older engines but ensuring that your valve clearances are within tolerance is very important.
Valve clearances close up with wear and ultimately lead to no clearance at all. This can then cause the valve to make contact with the piston crown causing, at the very least, a vent valve and st the worst, much more engine damage.
Scheduled valve clearance checks should therefore, always be carried out.
Agree.
Metal beds in and valves become tight.
I've never had a valve hit a piston, but I've had a few exhaust seats/valves burn out.
Not valve clearances but screen wash. At two majors Hyundai & Mazda car services I brimmed the screen wash , yet both returned with an itemized £3.50 or something. Its not the £3.50 I object to , its the feeling of “ If you didnt do that, what else did you fail to check”
Have to say , my local indy, doesn’t charge for unnecessary work and is a pleasure to deal with.
The early Indian made Husky and KTM 390/400 single engines initially called for a 600 mile ( 1000km) valve clearance check. There was lots of negative feedback from owners saying the work wasn’t being done. KTM solved the problem, valve clearance interval changed to 16,000 km!
It is quite satisfying being able to do it over a cup of coffee isn't it.
It makes sense to carry out an early check after, say, 1000 miles as it gives a chance for everything to bed in. Modern bikes probably don’t need it do much though and longer check intervals are certainly possible on modern engines. I remember the first five valve Yamahas having 28,000 mike intervals even in the mid eighties.
I check my bikes every 10,000 miles or so, it’s something I quite enjoy doing.
Guzzi are quite keen on valve checks. This is the schedule for my V85TT, but fortunately, the check is very simple to do, due to the engine position etc - so it's not a costly service item.
Nice job, but how did you turn the crank to find TDC with your screwdriver ?It is quite satisfying being able to do it over a cup of coffee isn't it.
as Its very difficult to do on the starter motor, as I find it never stops correctly on TDC
I see you're a Guzzi ownerGuzzi are quite keen on valve checks. This is the schedule for my V85TT, but fortunately, the check is very simple to do, due to the engine position etc - so it's not a costly service item.
Please i'm trying to problem solve a hot engine cut out on my V50 Cafe Racer (which has a V75 engine fitted from a 90's bike)
Basically it starts from cold perfectly ok, but as soon as it gets hot it just stops running, and is impossible to restart until it's colled down again.
This is driving me nuts, and i've tried changing the coil pack, and the crank position pickup sensor and it still has this problem.
need to sort it before the Weather improves, as I'm not pushing it home again !!
Put the bike on centre stand, remove the spark plugs, put it in gear, turn the rear wheel.
Reading the above I thought “ coil” straight away, but you have sorted that. The other is vapour locking eg fuel tank vent kinked or blocked. Its easy to check, if when your bike stops and wont start, pop the petrol filler cap. On early 800GS’s you could hear them hiss. If its vapour lock the bike will start.
Thanks for answering that. I may be a Guzzi owner but it doesn't mean I know anything about Guzzi's. :)
No problem Im probably wrong , but vapour locking has stranded many a biker and its one of these no cost checks that needs no spanners! They type I like.
Steve
Noted.....
that must be a 2 person job so you can feel the TDC on the screwdriver and don't go beyond it
Thanks, I like those easy fixes as well. I'll check the filler cap next time.
The bike has got a smaller non standard tank, so maybe that could be contributing to an airlock in the fuel pipes
Well for absolute precision say in race bikes, you'd normally use a dial indicator, but for road bikes +/- one degree doesn't make much difference.
Screwdriver of choice is perfect. If the bike is on the centrestand it's easy enough to reach both wheel and screwdriver.
Where you can see the cams ie OHC or DOHC engines, you don’t need to worry about where the piston is, you just need to make sure that the contact point is off the lobe. Anywhere on the base diameter is ok for measuring.
With a shim under bucket arrangement though, where the cam has to be removed for shim replacement, then crank/ cam position is important for correct cam timing. There are usually markers to allow you to get the timing correct but if not, you can always make your own.
No it doesn't need to be. You do one side first, I tend to do the left hand cylinder first because then the right hand one is not so far to turn over afterwards. Crouch or kneel beside the bike the side you are doing, because I don't have a bike bench! You then watch the valves open and close as you turn the wheel, 3rd gear works well for me. Once the vlaves have both closed you can turn the wheel/crank a bit and put the 'indicator', I have a length of oily dowel somewhere, but I couldn't find it so used the screwdriver as a stand in, into the plug hole touching the piston, watch the valves and the screwdriver moving outwards, then as the valve opens you can move the wheel in tiny increments watching the screwdriver, when it stops moving you are near enough at TDC, a head torch fine tunes TDC with the flywheel marks in the little hole. It doesn't have to be EXACT, so the fact my timing mark is not to the micron lined up makes no practical difference whatsoever. These are old, push rod engines, not highly strung modern ones. That is another practical benefit.
Whenever I do shims, I prefer to aim for the widest gap in the tolerance. In my experience clearances always get tighter, so going for the top end of the tolerance means they should last longer before needing doing again..
losing the clearance means that when the valve is in the closed position - there could be a slight gap tending to materialise between stem and seat. This will lead to cutting of valve seats with combustion gasses and 'may' lead to stem failure (and resultant drop of a valve head into the cylinder. )
Complete valve/piston interaction is a function of valve timing failure, rather than clearance loss.
Not the best pic but finally got round to registering the private plates on my bikes. Not cool enough for the Good Plate thread but im happy with them. Roll on warm sunny days!
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I like those ^
How manu others do you have in your drawers? YAM, DUC (or DUK), etc.?
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
A couple of others Marc but on retention. Wanted the DUC plate to match but wasn't available. Have e a Honda C90 Cub too but its too old to wear the RM12 moniker......
Yes a dial indicator is the most accurate method, but you need to secure it solidly on a stand, so not practical for DIY job in a garage. screwdriver or steel rod OK for TDC as you can feel it move in and out as you turn the engine, and get within a 1 or 2 degrees of TDC which is close enough for valve clearances.
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