86 vf500f Valve adjustment woes.

This all started as my very first valve adjustment on a motorcycle. a motorcycle that I had just bought for 600 bucks a few days prior. It wasn't ticking terribly, but it was noticeable. So I figured, since i've done it on a few cars, I can handle a bike no problem! WRONG.

Ripped a boot off of a spark plug wire in the front ( not sure if I can fix that)

Dropped that feeler gauge down the crankcase (recovered )
Apparently didn't tighten the adjuster nuts enough and the backed out while the engine was running, luckily causing no damage (that I could see)
This morning, discovered that one of my rocker arms freely pivots about 3 degrees to either side (Not sure If I need to replace or not, this was probably making that original slight tick)

And FINALLY, after giving up after finding that rocker arm loose, Putting the valve cover back on, Snapped one of the bolts off in the head. Obviously Have no oil pressure in the front cylinders now.

Going to take it to a motorcycle shop and have them fix the spark plug wire, finish the valve job, and drill/ replace the valve cover bolt. and THEN maybe just MAYBE, I'll have my first motorcycle back on the road. I sure picked a hell of a bike to start with!

Pictures:



Horrible valve noise when the adjuster screws backed out. (Quickly realized something was wrong and stopped it)....
[video=youtube;JCkoYzB1mBI]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCkoYzB1mBI[/video]

 

I figured the feeler gauge issue was bad enough of a problem. I commend you for attempting the maintenance yourself, but like you, I know my limits. Let us know how it goes .....

 

Will do. ordered some new valve cover bolts from ebay that should be here Friday or Saturday. Is it easy to replace the rocker if I find another?

 

Whew...tough luck. I had an 86 VF500 as my first bike too. I loved it and once I got it fixed up a bit (bad carrier bearing when I bought it) it ran great too. I passed it along to another anxious rider last summer. Parts are generally not easy to find for these bikes but they are certainly a lot of fun to ride.

 

Fragile and high maintenance they are, but unlike so many UJMs well worth it.

 

Most people don't realize valve cover bolts are shouldered and have very light torque specs. What is holding down the valve cover is pressure from the rubber grommet on the bolt. Every time I have seen this, I was able to back out the remnants of the bolt with a dental pick, because it is bathed in oil and not bottomed out against anything.

Give it a try before you pay someone to "extract" it.

 

I have a small pick set in my gun cleaning kit, I'll give it a go today. thanks for the tip!

 

I few weeks ago, I adjusted the valves on my 1986 VF500F which was the first time I have attempted to adjust valves. I feel fortunate that while very time consuming, things went much smoother. I had ordered new valve cover gaskets as I expected them to disintegrate upon removal. They were surprisingly in good shape, but I had new ones so I replaced them anyway. The first attempt took about 6 hours and I was not confident in the quality of the job so I went through it again the next weekend before putting the bike back together. The second time around things went pretty smooth and I was much happier with the results.

Once I got a feel for how it should be, it was much easier to replicate on the remaining valves; practice practice practice! I put it in 6th gear and just jogged the rear wheel back to move the crank. I found that it was much easier to keep it set correctly when I tightened the locking nuts if the cam was pressing on things. It also made it easier to fit the torque wrench into place.

I can't say it runs any better or worse than before I started. I did need to adjust the carburetor synchronization a bit afterwards though, so something changed.

Take your time and cover things up and take a break if you start to get frustrated. There are several techniques you can read about here about how to adjust them; try them all and see what works best for you. Start with the valve that is easiest for you to reach and set it about 10 times until you get a feel for it, then worry about the others.

Bolt extractors are only a few dollars and pretty simply to use, but tape off the area so you don't get any metal shards where you don't want them when you drill out the center of the old bolt.

Good luck

 

Update: Got it out! got a new one in (*Thank you EBAY!!!) And she started right up!!!! Only 20 degrees outside so I didnt run it long, But she ran almost fine!

I took a video of the new problem, It seems to be hesitating a bit now. Not sure why. Any thoughts?

[video=youtube;AKg0glX8qkM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKg0glX8qkM[/video]

 

[video=youtube;zCa_aK3iOqc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCa_aK3iOqc[/video]

 

Doesn't sound like she's running on all 4. And kinda "noisy"

 

any easy way to test if it's on all 4?

 

Place the back of your hand against each exhaust header about 30 seconds after you start it. Hot ones are firing OK. Hesitation would be normal on an engine running in very cold temps !:crushed:

 

They are all hot. Also tried like you would do with a car and pulled one spark plug wire at a time. Each time i pulled one it died. Seems to be running on 4

 

As squirrel mentioned, it will hesitate in the cold weather. Try it again when it warms up outside and go from there. How do the carbs looks? Any idea the last time they were cleaned?

 

No idea how they look, have been afraid to take them off since i dont have a synching board.

 

I wouldn't worry too much about the hesitation. It does sound pretty tappetty though. Mine is quieter than that especially when the engine is cold. When everything warms up it gets a bit noisier, I assume due to the oil thinning out and not damping the noise as much.

 

Took her for a 20 mile ride yesterday and seemed to quiet down as it got warm, but that could be me getting used to it ran great, enough power to pull the front wheel up . I guess if it aint broke dont fix it ...

 

Thats great. I had a '86 RWB 500 I sold in 2002. Should have kept it. That VF500 is one of the best middleweights ever made. Good luck, you will love it. So fun...

 

I don't know guys. it's still loud enough that someone at a red-light told me I need to check my oil bad. (It's full). Would that loose rocker arm be making all this clatter?