Rattling noise from front cylinder

I've begun to notice a rattling noise coming from the front cylinder of my bike (99 curvy sv650s). When sat on the bike its loudest on the left hand side of the cylinder. It's most noticeable when the bike is idling, as the noise of the bike drowns it out when i give it some rev's.

I was wondering if you had any idea's on what this might be and how it could be fixed? BTW. my exhaust can is cracked open however I believe the noise was there before this happened.

Steve

[Spanner Man]

Morning Steve.
Sounds like the camchain tensioner, quite a common problem on SV's! I think they're around the £50 mark.
Best to get it sorted, for if it gives up completely major damage can occur.

Cheers.

How difficult/dangerous would it be for me to do it myself? I'm reasonably technically minded, but I've never opened up an engine before.

Steve

Originally Posted by Steve226

How difficult/dangerous would it be for me to do it myself? I'm reasonably technically minded, but I've never opened up an engine before.

Steve

if you're not overly mechanically minded, get done by a professional. If you can only just change brake pads, this includes you!

[Spanner Man]

Hello Steve.
The tensioner can be changed without removing the cam cover, but I wouldn't recommend it. For there is always the possibility of the valve timing jumping, so it's radiator removal time.
The tensioner itself is a touch fiddly to get to, as the frame tends to get in the way.
The job is not beyond the experienced DIYer but the consequences if not done correctly are expensive to say the least.

Cheers.

[TSM]

Mine are also a little rattly but only at realy high revs, like say 8k+, you hear a slight shrill.

As much as i want to do most work on the bike myself I recon this might be a bit out of my league at the moment, so I'll get a professional to do it (it needs someone with some knowledge to give it the once over anyway).

Any idea how long it will be until this is a major problem? Currently I'm only starting the bike up once a week to stop it getting all gunked up, running it for 4-5Min's and then turning it off. I've still got stuff that I wanna do myself before handing it to a professional but i need to know how long i can really leave this?

Steve

[Spanner Man]

Afternoon Steve.
To be on the safe side I wouldn't run the engine until you have the problem sorted.
I remember a Firestorm I went to see that blew up when the customer insisted that he ran the engine to show me the rattle. BIG OUCH!!

Cheers.

Should I get it picked up to be on the safe side?

Steve

[Spanner Man]

Evening Steve.
To be on the safe side I would indeed get your bike collected, small price to pay innit!

Cheers.