Tappet servicing

Originally Posted by philh

'Shims need do-ing'? Do what exactly? If they we're refering to a valve clearance check/adjust then fine, but from what I have learnt from searching this forum and from this topic the shims should rarely need attention?

To adjust the valve clearance you need to change the shims, that is what they are referring to.

Originally Posted by Biker Biggles

Is your bike still under warranty?If not I suggest doing the service yourself,or at least the majority of it.Changing the oil and filters is very easy,and will cost you about £30 while checking the valve shims is also fairly simple.It's only if you discover that they need re shimming that it gets difficult,and I would advise having that done by a competent bike mechanic.The rest of the service is largely "check and adjust"stuff and is also pretty simple.Do what you can yourself,and only put it in a garage for what you can't do.

Agreed! Not under warranty. The majority of the 'check & adjust' stuff I'm OK with. Certainly fluids and filters I can do. Where I feel that I fall over is on the 'less-than-straightforward' stuff like carb adjustments, tappets/valves and cam related stuff. Also gearbox, suspension and brake stuff I would prefer to leave to the pro's.

Trouble is for me, that I don't have much of a clue as to when things like valves need 'do-ing'. Largely, if a mechanic tells me they need do-ing then I have to trust him. I'm pretty clueless as to what symptoms may tell me that those kind of things need attention!

BTW - just checked the odometer. It's at 5700ish, but it's been over 12 months since the last service...

Cheers peeps! (hope I have'nt gone too far off-topic!)

[Biker Biggles]

Shims need checking with a feeler guage every 15,000 miles.There are no symptoms,just a routine check.Oil and filter change every 3--4,000 miles and other stuff like air filter and plugs as and when you see fit.Front brake pads are easy to change as required,and rears are easy too if nothing is siezed up Most stuff is best done by regular checking and lubing of cables and other moving parts which largely prevents things going wrong.Worth making sure you have an owners handbook and a haynes manual which shows the way on everything you need to know.Very little of it is at all difficult.

Many thanks indeed Biker Biggles!

The previous owner of my SV had it as a summer toy and did next to no miles on it. Subsequently it's only done 5700ish miles in the four years since it was first registered. 1500 of them have been done by me since I bought it in September. The last full service in the log book was in April '06, although it was checked over when I bought it.

Milage does not yet necessitate a service, but time does. In any case, a 15,000 mile interval on shims means that they are far from due.

Thanks again. You may well have saved me some money!

I'm going to pick up a Haynes and get busy.

Originally Posted by Biker Biggles

Very little of it is at all difficult.

I may well have to hold you to that!

you have tappets with overhead cams?

Originally Posted by socommk23

you have tappets with overhead cams?

Strictly speaking, a tappet is what a cam operates on: so yes. With OHV engines, where people said they were adjusting their tappets, they were usually incorrect - They're (usually) adjusting the rocker arm to valve clearances. Some bikes (Enfields, BSA B-series, side-valves), you would adjust the tappets.

Best regards, Anne O'Rac.

"About £250 for the service. But when were the shims last done?"

"No idea." I replied. "I don't have the service book with me."

"Well," came the response, "if the shims need do-ing then that'll be a lot more time"

'Shims need do-ing'? Do what exactly? If they we're refering to a valve clearance check/adjust then fine, but from what I have learnt from searching this forum and from this topic the shims should rarely need attention?

Also, £250ish for the 7500 interval? Pricey?

I would say that is expensive. JHS "only" charge £320 for the full 15 thou service, and they do more than the schedule requires including re-greasing the rear suspension linkage. Suggest you ask for the linkage to stripped and greased.

My Sv had it's 1st service in December 02, since then it's never seen professional care. Going to a local independent guy for the shim service this weekend. £180 including linkage stripping.

[Spanner Man]

Morning all.
Since the Japs have almost all gone over to the spiral type tensioners as fitted to the SV, us in the trade are changing tensioners at an alarming rate!
I have had many a tensioner that behaves normally & feels nice and smooth when off the engine, yet backs off almost immediately when the engine is running.
If you think of the tensioner as being similar to a bolt being wound out of a captive nut within the tensioner body, you'll get some idea of how it works. Now we all know that if you put a nut in a vise, & wound a bolt into it, you could stand on the bolt head for the rest of your life and it wouldn't wind itself into the nut.
But as the load on back run of the camchain isn't constant, effectively the bolt head gets 'hammered' hence causing wear to the 'threads' thereby causing the tensioner to back off.
I suspect that the switch to this type of tensioner is because it will put less load on the camchain, therefore allowing the use of lighter chains and guides etc. & maybe an increase of .naff all bhp at the rear wheel. Or maybe they just want to sell more spares!!
In short if you suspect the tensioner in any way, change the beggar! I've seen many an engine totally 'lunched' when a suspect tensioner was left in place.

Cheers.