Advice for valve adjustment 99VFR

Hey folks,
I'm in the middle of a Valve adjustment/check at 32K+. Need some insight from someone whose actually DONE the proceedure, concerning how they dealt with the radiator repositioning. Mechanic did this before ( or so they say ) at 16K..no changes needed...but from looking at what I've taken apart, Iit looks as if nobody's been there before ( at least to the 2,4 cylinders...I found the breather hose off 1,3 which is why I have such a low opinion of mechanics..but why talk ill of the dead? ). Hell of a time getting the radiator screws off and once I do, it looks like it's not going to do much good. So, I curious if anyone out there has done this radiators in place, and maybe just dropped the hoses off the bottom. Know this will not allow much side clearance for removing the Valve covers, but from my analysis moving the radiators without completely removing them just causes other probs.

I love riding this bike, but I'll tell you right now..I wish I'd just found a decent mechanic and let them do it. This is a pain in the butt. Makes me want to go back to my BMW days...mmmm boxers...

Any help is greatly appreciated. I go at it, one way or another, tomorrow morning. Too far gone to go backwards!

Tks in advance,

Steve

 

Have not done mine yet but you are probably correct in suspecting the last mech. He probably had a listen and said, all is well. These engines rarely need adjustment.

I would drop your antifreeze and just remove the rads. Gains much needed elbow room and it isn't that hard to reinstall and service the coolant. I can't stand working in tight quarters when you need to be precise. You end up doing a half ass job just so you can get er done and back together. I had mine appart getting a mouse nest out of it two months ago. Easy peezy. :biggrin:

Re the Boxer;
I may be easier to maintain but it does reuire more frequent attention. One could argue that this is the first time that your has actually been checked base on your observations and it is probably running great. Hard to compare the two machines, as they are both great at what they do.

Have fun!

 

The final word..

Hey, thanks for sharing your opinion.

Turns out I only had to remove one radiator ( right side ) to gain decent access.

At 32K all valves were within tolerance. The worst one was EX#1 @ .011in solid. All others were either a tight nominal or a really loose onethousandths off.

This bike gets run pretty hard, but I keep up on maint. After the first 8K, I've been running Amsoil synthetic, which always comes out clean when I drain it every 4-5K. sure I could leave it in much longer, but I've got case pricing on the juice, so it's no big deal.

Here are my observations:
1. Seems the mechanic on the 16K decided he'd only check the rear bank ( 1+3). This was observed by noticing the difference in the head gasket sealants used. I'd be surprised if most dealers ever check the front bank. It's too much of a hassle for the $400 they get. So, if you want to do the same...it's much easier to do that back bank. Don't even need to remove the airbox.

2. A dealer told me I could reuse the rubber headcover gaskets. Took me 3 hours to clean these buggers, as they have gasket sealant all over them. Find a good supplier and buy all 5 needed for each bank new. It will cost you approx. $100 extra. You'll still need to scrape the crap off the cover though.

3. This job is no fun. I put 20hrs into it, but I was very careful and methodical.

4. Might also want to remove the Oil Cooler. I accidentally raked it with the torque wrench and munged it up a bit. cleaned it up with a Exacto, but that was more time. I bent the OC support bracket out of the way rather than remove it, but you'll need to do something about that. The service manual says you only have to reposistion the radiators and oil cooler to do this job. I can't see it.

5. Get some Gasgacinch gasket sealer. The crap I bought from the Kragen sucked. Still seems to have held the seal, but was a pain to work with. Gasgacinch is the best, but mine dried up when left partially open.

There you are. Personally, my search for a decent, honest mechanic will continue but I now have more time to search.

 

Keep that mechanic!

Hey Peregrin,

If you have a decent, honest mechanic do all you can to tend that relationship. That's a hard one to find.

My experience....if they have one of these " can't let you in back because of insurance policy" attitudes, they're probably short change artists at best.

Earlier I was bemoaning my BMW days. I like my bike, but with the BMW I had access to 2 excellent mechanics...Uncle Dave Garner over in SF and the guy ( can't remember his name ) that worked out of Schlecher's in Oakland.

I know I might be offending one of the few decent, honest mechanics out there ( Yea, just being honest doesn't help if you don't know what you're doing ). I apologize if you're trying.

Or, send me your card and I'll check you out for future days...

Anyways Peregrin..maybe I'll see you down ont he coast sometime. I live in Oakland and one of my favorite romps is down to SLO for early lunch and then back home up Highway 1. Someday the cops will get me, but so far I've been lucky/good!

Cheers!

 

As a mechanic ( Heavy Truck ) I can say if you have a mechanic you like that is working for a dealer. See if you can get him or her(the world is changing, there's a bunch of great female wrenches out there) see if you can't talk them into working on your stuff on the side on there own time. You tend to me more relaxed & meticulous when your paycheck isn't dependant on the amount of labor hours you sell. Kind of like when you work on a project on your own you take as long as it takes to get it right. You will of course have to pay him/her somewhere in the area of 50-75% of what a regular shop will charge. You also cannot expect them to warranty or policy parts like a regular shop does(you are getting a break, don't make them regret they helped you) most of us that do this devolope a select clientele(or it gets to overwhelming) & will definetly stand behind workmanship problems.
You will also have to be understanding that the time line will be longer as they have to work there regular job first( but your getting a break & good work)You should also expect to pay for your parts up front, I can stomach getting hosed on labor every now & again but not if I bought the parts too. If that happens its time to round up the dogs & the boys & do a little hunt'in.

 

Thanks

Yea, that's a great idea, and I had offers of such before. Lost track of those involved before I needed help. That's the nice thing about VFR's and why I bought over the Duc ST4..the maint is really fairly minimal. I've done everyting on this bike since 16K..even changing tires ( that contact with the machine is gone now also ).

I do have 2 kids that increasingly eat into my time, so wrenching is not what i want to be doing.

SO, thanks for the "wake up"...I've really gotta start cultivating some contacts in the servicing rhelm.

Anyways, happy to be back on the road with a happy bike..

Cheers..

 

Alright!

You're lucky to have gotten out of dodge. Loses it's cheap appeal after 25years. >

Still hang out at Merchants every once in a while. Only time I've ever had problems with someone sitting on my VFR like they owned it. After a brief skuffle he was gone...but later to be arrested for stabbing someone I heard. Had just been released from the jail apparently. Guess I got lucky to be on the front end of that one.

Naciamento Road was a favorite of mine when I had my BMW. As a matter of fact, I'm been on the tracks out there..almost had a headon with a APC once..the guy popped out of the top and gave me directions to Tasahara. Also used to ford that river just for the hell of it. Used to do taht backwards from 1 and ride 101 home.

If my moto checks out ( still haven't popped the plug wires to make sure no oil leakage into the plug cavity..only been to work and back since finished ) I may run dowm there next wekeend. This weekend certainly would have been great!

SO, best wishes for a great summer and keep you eye for a red (whatelse ? ) 99 VFR w/TBRhigh pipe and GIVI screen. Might be going kinda fast..you know how the VFR is ..just waking up at 90mph!

Cheers!

 

When I checked the valves on my 2000 I followed the manuels and just loosened the mounting nuts for both sides. This allows you to remove and lower both radiators w/o actually taking them off and draining the antifreeze. Yes, they are kind of in the way, but it's nothing major. I'm not sure if this answers your question and by the looks of your original post it may be rather late but I hope it helps. The biggest pain was putting the airbox back on.