Valve clearance?

[maxxjod]

Hi, i have been quoted £250+ to check my valve clearances on my 750 monster and £50 per valve that needs adjusting + £30 per shim used, i think this is a bit steep so am thinking about doing it myself.
Could anybody point me in the direction of how to do it, i keep reading my Haynes manual but i cant get my head round how to do it.
Any help would be great even if its telling me of a cheaper dealer in the south east that could check them for me.

[Dukedesmo]

Indeed sounds steep to me. Irrespective of labour rates, £30 per shim is taking the p155...

[Saint aka ML]

It is steep and £30 per shim is normal price if they give you your old shims back (do not take old one' as part payment where most do).

I would even say checking the clearances at price £250 is high. At £60 per hour plus vat it would make it 3.5h labour just to check? Sorry but when I did it first time (over and over as was not certain) it took me 3h. Unless he wants to take your heads off before even checking which is a joke.
On monster you can not only check but also change them with ease on bike.

[Zimbo]

That's a joke. I generally pay around £80 - £100 to my local independent for a full valve clearance check and adjust, in total. Go somewhere else! Sounds to me like the guy doesn't want the job, so has priced it so high you'll be put off, or, if you're not, he'll make enough profit to make it more than worthwhile!

[Trent]

Could anybody point me in the direction of how to do it, i keep reading my Haynes manual but i cant get my head round how to do it.


Here's a video of how it's done...
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-410154598857428167&hl=en#

[Sirc]

if you have a 'bent' for things mechanical Maxx, then I would say go for it as there is plenty of help on here and other Forums if you ask. Don't know if this helps but opener shims are easy peezy particularly if you have an eye for grinding (I read that a lot of people are happy to hand-flat on carborundum paper on a sheet of glass) and you have your own micrometer (anvil needs to be 7mm diameter or less to measure opener shims). It's the closers that take more time and concentration and the purchase of a 'measuring spacer' (although you can manage without). Some may disagree but if you're not fussy about the closer gaps being at top of acceptable limit then the first shims that need attention are the exhaust openers as these are generally the first to close down, sometimes to the point of zero clearance or less - i.e., stopping the valve fully closing and affecting compression/performance.

[jerry]

Who quoted you that price in Brighton ????? Alfs , bikes ???? contact me I am in brighton

[Funkatronic]

just had my s2r1000 done along with a new set of belts fitted. almost every shim needed changing! and it cost me £330 inc the belts (which are about £110 alone) and thats from a central london mechanic not reknowned for their bargain prices ;-)
i'd say go elsewhere

[utopia]

How many miles has it done ?
If its below 10k then, if mine's anything to go by, you won't need to change much, so.......
It's well worth at least checking them yourself, if you're at all mechanically handy. You may find that all is well, or even decide that once you've got a feel for things, you have more confidence to tackle some adjustments. But my 750, at around 7000m, needed nothing changing (unless I was being really fussy).
The video previously linked is an excellent guide, imo.
I'd say measure and make a list of all the opening and closing clearances, then see how things look from there.
The price quoted does sound steep and anyway, do you want someone who doesn't really want the job messing with your precious ? So if not diy, then elsewhere.

[maxxjod]

Hi, thanks for all the feed back, i thought the price was a little steep.
All i will say is that the dealer is in Worthing.

I'm thinking i will open her up and have a look, i build, design and maintain groundcare machinery for a living so its not out of my reach to do it, just feel a bit lost trying to do it.

Utopia- she has done 22,000 now and the service records say that the valves have been checked, no mention of adjustment.

Jerry - you have a pm.

Thanks for now

Jody

[utopia]

I was trained as an engineer many moons ago, but I still felt nervous about doing my valve clearances last year.
If you proceed with care and caution though, it will be a breeze.
Certainly, like I said, there's nothing to fear from doing the checking part yourself. Adjustments are a little more tricky, as changing an opener has a knock on effect on the closer, which needs to be taken into account (hence my suggestion that you measure everything first, before considering any changes) but still no big deal if you don't panic.
If you do go on to do any adjustments.......
Its worth mentioning that the collets bed in a little, so its possible that a minor adjustment (possibly around one shim increment) can be had simply by fitting new collets. However this will not last once the new collets have bedded in. It can lead to confusion though, cos they bed in one way and the effect is lost if you replace them the other way round. I would suggest marking their upper surface with a permanent marker pen before/if you remove any, so that you can be sure they go back in the same way up. New collets only cost pence, but I would say that you're best to stick with the old ones which have already bedded in, otherwise your new adjustments (if any) won't last too long.
I'm not an expert though....I've just done mine once.

[Sirc]

Adjustments are a little more tricky, as changing an opener has a knock on effect on the closer, which needs to be taken into account don't want to come over confrontational Utopia, but it doesn't if you are talking about just simple adjustment.




I'm not an expert though....I've just done mine once.
.. ........

[utopia]

Fair enough....no confrontation assumed........:)
Its over a year since I did mine, so my memory may have lapsed a little, and like I said, my experience isn't great.
Sometimes I do blab on a little.
Though I do seem to remember some knock on effect, but it may not always be the case.
One to watch out for though, perhaps.

[Chris & Nean]

Its much easier with the heads off the bike, you can play around with the mechanisum and get a feel for how it works. With that vid showing how to take the measurments you cant go wrong. Take your old shims to Ducati along with the readings, they will measure your shims and work out the correct ones to sell you, if their a little tight you sand them down on 250 grade carberundum.

[jerry]

usually newer bikes need more valve clearance shimming after 20k they settle in and clearances need changing less often .

[Pomp1]

How they can charge 30 quid per shim when the opening and closing have different prices by some margin? Go somewhere else or give it a crack yourself.

[Pomp1]

Here's a video of how it's done...
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-410154598857428167&hl=en#

There's only one fault in that video: when you replace the opening rocker clip clearance will be drastically reduced between rocker and shim.

[Dukedesmo]

I do my own valve clearances (albeit only done 4v heads so far) and I get the shims from EMS in the USA.

The 2v shims cost $9.50 for the closers and $8.50 for the openers, a 'set' (36 shims + measuring tool) is $299, OEM Ducati shims maybe slightly more expensive? but even allowing for that and shipping, taxes, markup etc. £30 is, IMHO taking the p1ss...

[Saint aka ML]

There's only one fault in that video: when you replace the opening rocker clip clearance will be drastically reduced between rocker and shim.

Yep that is correct. That is why if I have to adjust clearances (after doing check 1st time) I first change the clip's to new one as they will tighten the setup.

Hence now that I know I always have 8 of them at home (full set for all valves) to start my job.

[manwithredbike]

def check them yourself and if you've got patience, do your own fitting/adjusting. it's not that difficult if you take it a bit at a time. Rich at louigi moto will sell you the shims you need, openers about 7 quid plus vat and closers about 25. adjusting openers has no effect on the closers. the prices you were quoted are crazy