Rattling
Moderator: Moderators
-
- Posts: 42
- Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2008 9:39 pm
Rattling
Hi i wonder if use can offer me sum advice, ive fitted sp cams to my race when rebuilding the engine and now its very rattley at the top end, it never done this before i fitted them. Its a normal l model engine with new sp cams, i now these engines are noisey but this is redicilous. Do the sp models have different valve springs? Maybe softer to quiet it down?
- RedexRobB
- Site Admin
- Posts: 7212
- Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2002 7:37 pm
- My Bike: ZXR400L3
- Location: Ipswich, Suffolk
Re: Rattling
did you measure the valve clearances after fitting the new cam? Fitting the new cam will cause the top end to have completely different clearances compared to the original and are probably now all over the place.
Either that or you havent set the tensioner propely perhaps?
Either that or you havent set the tensioner propely perhaps?
-
- Posts: 42
- Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2008 9:39 pm
Re: Rattling
Yep valve clearances, cam timing and chain tension is all good. I lapped the cams in and everything but it still rattles.
- RedexRobB
- Site Admin
- Posts: 7212
- Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2002 7:37 pm
- My Bike: ZXR400L3
- Location: Ipswich, Suffolk
-
- Posts: 113
- Joined: Tue Apr 29, 2008 7:44 pm
- My Bike: Triumph Daytona 675
- Location: Longforgan
Re: Rattling
Is the camchain tensioner ok? I have seen two faulty ones in the last 6 months on a couple of engines where you can push the plunger down. May just be the valve clearances needing rechecked though.
- Marcie
- Posts: 55
- Joined: Tue Jan 27, 2009 9:33 pm
- My Bike: ZXRS400, CBR600
- Location: DURHAM
Re: Rattling
Does the noise dissapear or quieten when you engage the clutch? If so it will be the clutch basket, mine sounds bad on tick over. But no harm to be done.
Marcie
Marcie
Some body once told me... Theres only two things in life you'll ever need, Gaffa tape and WD40.
If it moves and it should'nt use Gaffa tape, if it doesnt move and it should use WD40!
If it moves and it should'nt use Gaffa tape, if it doesnt move and it should use WD40!
-
- Posts: 42
- Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2008 9:39 pm
Re: Rattling
Na its not the clutch. Its defo top end, its really bad through out the rev range and get to the point you think its gonna brake at 6k rpm but it gets quieter after that.
- coley
- Posts: 53
- Joined: Sun Nov 25, 2007 9:37 pm
- My Bike: zxr400 racebike
- Location: worcester
Re: Rattling
Hi Leon little cheat for tensioning the cam chain is to slacken the 2 8mm headed bolts off on the tensioner and pry the tensioer body down till you hear (feel) it click once then tighten the 8mm bolts back up, and fire up and see if that is better. If not repeat. Alternatively go to Cradley Kawasaki and spend £52.00 on a new tensioner. Hope this helps and makes sense. Cheers, Ben
-
- zxr400 oc member
- Posts: 3342
- Joined: Sat Jan 08, 2005 10:33 am
- My Bike: tomos moped
- Location: Carrickfergus Northern Ireland
Re: Rattling
Thats very naughty Ben..................... very very naughty
Really what you have suggested compensates for a weak spring in the tensioner. I reckon you'd need to be careful not to over tension the chain.
I've got an old broken tensioner and have thought of trying to turn it into a manually adjustable tensioner. I think Roger has done this with some success.
Really what you have suggested compensates for a weak spring in the tensioner. I reckon you'd need to be careful not to over tension the chain.
I've got an old broken tensioner and have thought of trying to turn it into a manually adjustable tensioner. I think Roger has done this with some success.
- coley
- Posts: 53
- Joined: Sun Nov 25, 2007 9:37 pm
- My Bike: zxr400 racebike
- Location: worcester
Re: Rattling
Naughty but works if you are careful (one click and then check). Surely by doing it this way it acts like a manually adjusted one?
- jake
- zxr400 oc member
- Posts: 1016
- Joined: Mon Oct 02, 2006 10:03 pm
- My Bike: tomos moped
- Location: wirral
Re: Rattling
Ive seen a few guys with the manual adjustment tensioners... just whack bolt through the tensioner body. They work well enough im told, a bit leaky id imagine. Proper paddock engineering 

-
- Posts: 42
- Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2008 9:39 pm
Re: Rattling
I think il re tighten my cam caps then recheck the valve clearances, what valve clearances do use guys set them up to? Im going on inlet 0.20-0.25 exh 0.25-0.28. If this doesnt solve il try the tensioner, but the rattlings there all the time throughout the rev range.
- mark400
- Posts: 208
- Joined: Fri Feb 06, 2009 11:48 pm
- My Bike: Building an original SP
Re: Rattling
ZXR's regularly split/crack their cam tensioner blade, although it stays in one piece.
NG Road Racing Champion 2012 400SS
-
- Posts: 46
- Joined: Thu Dec 08, 2005 10:49 pm
- My Bike: zxr 400 x 3
- Location: suffolk
Re: Rattling
12-17 inlet 16-21 ex
-
- zxr400 oc member
- Posts: 3342
- Joined: Sat Jan 08, 2005 10:33 am
- My Bike: tomos moped
- Location: Carrickfergus Northern Ireland
Re: Rattling
OK boys great topic and worth getting it right.................
Ben I think your method is fine so long as great care is taken
Modifying a tensioner is better than Bens method it give greater accuracy and if the tensioner ratchet is broken it doesn't matter.
It takes very little to damage the tensioner ratchet just a very fine piece of metal broken off the teeth or pawl and it fecked.
Now to valve clearances....................
Leon#51 I have know idea where you got those figures from but they are wrong wrong wrong
Fatboy your figures do not make much sense either because you have omitted the decimal point....................
The correct clearances are for both H and L models
Inlet............ .12 to .17 mm
Exhaust......... .16 to .21 mm
Now you go try buy some metric feeler guages and you will find that most of them on sale in most tools stores Halfords etc will not have small enough increments in the sizes to be able to measure your clearances............you can get them but I suspect price would be an issue.
However most imperial feeler guages do have sufficently small increments to do the job and as I'm a tight butt I've used my imperial guages for years now with no problems.
So valve clearances in inches are
Inlet....... .0047209448 to .006692913385 inches
Exhaust...... .006299212598 to .008267716535 inches
Look complicated I know but in truth is easier I work to
Inlet...................... 5 to 7 thou
Exhaust...................... 6 to 8 thou
Using those figure you might just get a slightly tight exhaust so better to be a lose 6 that a tight 6...................... better still 6.5 thou
This work fine for me.
Leon#51 if you have set your clearance to your figures they are too big........................rattle rattle rattle
Ben I think your method is fine so long as great care is taken
Modifying a tensioner is better than Bens method it give greater accuracy and if the tensioner ratchet is broken it doesn't matter.
It takes very little to damage the tensioner ratchet just a very fine piece of metal broken off the teeth or pawl and it fecked.
Now to valve clearances....................
Leon#51 I have know idea where you got those figures from but they are wrong wrong wrong
Fatboy your figures do not make much sense either because you have omitted the decimal point....................
The correct clearances are for both H and L models
Inlet............ .12 to .17 mm
Exhaust......... .16 to .21 mm
Now you go try buy some metric feeler guages and you will find that most of them on sale in most tools stores Halfords etc will not have small enough increments in the sizes to be able to measure your clearances............you can get them but I suspect price would be an issue.
However most imperial feeler guages do have sufficently small increments to do the job and as I'm a tight butt I've used my imperial guages for years now with no problems.
So valve clearances in inches are
Inlet....... .0047209448 to .006692913385 inches
Exhaust...... .006299212598 to .008267716535 inches
Look complicated I know but in truth is easier I work to
Inlet...................... 5 to 7 thou
Exhaust...................... 6 to 8 thou
Using those figure you might just get a slightly tight exhaust so better to be a lose 6 that a tight 6...................... better still 6.5 thou
This work fine for me.
Leon#51 if you have set your clearance to your figures they are too big........................rattle rattle rattle