1st Valve Adjustment on Xingyue ITA Cruiser

[leadsled]

After reading about it for 1-1/2 years I finally got the nerve to attempt my first valve adjustment. My scoot has just over 1400 miles on it and while it would fire immediately when cold I would have to restart 15 or more times to finally keep it running. I followed Rebels valve adjustment thread as a guide.

I see where oil has been leaking at the valve cover a bit. Took it off and it is in bad shape. Don't know about finding another one. This is a 16 inch wheel scoot with the oddball gy6 where the valve cover only uses 2 bolts. I dont know if the gaskets are interchangeable or not. I'm looking for suggestions on this issue. I bought some RTV blue gasket maker but did not know if this created more mess or not than it is worth.

What a PITA it is to find a 9mm wrench. I had to buy a $22 set just to get the oddball 9mm size as the set I have does not have that size. As I looked around Walmart, Kmart, and HomeDepot many sets do not have a 9mm wrench.

I used the kick starter to line up the holes on the cam gear as Rebel suggested. Check valve clearances to see where I was at to start with. I have never used feeler guages before. Intake was at .004 so I left it alone. As expected the exhaust had zero clearance. I backed the tappet off quite abit before I got any clearnace. I started off with the intent of a .004 setting and ended up at .005 once everything was tightened back up. I could fit a .005 between everything once complete. I could not get a .006 to fit.

I closed everything up and hit the starter. It started immediately and kept running. Its never done that. It definitely makes a raquet. Is it tick-tick-tick or tap-tap-tap? I don't know. It sounds more tick than tack but LOUD. I want to take it apart again, check it, and then try .004. I took it for a ride to see if it quiets down once everything is good and hot. It does not. Just as loud as when I first start it.

The thing runs 100% better. Much more powerful. More responsive to throttle. Holds RPM's better on hills. Will get up to 7,000 rpm now on the unusual flat spot around here. I cannot believe how much of a difference it made and leaves me wanting to make more performance improvements. Uh-oh...... Step 1 is checking the exhaust valve clearance again and seeing if I can't tighten it up just a little without affecting how it is now running. I know its expected to make some noise, I just cannot believe its supposed to be this much.

Is it possible to get these adjusted properly and have them tick when cold and quiet down once they are warm? That would be an easy way to know if you were in proper adjustment or not. No ticking when cold is too tight, still ticking when hot is too loose?

[Rebel]

ticking or tacking, sounds just a little lose to me.

If you can not find a gasket for it, you can use a bead of the RTV silicone, a lot of cars come without a gasket now days, the manufacturers just use the RTV instead.

I am not sure but the 9mm wrench is probably the same size as a 5/16 inch or something else in the way of a standard wrench, that is probably why you don't find it in a standard metric wrench set, they probably just figure you have the standard equivalent. I'm not really sure on that though.

But, Congrats on tackling this project, you've done it once now and the next time it will be easier for you, I do think you need to adjust them again with the amount of noise you say you are getting.

[kz1000st]

When I adjusted mine .005 didn't make any noise at all. They say you should rotate the engine a couple of times and check it again to be sure you were in the right spot. Try that.

[leadsled]

I did not rotate it a couple times and re-check. I will do that next time. Hopefully I can adjust it again over the weekend and report back. Thanks for the input.

[Rebel]

Input is always good, that is why we are here. Having a person that has done it before always helps. thanks for adding kz100st.

[leadsled]

Re-did the valve adjustment on Saturday. The exhaust was definitely way too loose after the initial adjustment. I'm not sure how that happened. Set it again to a snug .004. Turned it over a few times and re-checked and still came up with a snug .004. Put it back together and started it up. No more loud tapping. Started right up and stayed running which I took to be a good sign (before the initial adjustment it would never stay running when cold, there was no clearance on the exhaust valve at all). Unfortunately the valve cover gasket was leaking badly so I took it back off, removed the gasket, cleaned everything up, and used RTV instead. Took it for a 40 mile ride today and all it well.

I think I may prefer it just a little looser like .005. It seemed to pull a little better on the hills when I had it set way too loose vs. where it is now. How much of a PITA is it going to be to deal with the RTV at this point to adjust it again? Is it possible that the RTV will stay attached to the valve cover and allow me to re-use it next time without scraping it all off and re-applying it?

Once I finally get them set to my liking, how many miles can I go before needing to adjust them again? Just past 1,500 miles today.

Thanks for all your help. On another positive note a Honda Reflex rider followed me home and is looking for someone to ride with.

[Rebel]

Sorry to tell you, but the RTV has one draw back, you need to clean it off and use new stuff. Once it has set up it is stuck to both sides and most probably will get messed up when you take the cover off.

[leadsled]

Danco A0080074 Teflon Valve Packing 5/32"



www.acehardwareoutlet.com/(3gagln3tas2vhw55shbvv545)/productdetails.aspx?sku=4202545&source=GoogleBase

[Rebel]

I've never seen that stuff, great find.

[bluefront]

It's apparently used on the "B" series engines. The head casting is different for sure. The angle of the exhaust studs is different, which is why a generic exhaust won't bolt up properly.

As to valve sizes, cam duration, etc.....unknown by me.

My valve cover gasket ripped up also after the second adjustment. I used hi-temp red silicone gasket maker in place of the gasket. Just be sure to let the stuff dry completely before you start the engine....like overnight.

[bluefront]

The stuff goes on like thick tooth-paste. It doesn't run or drip while you're putting the cover back on. Look for red Hi-temp silicone at any auto parts store or even Walmart.

[Rebel]

3M or Permatex are the big name brands for silicone/RTV.

If you have a channel for the gasket on your valve cover, one trick is to run a bead of the silicone in the channel, use a putty knife to smooth it off and then let it harden before you put it on the motor. This makes a simi permanent gasket that you can just keep using. It is better to not do it that way because it can still leak if not perfect.