Ain't Fixes His Arkansas Damage

[BobAin'tStoppin']

Hi All! Just a preview note to say that I have finally ordered the body parts to repair my bike after my little screw-up when arriving in Arkansas. Parts ordered from Max BMW, who is my 'local' dealer. Free shipping and no sales tax because I ordered from the New Hampshire store

Bike has been running fine after the Bentonville mechanical fixes. Still on the original tires at about 8600 miles. This weekend I'll put some more miles going to New Hampshire for visit with friends.

Parts delivery expected in 2 to 3 weeks as all the plastic parts have to come from Germany. Will take some pics and update when I get going with this project.

[Grumpy Goat]

Hi All! Just a preview note to say that I have finally ordered the body parts to repair my bike after my little screw-up when arriving in Arkansas. Parts ordered from Max BMW, who is my 'local' dealer. Free shipping and no sales tax because I ordered from the New Hampshire store

Bike has been running fine after the Bentonville mechanical fixes. Still on the original tires at about 8600 miles. This weekend I'll put some more miles going to New Hampshire for visit with friends.

Parts delivery expected in 2 to 3 weeks as all the plastic parts have to come from Germany. Will take some pics and update when I get going with this project.

That's great news Bob. Looking forward to the report. Is her insurance covering any of this … I can't remember if you said that or not. From the above it sounds like you are doing it all, which suggests that it is on your dime although I can't see why if she was at fault.

[Olgry1]

It was nice meeting you in Eureka Springs. By the number of miles on the RS looks like you are enjoying it.

[BobAin'tStoppin']

Well guys, I do enjoy the bike. Best one I've ever owned. But haven't been riding a lot yet this summer. Will try to get a good trip in during the fall. I still want to do a British Columbia swing, but stuff is getting in the way. Big news is that my son is getting married Aug 4th, so I'm excited about that.

GG, You'll remember that the lady had State Farm for insurance and we all agreed that that was good news. I had a check arrive the day after I got home. After all is said and done, I expect to pocket about $700 in extra funds. This is without short changing the repair at all. Every part fixed that Bentonville listed. So barring surprises when I open the bike up, I've been treated more than fairly.

Olgry, I don't know who you are with that stage name. Perhaps fill out your profile more? (Ha! I better check mine too ;-))

[Grumpy Goat]

GG, You'll remember that the lady had State Farm for insurance and we all agreed that that was good news. I had a check arrive the day after I got home. After all is said and done, I expect to pocket about $700 in extra funds. This is without short changing the repair at all. Every part fixed that Bentonville listed. So barring surprises when I open the bike up, I've been treated more than fairly.

Ahhhh … now it comes back. Funny how a just a hint can bring it all back. Yes, I do recall you saying you got a cheque and will do the fixing yourself from that amount, and that way may have some more flexibility on what is actually replaced.

[Olgry1]

Well guys, I do enjoy the bike. Best one I've ever owned. But haven't been riding a lot yet this summer. Will try to get a good trip in during the fall. I still want to do a British Columbia swing, but stuff is getting in the way. Big news is that my son is getting married Aug 4th, so I'm excited about that.

GG, You'll remember that the lady had State Farm for insurance and we all agreed that that was good news. I had a check arrive the day after I got home. After all is said and done, I expect to pocket about $700 in extra funds. This is without short changing the repair at all. Every part fixed that Bentonville listed. So barring surprises when I open the bike up, I've been treated more than fairly.

Olgry, I don't know who you are with that stage name. Perhaps fill out your profile more? (Ha! I better check mine too ;-))

I received the bungie net from you when we were all in Eureka Springs. I do need to fill out the profile.

[BobAin'tStoppin']

I received the bungie net from you when we were all in Eureka Springs. I do need to fill out the profile.
[/quote]

Ok. Got you now. The face images are fading for me. Next ride in in Tenn. I'll have to start all over learning who is who!

[Grumpy Goat]

Ok. Got you now. The face images are fading for me. Next ride in in Tenn. I'll have to start all over learning who is who!

First you have to get there on time.

[BobAin'tStoppin']

Parts due at my house today!!! Will start the fix and photos over the weekend. . . . . . . Stand by

[Grumpy Goat]

Great. Looking forward to it.

[BobAin'tStoppin']

Second attempt to post. Got logged out the first try

Parts were received from MaxBMW yesterday:


The packaging was pretty impressive, and I ended up with enough bubble wrap to float the Bismarck:


Turns out that replacing these panels is really easy. I had to work hard to stretch this out to more than an hour. The grey panels were waxed while off the bike. Here are a couple of pics:








Tomorrow I'll do the valve cover work. While the covers are off I want to check valve clearance. Turns out the manual doesn't list the specs. Can anyone advise the clearances and also how to set the tdc or timing on the flywheel?

Thanks

[Grumpy Goat]

Coming along nicely Bob. I will see what I can dig up on the valve clearances for you.

[BobAin'tStoppin']

Found a good video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJEjGm8ne1g
More later today

[Grumpy Goat]

Found a good video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJEjGm8ne1g
More later today

Yes, I thought of that video also and was going to recommend it with my reply. According to my Haynes Manual:

Valve clearances (COLD) engine:
Intake valves: 0.10 - 0.17 mm
Exhaust Valves: 0.34 - 0.41 mm

I scanned the relevant portion from the Haynes Manual and will email it since it is a tad too large to attach to this email. If there is a need by others I will consider re-sizing it.

Can we look forward to a how-to article (or video!) on how you did yours?

[Olgry1]

It looks like Christmas in July on your front porch.

[BobAin'tStoppin']

Grumpy, no email received but the job is done now. The video is pretty good with one silly thing I'll point out below. For anyone who wants to check valve clearances, the job is straight forward if you have done mechanical work before. If you haven't then you'll have to do your own risk/reward evaluation.

Removal of the valve cover involves taking off the plastic plug wire cover and injector cover. Then pull the ignition coil off. It would be great to have the special tool, but I don't, so I used channel lock pliers. Just be very careful not to slip and gouge up the plastic. Use a twisting and pulling motion.

Don't forget to put an oil pan under the cover before removing the three fasteners! With the cover off, you'll see this:



With both cylinders ready as in the picture, you now want to move one cylinder to the correct position for adjustment. See the flats on the end of the cam shafts? They need to be aligned in a straight line with the forward intake cam lobe pointing at your face (about 10 o'clock looking at the right cylinder). Should have taken a pic of that . . . sorry.

In turning the engine to the correct spot the video says to stick a straw into the spark plug hole so you know when approaching TDC. Not necessary. Just look at that top intake cam lobe. Use a straight edge along the flats on the end of the two cams and your set.

The specs in the post above are what I used. In inches it's intake 0.004-0.0067 and exhaust 0.013-0.016. You don't need to be too picky about the exact number. What's important is that they all agree with each other. If all the intakes (or exhaust) are different you'll get vibration. If they are all matching you get a smoother engine.

My valves checked out really well. All the intakes are at 0.006 and the exhausts are about 0.014 or 5. I have two sets of feeler gauges, both the same manufacturer (OEM) and model, but they read almost .001 different. Go figure, so I just use both and make a decision as to what I think is the real value. As I said above, it's just not that critical as long as the valves match and are in range. Note that you don't need to use the two feeler gauge system that we did on the hex heads. They had one cam lobe operating two valves. Here we have one valve per lobe, so they can be checked one at a time.

These wet heads have interesting cam drive design:


What does this thing do? Maybe compression release?


Here's a pic of the spark plugs at 8,600 miles:


Putting things back together is pretty straight forward. I always use some of the silver anti seize paste on the plug threads. Some people think this is a terrible thing to do, but I'm not in that camp. I also use some dielectric grease on the coil rubber to ease getting it out next time.

Please don't be ham fisted putting these little fasteners up tight. Get them snug and then stop! Or use a torque wrench if you like.

So the bike is now back together and ready to roll:


As I said at the start, if you do your own work, this is not a big deal. If you've never done any mechanics, then I'd suggest having an assistant around the first time you open up this part of the bike. I expect most of us will never have to adjust these valves. Doing shimmed valves is not difficult. You just have to be very careful and write all your numbers down. Then check the clearance after re-assembly. Sometimes it takes two attempts before the results are what you expect. If I ever do it on this bike, I'll be sure to take some video. I do have a short one from my FJ-09 adjustment and it was fun to make.

[Grumpy Goat]

Grumpy, no email received but the job is done now. The video is pretty good with one silly thing I'll point out below. For anyone who wants to check valve clearances, the job is straight forward if you have done mechanical work before. If you haven't then you'll have to do your own risk/reward evaluation.
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OK Bob. I had sent a PM asking for your email address so that I could send you the scanned pages directly, but that is a moot point now.

Very nice write up and wonderful clear pictures!! May I use your write up on the RSWasserboxer.com site as the inaugural DIY maintenance article? The site is still under construction but when it goes live there will already be some content there.

[advmatic]

Second attempt to post. Got logged out the first try
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Did you change the valve cover or repair it ? Thanks.

[BobAin'tStoppin']

Hi ADV. There was damage on the cover so I just let the insurance buy me a new one. I now have a spare in storage.

[Lee]

Looks good Bob.