After a few more helpful tips from GSS via PM, I am happy to report that my Meteor has had its valves inspected, adjusted and buttoned up, with no leaks afterwards. I found the intake was perfect at 0.08 mm and the exhaust was slightly tight, so I set it to 0.178 mm, as that was the closest gauge I had to the spec.
My first attempts at checking the gaps were thrown off because I had been turning the crankshaft in the wrong direction, thinking it would be the same as my Honda, thus making the error of where TDC of the compression stroke really was. The crank needs to be turned counter clockwise. When the engine is at the proper position, you will note a small hole in the top of the cam drive sprocket, behind the chain.
This hole is there for the special tool that RE says you need to lock the crankshaft in position, but you don't really need that tool. As long as that hole is facing straight up, you are good to check the clearances. Nothing is going to move at that point.
The other tips provided by GSS in his report here made the job a lot easier in getting that valve cover out of the way. One thing I did though, in addition to moving those items out of the way was to zip tie some of them, like the coil bracket, to the frame to completely get them up and out of the way. Once that was done, the cover came out and went back in relatively easily.
I also found that the gasket was RTV siliconed very well into its half moon pocket in the head and it took a lot of force to pry it out of there, but it survived OK. That black stuff they used seems very strong - too strong for the needed purpose. A bit of cleanup of the sealant was required on the gasket there, but not much evidence of any sealant was found on the rest of it. It peels off fairly easily. The days of gasket scraping are pretty much over, thanks to silicone based products.
I think it is necessary to get that gasket off the engine, because trying to reinstall it on the cover otherwise is an exercise in futility and certainly not worth the chance of getting it askew and having an oil leak after all is buttoned up again.
RTV is required on that half moon for reassembly though. There are four of those on my Honda and those that don't seal the moons invariably go back in to fix an oil leak. Apply RTV as seen from the factory.
I decided to ensure that the gasket wasn't going to fall out, as even with the obstructions mostly cleared, there is still not a lot of clearance to slip the cover back on and the gasket can be easily dislodged from its channel when trying to do so. I put a very thin, emphasis on "very", bead of RTV into the entire channel in the cover and it held the gasket mostly in place during installation. The bit that was knocked out was easily put back into place.
I used a blue RTV 100% silicone gasket sealer and I have also used that on the ST1100 for 26 years. It peels off very easily whenever the valve covers are removed, so cleaning it off on later inspections is quite easy. This brand was JB Weld, but I have used Permatex previously too.
Something else worth noting is the valve cover bolts. Like GSS, I had no torque specs to consult for any of the fasteners I removed for this job and the oil change, which I also did. After many years of wrenching, one learns to rely on "feel" with many fasteners, but critical ones, such as axle bolts, brake assemblies, etc. should have a torque wrench employed.
The valve cover bolts are shoulder bolts, meaning they can only go in so far and excessive force will snap them off, something I saw that happened to a poster on the 650 forum. Big headaches ensue! The valve cover bolts also sit on top of a compressible gasket, so once you feel the bolts bottom, that gasket has been compressed, preventing leaks. Snugging it up by hand, not gorilla hands mind you, is sufficient, should you not have the proper torque settings or a torque wrench on hand.
Those gaskets under the bolts should be good for re-use once, but I would replace them after two removals.
While I'm at it here, I'll just mention the Mickey Mouse method that RE uses for a simple oil change. A simple drain bolt and spin on filter would be nice, but no. RE makes you take off an oil strainer under the engine, which is a most messy affair, plus remove the filter from the side of the engine, which also leads to a big mess of oil streaming down the side of the engine. Almost as much time spent on cleaning up as actually replacing the filter(s) and oil.
I had bought the oil filter o- ring, but reused the original, as it appeared quite good too. Took two quarts of 15W-50 to bring it up to the line, after running the engine a bit. Re-checking once cooled is a good idea.
Topic: Valve/tappet adjustment (Read 6078 times)