Hi guys,
A guy I go on rides with from time to time is stressing about the cost of a 24000km service, or rather the cost of doing the shims.

I said that he shouldn't worry about it, the bike has such an abundance of power that the the engine is'nt very stressed at all and doesnt spend much time north of 8000 rpm. most likely, they will inspect the shims and not change out any.

Back in the good old days when I had a zx14 (still want another) and before I played chicken with a tree, I had 2 major services with shim check and I was told that all was good and that I MIGHT need a couple of exhaust shims at the 72000km service.

I know the guy generally commutes in traffic and really doesn't ride it that hard. Am I wrong in telling him he should not be so paranoid about getting the shims checked and to just get it done when he has the cashola?

Did anyone here get ANY shims changed out at their first 24000km (15000mi) service?

OZ

P.S. As try as I might I still haven't managed to get him to swap bikes with me on a ride. The multistrada just doesnt do it for him :(

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The factory pretty much knows the wear patterns/time/service intervals so they can write an owner's manual. I've had to swap/change shims out on the 14, so if I'm pulling cams dialing back in spec. All you are doing is lowering the power output, adding carbon buildup, or burning away carbon [including the valve].

It's not a service interval you want to [miles per playing] the odds with.

The mantra is:

Tight valve = Less heat transfer ~ Cooks the valves and you see pie cuts around the valve tulip that are chunked out.

Loose valve = Carbon build ~ Too cold to burn off carbon. Builds up carbon, adds compression, adds detonation/pre ignition being higher in compression and the carbon glowing orange like a piece of bbq charcoal briquet. Take your pick between det and the pre's condition(s).

* Last updated by: Hub on 9/20/2013 @ 7:32 AM *

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I had 3 valves out of spec at 15000 miles and 4 more right at the min spec limit. So I ended up replacing 7 of 16 shims myself and set them to the middle of the spec gap range. Many guys report no out of spec valve clearance after many miles, guess I was not as lucky. I’m glad I did the work myself, got to take all sorts of cool stuff apart and put it together again. I also did the Throttle Body sync after the shim adjust, they were close but all were different, now they are all balanced. Although without the Kawi TB Sync tool you can’t set the baseline at the spec vacuum pressure. Next time I may have a shop with the correct tool sync the TB’s, but that’s years in the future. After the valve adjust and TB sync there was no difference in my seat of the pants performance meter compared to the past settings. Bottom line … bike ran great before the work and runs great after the work. Peace of maintenance mind though …

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Although without the Kawi TB Sync tool you can’t set the baseline at the spec vacuum pressure.

You mean find the book's mmHg? True.

But to find a perfect balance with a manometer? Yes to that. Like stretching out the balloon's mouthpiece to resemble a reed. The pitch can change sure, but the same pressure pushing the balloon's air out is still 14.7 on the outside. Even though the pitch [pressure flow] under the throttle plate/air screw can balance off the other cylinder(s), she still is one pressure you can adjust to = Equally without said book value.

And those two moves (air screw/plate) is how you smooth out a rich or lean condition, you turn an air screw in or out.

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Yep mmHg, I like things, especially this performance sport bike, set to spec ...if possible. I used the Motion Pro 4 channel manometer and it worked as advertised.

Hub, any thoughts as to why one bike would have a few valve clearances under spec (tight) after 15K miles and many others report in spec conditions after way more miles? Is it just assembly tolerances or is it indicative of how the engine is used? I bought the bike from a dealer with 7500 on it and no maintenance records or past history, although it was bone stock when I purchased it.

Thanks!

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...or is it indicative of how the engine is used?

Good phrasing. Exactly. Beat crap out of it at higher rpm, expect faster wear. Same goes for my observation of the OEM tire. I'm looking less than half worn with close to 4k miles, whereas, one would be going thru a few tires or at least a set buy now. I've been very mild on the bike. My expectation would be very few to zero shims come interval time, that is if I keep this slow pace going as I have been. For sure, last 14 I'd be changing tires this soon.

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I guess its like hub said, its all in the way you use it. I could count on one hand the number of times I had mine over 8000rpm in the nearly 2 years I had mine. As I said, the engine is a bloody Gem, with huge amounts of power and torque available to you from about 3000rpm, so I figured you dont need to thrash it.

Thanks for your replies guys

OZ

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I would still check the valves at the specified maintenance points despite how the motor has been used just to be safe. But hey, I like preventative maintenance. What’s that old saying …. “Hope is not a strategy”

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Did my 07 at 24,000 kms. I had to change 10 of the 16 shims due to all being 1 size tight. Probably didn't need to, but spec is spec for a reason as Hub says.

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at 15,000, i had all but 3 to change