Valve Adjustment F150 TXRD

[zenoahphobic]

Townsend, the R6 was my son's bought new and I rode it home from the dealer and regularly rode it.
I was impressed with it (although physically a little small for me) in all departments particularly how it purred so quietly.
It was meticulously looked after with more than regular good quality oil changes. So I was disappointed that after sometime the clatter became annoying (cant recall after how many thousand K's).
I thoroughly measured the gaps, many times over to make sure I measured correctly (cant go much wrong with a feeler gauge). All measurements were well within specs. I checked the service manual and with the dealer it was bought from (out of warranty of course), to be advised that the next size shims would place the gaps even wider, and that the noise was normal.
I guess the clatter may have a particular resonance that transmits thru the head/cover etc. easily. And because the exhausts are so quiet, other engine noises can easily be heard above the exhaust note during sedate riding (there was though still that roar from carby throats and exhaust when you opened it up!).
That bike was sold after a lane changing motorist knocked him off ending his enthusiasm for roadbike and road riding.

[Nautical]

The future of all transportaion will be powered by the electric grid. Not sure about airplanes but ground transportaion will all come from the grid. The grid will be nuclear powered , solar powered or by wind supplemented by fossil fuel.The arabs are already taking their fossil fuel profits and building solar panels 100 miles by 100 miles to eventually supply all of Europe with electricity . They know that fossil fuels will eventually disappear and all they have left as resources will sun and quartz sand. After all their land is comprised mostly of quartz sand and bright sunlight and they are using it to their advantage and planning for the future.

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Townsend, the R6 was my son's bought new and I rode it home from the dealer and regularly rode it.
I was impressed with it (although physically a little small for me) in all departments particularly how it purred so quietly.
It was meticulously looked after with more than regular good quality oil changes. So I was disappointed that after sometime the clatter became annoying (cant recall after how many thousand K's).
I thoroughly measured the gaps, many times over to make sure I measured correctly (cant go much wrong with a feeler gauge). All measurements were well within specs. I checked the service manual and with the dealer it was bought from (out of warranty of course), to be advised that the next size shims would place the gaps even wider, and that the noise was normal.
I guess the clatter may have a particular resonance that transmits thru the head/cover etc. easily. And because the exhausts are so quiet, other engine noises can easily be heard above the exhaust note during sedate riding (there was though still that roar from carby throats and exhaust when you opened it up!).
That bike was sold after a lane changing motorist knocked him off ending his enthusiasm for roadbike and road riding.

Humm.. Thicker shims would have been needed to take up the wide clearances and that, if anything would make clearances too tight.

Both the engines are the same, just different cams, ECU's, etc but the basic engine is the same. Some guys on the FZ6 forum I frequent had noisy valves from day one and were found to be set too wide from the factory .

Now my engine, especially the valve train is very quiet, till I put aftermarket pipes on it. The valve train is still quiet but the engine roars once it hits about 8k and will easily lift the front end in first gear. https://www.flickr.com/photos/127092...8/15053644500/

Sorry to hear about your son, at least it wasn't too serious.


As for new electric motors taking over gas, yes, they can be very quick. BUT there's NOTHING like a built V8 or a powerful bike with good sounding pipes.

The Wirrr of a nice and quiet electric motor (Prius) or the roar of a V8 or dragster? I'll take the heat producing beast in a minute, hands down..

[zenoahphobic]

Humm.. Thicker shims would have been needed to take up the wide clearances and that, if anything would make clearances too tight.

Both the engines are the same, just different cams, ECU's, etc but the basic engine is the same. Some guys on the FZ6 forum I frequent had noisy valves from day one and were found to be set too wide from the factory .

Now my engine, especially the valve train is very quiet, till I put aftermarket pipes on it. The valve train is still quiet but the engine roars once it hits about 8k and will easily lift the front end in first gear. https://www.flickr.com/photos/127092...8/15053644500/

Sorry to hear about your son, at least it wasn't too serious.


As for new electric motors taking over gas, yes, they can be very quick. BUT there's NOTHING like a built V8 or a powerful bike with good sounding pipes.

The Wirrr of a nice and quiet electric motor (Prius) or the roar of a V8 or dragster? I'll take the heat producing beast in a minute, hands down..

Just lost what I was writing.
Yes love the roar of a v8 pedal to the metal, and I miss the idle gurgle gurgle.
However there can be a new found thrill, silence but massive G force into your seat. Aren't you getting more into high pitched screams, whirrs and whistles that weren't there for the consumer years ago! Love to sit on a bike and scream it to 20,000 rpm. Even the turbo on a diesel is exciting hearing it increase whistle and feeling the torque in your seat.
I did not explain the shim thing very well, I think I calculated from the Yamaha shims available at the time that had I put in the thick one it would had meant no gap and the next size down would have made the gap wider than those that were installed new at the factory. That is the range difference between those shims was greater than my measured (noisy) gap; I would have had to wait for more wear to occur, then install the next shim, to get back to a much smaller gap again.
I used to ride with no pipes, couldn't hear a thing travelling @1 mac!!!!

[99yam40]

People that love the noise should get a sound track to listen to through headphones when driving a quiet machine.
not everyone enjoys all the noise the motors or speakers make when they are loud.
If I can hear your music or pipes from inside my house or church as you drive by it is too loud.

[TownsendsFJR1300]

People that love the noise should get a sound track to listen to through headphones when driving a quiet machine.
not everyone enjoys all the noise the motors or speakers make when they are loud.
If I can hear your music or pipes from inside my house or church as you drive by it is too loud.

You can't hear my pipes (not obnoxious) when operating the bike at normal speeds. Yes, If I'm two cars behind you and your texting, STOPPED at a green light, a little rev will wake you up.

Besides liking the sound (again, its NOT obnoxious), its also a safety factor for me as cars around me (car length or two) can hear me and hopefully NOT change lanes and make me road kill.. Many folks won't turn a head before a lane change or even glance in a side view mirror. Especially with all the crap folks do while trying to operate a motor vehicle...

I wear a helmet and the pipes are closer to my ears than anyone else's. And I do wear ear protection in the garage when working to protect my ears, so its literally louder in the garage on occasion than the bike... And, no, I've never had a neighbor complain(and I know all around me)

[boscoe99]

You can't hear my pipes (not obnoxious) when operating the bike at normal speeds. Yes, If I'm two cars behind you and your texting, STOPPED at a green light, a little rev will wake you up.

Besides liking the sound (again, its NOT obnoxious), its also a safety factor for me as cars around me (car length or two) can hear me and hopefully NOT change lanes and make me road kill.. Many folks won't turn a head before a lane change or even glance in a side view mirror. Especially with all the crap folks do while trying to operate a motor vehicle...

I wear a helmet and the pipes are closer to my ears than anyone else's. And I do wear ear protection in the garage when working to protect my ears, so its literally louder in the garage on occasion than the bike... And, no, I've never had a neighbor complain(and I know all around me)

Sorry. I am not buying that bullshit logic trying to justify overly loud exhaust systems.

Motor bikes should be no louder than normal production automobiles. If I am in my car and I can't hear the car next to me I should not be forced to hear the motor bike next to me.

Many motor bikers (and regular bikers) need to be killed for the way that they ride, don't obey laws that they think should not apply to them, and modify their stuff to make it obnoxious to those around them.

This from a motor biker.

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Well I've been riding the streets for 45 years.

My exhaust noise is legal, louder than stock.
Not overly loud, repeat, NOT overly loud

Don't buy it as bull$hit, I don't really care.

If it helps make folks around me know I'm there
and not hit me, that's the idea.

I can document 250,000 miles under my belt on the road
(thru out my life time) and know what works and what doesn't..

BTW, I've owned this bike since 2009, put on these mufflers right after
and have NEVER BEEN STOPPED for noise, period...

Your assuming too much without ACTUALLY hearing the bike.

[zenoahphobic]

I'll have a bite in both camps.
I'm highly critical of excessive noise in our ever increasing urbanisation particularly "legislated" noise. For an example I cannot understand why reversing beepers on the machines working around me need to be heard 5 kilometres away!! Not 1 km, not 100 meters, not 10 meters, not 2 meters (where it is intended to alert people in the vicinity), but 5 kilometres!!!
I worked in road safety, so not only a motorcyclist I fully appreciate Townsend's point and believe he is not excessively noisy, and that he needs to be heard to SURVIVE.
The increasing issue with modern cars is that the interior is well insulated, too comfortable, leading to false sense of being somewhere else to the peril of not listening for the environment around.

[Nautical]

I have a motorcycle and its quiet. These Harleys are noise polluters and should be outlawed as they are loud and obtrusive. I don't buy the idea that noise helps safety . A noisy muffler does little to prevent an accident . You only hear them when they pass you and then its generally too late.What prevents accidents is defensive driving and visiblity and then we are at a tremendous risk because many are just not programmed to look for motorcycles and too busy cell phoning texting or changing radio stations. I agree that motorcycles should comply with the same noise requirements as a car.

[boscoe99]

Well I've been riding the streets for 45 years.

My exhaust noise is legal, louder than stock.
Not overly loud, repeat, NOT overly loud

Don't buy it as bull$hit, I don't really care.

If it helps make folks around me know I'm there
and not hit me, that's the idea.

I can document 250,000 miles under my belt on the road
(thru out my life time) and know what works and what doesn't..

BTW, I've owned this bike since 2009, put on these mufflers right after
and have NEVER BEEN STOPPED for noise, period...

Your assuming too much without ACTUALLY hearing the bike.

Not overly loud is in the ear of the listener.

If you changed the mufflers from stock that tells me all that I need to know.

Never having been stopped for noise does not tell me much. I see many many scofflaws all of the time and they almost never, pretty darn close to never, get stopped for a damn thing. Myself included.

Now if you say that you want your bike to be louder than normal, and don't give a shit what any of your neighbors or fellow motorists think, or how their hearing may be damaged at worst or the fact that they are annoyed at best, then so be it. I am just saying don't use the lame argument that it is for safety. This is the BS crap my brother tried to give me for his Harley that would set off a car alarm if he goosed the throttle when he was alongside a parked car.

Carry on.

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Not overly loud is in the ear of the listener.

If you changed the mufflers from stock that tells me all that I need to know.

Never having been stopped for noise does not tell me much. I see many many scofflaws all of the time and they almost never, pretty darn close to never, get stopped for a damn thing. Myself included.

Now if you say that you want your bike to be louder than normal, and don't give a shit what any of your neighbors or fellow motorists think, or how their hearing may be damaged at worst or the fact that they are annoyed at best, then so be it. I am just saying don't use the lame argument that it is for safety. This is the BS crap my brother tried to give me for his Harley that would set off a car alarm if he goosed the throttle when he was alongside a parked car.

Carry on.

You don't have a clue and I seriously doubt you ever had any seat time on a motorcycle in heavy traffic.

As you choose to ignore, my bike will NOT set off any car alarms, WOT next to them.

My friend had a HD with pipes like that. I told him to change them or I wouldn't ride with him. It was way too loud, I couldn't stand it, even several hundred feet back.. He did..

If just having an aftermarket muffler bothers you, oh well... You don't have to buy shit. Click on the sound link a couple of posts above. That's my bike, in the GARAGE, (monitoring voltages). Its obviously louder in the garage and the vidio/audio and has me walking around it. YOU CAN HEAR IT.

Did you go deaf from 4,000 RPM's (or 50MPH)?

Didn't think so....

[99yam40]

show me decibel reading on a chart that show how loud they are at different RPM.

the laws do not limit it to any certain rpm

no one,especially when they are in side a building and the pipes or their speakers are too loud will follow someone to report them?

so, as long as you do not get stopped by law enforcement you think it is within the limits?

seems like if it disturbs me in my home or in a place of worship the volume is too much?

don't you think?
or do you just say the hell with all those people?

not saying your are that loaud, but there are those that are out there

[zenoahphobic]

I gotta laugh at you people from the perspective of another country half a world away.
Bikes have the same noise limits as cars.
The argument seems to be directed at Harley owners, and those that flout the law.
I agree that there is a significant bad element where the Harley (the noisiest) is their vehicle of choice. I agree that we also have extremely loud Harleys downunder that clearly exceed the noise limit. I agree it is a law enforcement issue, and I believe where I am they are letting them get away with it. But so too they are loosing their grip on hoon car drivers, those that drag race at night leaving their mufflers at home.
I disagree that you only hear them as they pass, I can detect them coming up behind. Maybe I've adapted a better hearing strategy so that I don't get the shiter hell scared out of me when they overtake.
I don't buy the argument that some of you don't buy.
Why do we have emergency vehicle sirens, rail boom gate bells, reversing beepers (I mentioned before), every heard a big ships horn (enough to kill all the fish from fright).Think of the possible train accidents avoided because the train was heard. Not that I agree we should have these.
On the question of religion (not intentionally trying to stir the pot) Places of Worship are not ammune to creating excessive unnecessary noise regularly with impunity. I have six within 2km at home, and one next door at my holiday home. These are all denominations and large gatherings that are supposed to meet Planning Regulations. I ask one (he happened to be a Polish Catholic Priest) why I needed to clearly and loudly hear his surmon everywhere inside my home when his congregation was at least 1 km away. He simply said his voice wasn't loud enough so he required amplification; he was oblivious to my concerns. So to with others, all night chanting, bells, firecrackers, fireworks, organ music, foreign inane music.... all denominations not all Christian.
My point is that I am also annoyed at sanctioned noise.

[zenoahphobic]

Oh, and we have ears for a particular reason, not to hear our loved ones but to alert to danger (watch a few nature documentaries).