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29 May 01--For those of you dying to get into the engine of your new RFS, here are some lessons learned...the hard way! I have been working on the 400MXC for a few weeks now, getting further and further into the engine mainly due to my headlong jump into the valve adjustment process. Since I had many rides on the new bike without the suggested valve adjustment, I decided it was time to check the play. The first step in the adjustments is to find Top Dead Center. There are a few methods to doing this...one on the Holeshot messageboard offered the technique of using a screwdriver to watch the position of the cylinder. Just so you know, if you break the tip of the screwdriver off in the cylinder, it is a tough job to get it out. After breaking the screwdriver, it was suggested that I better take the top end off to ensure that no pieces were left on the top of the piston to do further damage once the engine was started. So without the aid of a manual (it was on backorder) I began to tear down the engine. Those crazy Austrians make it a little difficult to take the thing apart. The timing chain does not have a master link or way to take it off without using a chain-break tool. So I put one on order. Of course the timing chain must be off in order take the head off. Once the tool (and service manual) came in, it was easy to finsh the breakdown. |
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The reassembly got hard again. Compressing the rings to put back into the cylinder, proved to be a tough task without the proper tools. Add an oil-scraper ring to the parts list-- and oh yeah-- yet another tool for piston insertion. With the proper tools, the reassembly did actually go smoothly even to the valve adjustment stage (that's where we started!) The bike was ready to ride on Sunday night 27 May 01, so we went out to the desert for a ride. See Ocotillo Destruction. After that debacle, the engine is making a distinct metallic clank as it cranks-- broken valve? Ugh. I haven't had the time to take it apart yet-- not looking forward to that. Updates will undoubtedly follow on this painful saga. Parts
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