LarryC wrote: I have a 650 head that came in recently. The owner just purchased it. It was supposed to have been totally gone through with a fresh valve job. It's nice and clean, been freshly blasted, everything looks good appearance wise, on the surface.
I get the head apart, valves have been refaced and lapped in. Seats were very narrow. I checked the installed heights on the valves. None of them are less that 37.5mm installed height. So that puts things down at the 200 shim range. Nowhere to go. None of the valves were tipped by whoever did the valve job. Had the owner simply installed the head with his new Web 118 cams he would have ended up having to take it back off and get things sorted out..
FWIW the stock valves have .039" stem protruding above the keepers. The new KW intakes I have for it have .052" protruding above the keepers... Do you understand now that plays into the picture? .....
Another incident. Happened to me personally a few years back. I had spent considerable time doing up a head for my 1197 motor. Everything new, guides, valves, springs etc. All high performance parts. All aftermarket except for the spring cups.
1000 miles on the bike. The high performance valve springs took a dump. 7 out of 8 inner springs were all broken into multiple pieces. A couple of the outer springs were broken also. The bronze guides were all chewed up, one bent intake valve and I had to weld a bolt to #4 Intake tappet to get it out of the head. Was I pissed? What do you think???
I had to completely go through the head again, new guides, one new valve, touch up the valve job I had put so much time and effort into, but a bucket...etc., etc. etc. I used a different brand of springs that time.
WHAT I DID NOT DO WAS get on KZR and start bashing the company that made the springs. I sucked it up, called it lesson learned and carried on. Incidentally I received an email from a guy this week that had the same identical thing happen to a 650 this past summer....Same brand of springs... AND NO I'M NOT GOING TO NAME THE BRAND. And you likely won't see him bashing the company on the Internet either...
Things happen. That's just a fact of life. I quit posting on certain forum years ago over an issue I had with them posting a black list. I wans't on it but I sure as hell didn't agree with the concept. In fact myself and a few others who were against it voiced our feelings on the matter. They went so far as to do a survey of keep it or loose it. The majority wanted it kept there. I decided right then and there that place was more akin to the Jerry Springer show than a motorcycle forum and stopped visiting..
Those are my views...you may not agree and that's your right.
Your right, this complaint has tended to be about bashing and not solutions. Everyone including me have tried to help. Wether the advise is taken or not bepends on the PO. I've noticed most of the posters are new to the motorcycle world looking for sage advice from more experienced riders. I wish we had this when I first started rideing 40+ years ago. Could have saved alot of time and money. On another thread, there is a guy ready to pull his motor and split the cases simply because he pulled out his clutch push rod and not the secondary shaft for the shifting forks. I hope he doesn't. Some times people hear only what they want to hear. My suggesting the PO go to the BAR was a last resort. It is seldom taken because there are things left unsaid. If you go that far, everything must be on the table or you will lose. You have complainers, bashers and bullies in any forum. I made a statement on Ebay about shill bidding and got dog piled. Only a few offered a solution, the rest were in a feeding frenzy twisting my words and getting themselfs off doing it. I responded only to the ones that were offering a solution, the rest can sit back and smoke a ciggarette. That's life.
Steve
