Valve spring removal
 

There is a good chance I'll have to remove my valves in the near future, so I'm just planning ahead here. What I'm wondering is if anyone has tried the method in the video here, or if there are any drawbacks (other than needing a slight bit of dexterity) to it?

Actually very close to what we used to do in the 70's at the races where we didn't have all of special tools with us. We would take the socket and put it on top of the spring and smack it with a plastic hammer and usually the collets would dislodge.

Now having said that, these were old school single cam motors with valve springs that were relatively exposed not in a "well" with a shim and bucket!

Reassembly was much as described, you just had to make sure the valve didn't drop by putting something in the combustion chamber to give some resistance to the valve face.

Of course we also used to do bore jobs with a round file but that's a story for a different thread!

HRCA, on a slightly related note, would you replace the gaskets every time you removed the head? Mine only have about 6k miles on them, I was assuming I'd need new ones but am wondering what the life is on those things...

Head gaskets are replaced any time the head is off . (cue the road racer, or off road racer, or back yard wrench that will say,,, "yaa but I used to just spray the gasket with copper coat, or silver paint and re use um when we were at the track and had to pull the head".. and while I have done that as well in a pinch when it was that or not race, finish a weekend ride,,,ect, it is foolish to do when we want maximum reliability and longevity in our street bike repairs)

NO FRIGGIN' WAY!!!

That would be an absolute nightmare. You would shoot shit everywhere, ruin your lifter bores and spend 1/2 hour on every fkn one of them. Absolutely horrible idea - typical of youtube.

Buy the $60 valve spring compressor kit. You can find them on ebay. It makes it easy and you will feel like a real mechanic, when you have one. It is the ONLY way you should try it. Take a film canister and cut the top ridge and bottom off. Line the lifter bores with it as you remove and install the valves, so you don't destroy your head.

In my bodge-it days before getting a valve spring compressor yes. I used to do a similar thing on car engines. But not only is there less chance of damage, but the right tool for the right job makes life so much more easier. https://www.superhawkforum.com/forum...ons/icon14.gif

(:-})

+1 on the gasket and we usually had those but not always the compressor, just depended on whether you just took the top tool box or both boxes.

Yeah I couldn't see re-using the gasket I guess, just one of those things where the manual says to replace everything always (the oil filler cap ring or cover bolts on the left side of the case, really?) and you have to figure out which ones are really needed. I prefer the paper ones for the side cases but have no problem using RTV in a pinch because if you do it right (no excess inside) the worst that can happen is it leaks and you have to do it again. But head gaskets are a different story. Now I don't even know why I brought it up ;)

RCVTR, I was just seein if the 60 dollar tool was necessary... not trying to dodge doing it right, just the video makes it look very plausible. I didn't think about damage to the lifter bores, I think that is the best reason to get a compressor that I've seen. Chasing loose parts and taking 10 minutes per valve... meh I could handle that part ;)

You will not regret buying the tool. The valve springs are sized to control big, heavy valves, moved by a fairly aggressive cam profile at almost 10,000 rpm, which is a long way of saying the valve springs are quite stiff. Compressing them with the tip of a pair of needle-nose pliers sounds like a good way to shoot yourself in the eye.

Use the paper gaskets on the side cases. Coat them lightly with grease to make it easier to remove them later. RTV will end up in your oil pickup screen. Don't worry about the o-rings, unless they are leaking.

Did you ever find out if the shop reground your valves, instead of replacing them? The valves can't be reground.

That answer really applies to both things... Yes, if you are REALLY in a pinch, the gaskets CAN be reused... But it's not a good idea really... And yes, if you are in a pinch, the valves can be taken out and re-assembled without a compressor... But it's not really a good idea...

The case bolts aren't really neccesary to replace at every time, but they are fairly thin bolts that are torqued to a level that if you re-use them too many times you might end up with a part of one sitting in a threaded engine part... That's why the manual states to replace them, and a few other bolts every time... Because you are running the risk of having to use a reverse thread tool on a rather sensitive and/or expensive part if you re-use too many times...

My own version of it, is to use common sense and do it every other time, or every third or so, depending on the bolts... But then you need to remember that, so the "better safe than sorry" approach, and what a shop should do, is what the manual states...

No I'm not entirely sure what's going on in there. I honestly haven't checked yet. I'm going to ride it maybe 3-5 hundered more miles an check lash to see where it's at, I just don't imagine it wearing that quickly and then wearing normal.

I know they used new valves and seals because I bought them and had them in my hands ;). Not saying the valves weren't ground for some reason, though.