MAiNTENANCE CoRNER

VALVE ADJUSTMENT

By Tony Gray, Member #3905

Here are a couple of useful tips if you are adjusting the screw/locknut tappets on a hexhead R1200 (or any other model with socket head adjusting screws): 1. Insert a drinking straw down the open spark plug hole to indicate when the piston has risen to the top of its stroke. Mark the straw with a felt pen against a part of the cylinder head so that you will always know when it is approaching and has reached the top of its stroke. This applies to any bike not just the hexhead R1200. 2. With the piston at TDC on its compression stroke and the tappets loose, crack open the locknut and put the appropriate feeler gauge into the gap between the rocker arm adjuster and valve stem. Tighten the adjuster screw so that it is just ‘loose’ against the feeler gauge – now here is the tip – let the allen key you are using to tighten the adjuster screw ‘fall’ under its own weight from about a 2 o’clock point, to bring the rocker arm adjuster into contact with the feeler gauge. Now hold the allen key and tighten the locknut. You should now have the correct clearance gap.