Stupid question

[extremez31]

I own a gs450 fairly new to the bike. To remove the starter first I need to remove this small peace bolted to the head. It has a spring can someone tell me what this is?

[Nessism]

Cam chain tensioner. Are you sure you must remove this to take the starter off? If so, please check your manual and check to make sure your cams don't jump time on the chain.

[bwringer]

Here's info about rebuilding and resetting the cam chain tensioner -- yours looks a little different than the one in the photos, but they work exactly the same way:

http://bwringer.com/gs/camchaintens.html

Two things to remember:
1) If you have to remove it, you MUST set the engine to Top Dead Center (TDC) first. Here's how: http://bwringer.com/gs/tdc.html

2) You MUST reset the cam chain tensioner before re-installing it. Please read your shop manual CAREFULLY, and read and understand my instructions CAREFULLY. Basically, it must be installed fully compressed and locked, then you unlock it after it's bolted in.

If you try to install the tensioner when it's extended, you will break very expensive, important things.


But first, please check your shop manual and make sure that it's really necessary to remove the cam chain tensioner in order to remove the starter.

[pete]

Unfortunately yes it really is necessary to remove the cam chain tensioner to get the starter out... very frustrating but there's just not quite enough clearance on the 450 with it in place. I had to take my starter out again after installing the cam chain tensioner and there was no way without taking the tensioner off again

Please take all the advice above and take all the right measures before removing it and when installing it, it's quite critical it goes back in correctly without putting out your cam timing...

[extremez31]

Thanks everyone for the quick response and links to documentation.


Unfortunitly in my quick haste to diagnose the starting problem I pulled the tensioner out without knowing what it was. I purchased the gs450 for $400.00 with the intension of stripping it down and building a vintage cafe street fighter. The bike was running just had to push start to get her going. All the wiring will need to be redone. Previous owners spliced, cut & jumped various wires so it'll be easier for me to just make a new harness. I guess from this point forward I need to be a bit more careful. Maybe I'll start a build thread on this.

Hopefully it warms outside soon, so I can get back to the bike.

[tkent02]

Just don't rotate the crankshaft without the tensioner in place, and if you have done this already, find and understand the section on cam chain timing before you do anything else... Or very expensive damage will happen.

[wally]

so in theory, if you don't rotate the crank when have the tensioner, all should be well?

[pete]

so in theory, if you don't rotate the crank when have the tensioner, all should be well?

Yup, just leave it alone

The risk is that with the tensioner out, if the crank is rotated it can cause the chain to jump a tooth or two on the camshaft sprockets which puts your cam timing out of whack... worst case there is pistons impacting valves...