valve clearances without tool?

[newbie851519]

thanks for all the help you guys. another question:
searched on it, but no concrete results.
I'm doing a valve clearance check, and don't have the tool to depress the tappets in order to pull out the shims. any thoughts on how to do this without the tool? i don't have the machinery to make my own, and the tool will take 7-10 days to get here. i have to have it done by tues. all the clearances are within .038-.051, except one which measures .127. i figured i would change out all the shims to put them near the upper limit (.08mm).
suggestions?

[Nessism]

Pull the cams out. Many bikes with the small under bucket shims require pulling the cams so it's not as unusual a process as one might first think. Buggest pain is removing the cam chain tensioner - not fun. A little paint mark on the cam chain and cam sprockets will assist you when time comes to put everything back together. And be warned, it's easy to get the cams 180 degrees out of phase so pay attention to the marks when you put it back together.

[sharpy]

tool

Put the valve at max clearance and use a large screw driver to force the shim/bucket down and place a 5mm or simular allen key over the edge of the bucket to hold the bucket down while you replace the shim/s. Dont ask me how i know LOL. Bit rough but works and leaves no marks.

[newbie851519]

should I replace shims?

thanks for the advice, i'll try the 5mm allen method, then resort to removing the camshaft if that doesn't work.
given that 7 of the clearances are between .038 and .051, should I leave them where they are??
Per my understanding, the shims come in intervals of .05mm, so by moving down a shim size, I might put mine between .088 and .101, right?? Am I doing the math correctly, and do shims come in smaller intervals? The clearance window is supposed to be .03-.08mm, so I shouldn't change out my shims, except the one that is obviously too much clearance (Only one is at .127)? Just making sure I'm right, it's my first time doing this and don't want to mess anything crucial up.

[Nessism]

I'd leave them alone if they are in spec. It's quite unusual for a valve clearance to increase with these GS bikes - the valve usually recedes into the head thus the clearances reduce. Not sure what could have happened to increase the clearance that much unless someone did not check them properly last time and put the wrong shim in.

Regarding the shim thickness, your math is correct. Suzuki sometimes stamps the shim with an "X" mark though which denotes a shim on the fat side of the spec range. Unfortunately you can not purchase them that way (as far as I know) so it's kind of a moot point unless you have a couple already in use.

Good luck.

[renobruce]

I'd fix just that one that's too wide.

How are you measuring the clearances?

[newbie851519]

right

I'm checking them with a feeler guage - it has .038 and .051 feelers, 7 of the valve clearances allow the .038 feeler to slide in, with maybe a tiny bit of room, not completely snug, but the .051 feeler doesnt fit at all. The wide one fits a .127 feeler snug. It has a 2.70 shim in it, I'll replace it with a 2.75mm shim. Thanks for the advice guys, the allen wrench trick worked a little rough like you said, but it worked after some monkeying. I'll leave the other 7 clearances alone. Once again you guys have saved me a lot of time.