improvizing with valve shim tool

[beachbum3478]

i want to do my valve adjustment on my 82 gs1100l and i dont have the tool. i dont have the time to wait for the tool to come in the mail so i wondering if anyone has every used something other then the tool to remove the shims. or if anyone knows a common tool or parts store that would carry it around philadelphia. thanks.

[tkent02]

Zip ties, do a search, there's a thread or two about it. Open valve, insert zip tie, close valve on the zip tie. gives enough space to remove the shim.
Just don't let your valves touch each other.

[egent]

Is your bike a 8 or 16 valve? Also where around Philly are you? I have the tool for the 8 valve engine I could lend to you. I am out near KoP, Norristown area. I work in Center City, so I am all over the area on most days.

[beachbum3478]

in springfield delco with 8 valve engine, ill look into the zip tie thing if not ill let you know egent. thanks.

[lurch12_2000]

read this pdf and you'll be good...

http://www.mediafire.com/?3ptmrhwxzvm

[salty_monk]

You could also make a tool from a metal sheet. The Haynes manual shows one.

Dan

[beachbum3478]

wow i dont even know why they make a valve tool. the zip ties are easy and you have two hands free. worked great.

[GS750GUY]

Valve adjustment question.

wow i dont even know why they make a valve tool. the zip ties are easy and you have two hands free. worked great.

BeachBumb,
I'm getting ready to do the valves on my 8 valve 78 GS750EC and I'm going to use the zip tie method as well. Did you remove all of the shims at once, detemine the thicknesses you needed and then order only the shims you needed vs buying a complete shim kit of all sizes? I understand the complete kits are very expensive.
Thanks,
GS750GUY

[Nessism]

BeachBumb,
I'm getting ready to do the valves on my 8 valve 78 GS750EC and I'm going to use the zip tie method as well. Did you remove all of the shims at once, detemine the thicknesses you needed and then order only the shims you needed vs buying a complete shim kit of all sizes? I understand the complete kits are very expensive.
Thanks,
GS750GUY

Never turn the engine over with out a shim installed on the bucket, the cam will get damaged.

[beachbum3478]

well i had a parts bike engine, so i took out each shim one by one and recorded the measurement, and put it back in the parts bike, then i measured each shim on the running bike and if it needed a shim, i looked at the paper i wrote down to see if the parts bike had it and i just swapped them in. i adjusted 7 valves, and only needed to buy one shim. if u do it with one bike, take out each shim seperatly and see what size they, then you can mix and match to different valves and save some money on buying new shims.

[TheCafeKid]

K i have to interject on the Zip Tie method here. Just as a precaution to everyone. As of now, i have seen it used once, and used it once myself, and both times were BAD NEWS. Granted, the method as shown to me, and the one i used were slightly different from the one everyone has seen/read about. BUT there still remains a bit of danger here. The first time, Steve used the method, and while i am not precisely sure that the zip tie itself cause the entire problem, the method resulted in a broken valve. The second time, when *I* used it, the ZIP TIE broke, falling down into the cylinder. BOTH situations resulted in having to remove the head obviously. SOOOoo Just a word of caution on this. Two times and two strikes was enough for me NOT to use this method again....

[Matchless]

K i have to interject on the Zip Tie method here. Just as a precaution to everyone. As of now, i have seen it used once, and used it once myself, and both times were BAD NEWS. Granted, the method as shown to me, and the one i used were slightly different from the one everyone has seen/read about. BUT there still remains a bit of danger here. The first time, Steve used the method, and while i am not precisely sure that the zip tie itself cause the entire problem, the method resulted in a broken valve. The second time, when *I* used it, the ZIP TIE broke, falling down into the cylinder. BOTH situations resulted in having to remove the head obviously. SOOOoo Just a word of caution on this. Two times and two strikes was enough for me NOT to use this method again....

I think you are right in that this method must be used with caution, but breaking a valve when using the cable tie is theoretically impossible, meaning there must have been a weakness or prior damage present and the valve would most likely have broken even if using the proper tool or on first starting it.
The correct method is to fold the cable tie in half, specifically done to stop the cable tie dropping into the spark plug hole or maybe cutting a bit off the tip if it is used as is. But if anyone feels or thinks that this method is not for them, then there is no other way but using the correct tool.
Using any tool incorrectly can cause damage or injury, even the correct valve tool can easily slip, so care must always be taken.

[catbed]

K i have to interject on the Zip Tie method here. Just as a precaution to everyone. As of now, i have seen it used once, and used it once myself, and both times were BAD NEWS. Granted, the method as shown to me, and the one i used were slightly different from the one everyone has seen/read about. BUT there still remains a bit of danger here. The first time, Steve used the method, and while i am not precisely sure that the zip tie itself cause the entire problem, the method resulted in a broken valve. The second time, when *I* used it, the ZIP TIE broke, falling down into the cylinder. BOTH situations resulted in having to remove the head obviously. SOOOoo Just a word of caution on this. Two times and two strikes was enough for me NOT to use this method again....

i had the same thing happen to me, and i was able to fish it out with long nose needle nose.