Valve cover for clearance service

After reading many useful posts here about valve clearance service I thought I’d have a go. Came to take valve cover off and the bolts seems really brittle and very tight. Using a 5mm hex key managed to remove one but the other 3 on the left cylinder feel like all I am going to achieve are rounded bolt heads. Not a good idea as I am due to go on a weeks trip to Europe in 2 weeks. The valves are ever so slightly tappy on the left side as you sit on bike. Should this be a job for after the trip in case the bolts wind up being a mess, Or does it need attention sooner. Is it normal for these bolts to be so tight. Surely they don’t need to be?

No, they shouldn't be that tight. I've used a long hex driver with an impact driver to loosen stubborn ones.

If the bolt hex gets rounded off, just carefully drill the head off (without damaging anything else). the remaining part of the bolt can be easily removed with a pair of vice grips once the tension is released.

Are you the original owner? Have you confirmed the bike has been rollerised?

Not the original owner but it has been rollerised and that’s been confirmed

It would help to break the seal on the bolts if you had a good quality hex key (preferably a socket hex key) that you can tap with a hammer at the same time as turning to loosen. It is very important to use good quality hex keys that are a good fit and won’t round out. Under normal circumstances, a good T type hex key will work just fine, but I think you will need to use some impact on the head of the bolt to break the seal.

If the tappets are loose, then I would prefer to check them but it’s your call

and replace those play-doh bolts when you get them out with some decent ones.

McCarthy1983 wrote:

Not the original owner but it has been rollerised and that’s been confirmed

If you haven't been able to remove the valve covers, how has it been confirmed? Just saying .......

Guzzi Cat wrote:

It would help to break the seal on the bolts if you had a good quality hex key (preferably a socket hex key) that you can tap with a hammer at the same time as turning to loosen. It is very important to use good quality hex keys that are a good fit and won’t round out. Under normal circumstances, a good T type hex key will work just fine, but I think you will need to use some impact on the head of the bolt to break the seal.

If the tappets are loose, then I would prefer to check them but it’s your call

Would Halfords tools be considered good quality?

kiwi dave wrote:

McCarthy1983 wrote:

Not the original owner but it has been rollerised and that’s been confirmed

If you haven't been able to remove the valve covers, how has it been confirmed?  Just saying .......

Fair point. Was confirmed with the dealer that the previous owners used for servicing

I would take that advice with a very large grain of salt and confirm it for yourself. Especially if you're about to head to Europe. Last thing you want is to end up with buggered cams a couple of thousand miles from home.

And no. Halfords tools are not high quality.

McCarthy1983 wrote:

Fair point. Was confirmed with the dealer that the previous owners used for servicing

There have been reports that some unscrupulous dealers have been putting in claims for updating the cam followers with rollers but haven't done the work.

McCarthy1983 wrote:

The valves are ever so slightly tappy on the left side as you sit on bike.

And this is what concerns me.

As has been suggested in another recent thread on this issue you can use a small cold chisel and hammer on the periphery of the bolts to get them moving. Once loose they can then be wound out and reused as long as they aren't too damaged until you can get new ones.

Be careful removing the plug caps. Pry them up from underneath. Do not tug on the HT leads.

It is important you check for flat tappets before you embark on a long trip. Seriously.

Pete

So consensus is, get it checked out.

Definitely. If it hasn't been done you'll need an 'A' kit. Very easy to do.

Thanks Pete. So if the slight tappy noise coming from a flat tappet, then they need the upgrade. If the noise is coming from a rollarised tappet, then its not such an issue and likely the valves are out slightly?

As for knowing which tappets the motor has, I recall you could tell from the engine code per this thread on another forum:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Don’t trust the factory numbers. They are inaccurate. We’ve posted up comparison pics a dozen times. Perhaps Steve could do a sticky in the morning each section?

If someone else doesn’t get to it first I’ll post a couple of pics when I have my iPad rather than phone.

That was going to be my next question. How will I know what the flatties and rollers look like. Pics would be great.

Thank you Beetle

Thanks Mark.

Oh, and any info *Shared* on Guzzi tech should be viewed with great skepticism.

Pete Roper wrote:

Oh, and any info *Shared* on Guzzi tech should be viewed with great skepticism.

In fact avoid it all - there be bullshit abounding.

McCarthy1983 wrote:

Thanks Pete. So if the slight tappy noise coming from a flat tappet, then they need the upgrade. If the noise is coming from a rollarised tappet, then its not such an issue and likely the valves are out slightly?

As for knowing which tappets the motor has, I recall you could tell from the engine code per this thread on another forum:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Just waded through the post from Guzzitech. The bloke who wrote the analysis is wrong about the cause and the sequence of failure but that is unsurprising as he's probably only seen one or maybe two or three at most and hasn't really got much of a clue about the problem or the solution.

Pete

Thanks Pete, there is a lot of rubbish on the web these days, not just on GRiSO's or motorcycles. Generally take things read with a pinch of salt. With that said, so glad I found this forum, it has helped a lot..

To put in simply, I need to check for myself which tappets I have. If they are flat, replace immediately. If they are roller, then simply perform a valve clearance check, as well as throttle body balance and TPS reset. Obviously the latter is better.

Yup, the pics above show clearly the differences once the rocker cover is off. If it’s a flattie just bite the bullet and get it done. The longer it’s left the greater the chance of the motor becoming scrap.

Hi All,

Performed valve clearance check last night. Hardest part of the job was getting the cover off as discussed above. As thought, left exhaust valves were out by the most, all others were only marginally out. While head covers were off, also confirmed that the tappets are roller. Started up last night, sounds like a different bike. Good news all round and thank you all for advice.