Issue with Cam Chain tensioner upgrade

[1reddawg]

I am having trouble getting the spring Loaded Cam Tensioner upgraded bolt started to finish the job.Any ideas or suggestions on how to get this bolt started.There just isnt enough room to get a good turn on the bolt to get a thread started. Any ideas will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks as always
1 Frustated Reddawg..

[gsweave]

Originally Posted by 1reddawg

I am having trouble getting the spring Loaded Cam Tensioner upgraded bolt started to finish the job.Any ideas or suggestions on how to get this bolt started.There just isnt enough room to get a good turn on the bolt to get a thread started. Any ideas will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks as always
1 Frustated Reddawg..

Left side? did you remove throttle body or are you tryin to work around it?

[1reddawg]

Throttle body is taken off.Left Side

[gsweave]

Originally Posted by 1reddawg

Throttle body is taken off.Left Side

do you own an old socket that you can cut down?

[1reddawg]

Originally Posted by gsweave

do you own an old socket that you can cut down?

I will give that a try,Thanks gsweave

[tps]

Originally Posted by 1reddawg

I am having trouble getting the spring Loaded Cam Tensioner upgraded bolt started to finish the job.Any ideas or suggestions on how to get this bolt started.There just isnt enough room to get a good turn on the bolt to get a thread started. Any ideas will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks as always
1 Frustated Reddawg..

I was able to fit a 12 point box end wrench around mine, push it down with my finger, and hold it down while getting 1 or 2 points of a turn each time. It eventually caught. Yeah, it was a real pain...

[trc.rhubarb]

push harder
mine was a bitch.

[Poolside]

Originally Posted by trc.rhubarb

push harder

That's about it right there. The new tensioner device is filled with oil, has an internal spring, and has a ball check valve at the bottom of the piston bore. (You can see part of the check valve ball at the bottom of the bore.)

When in service, the one-way check valve allows the new tensioner cylinder to fill with oil easily. You know, it lets oil in but won't let it out. Once the cylinder is filled with oil the piston is very hard to compress. The reason for the difficulty is the only path for the oil to escape is between the tight piston-to-cylinder clearance. I don't mean the original tensioner body piston, but the piston clearance on the new tensioner 'insert' you are installing.

The new tensioner is shipped filled with oil. What you can do is get the oil out of there. That makes the tensioner insert (and the original screw-in tensioner body) easier to compress by hand while installing it.

Here's one way to remove the oil. Clamp the new tensioner in a VERTICAL vise or other VERTICAL clamping method. Clamp it between the jaws with the open end of the piston pointing down, and the cylinder pointing up. Note: You're doing this with only the tensioner insert in the jaws, not the whole screw-in tensioner body.

Slowly close the vise and watch oil weep out from between the piston-to-bore clearance. The first portion of the compression process is usually easier because there is often some air inside the tensioner along with the oil. And if so the air will compress much easier than the oil will squeeze past the piston clearance. Turn the vise handle a little and wait a few moments for the oil to begin weeing out. When the oil flow stops, turn the handle a little more.

After the piston is compressed and the oil has found its way out, the piston will be much easier to compress by hand. It still won't be easy, but it will be easier.

BUT WAIT there is a caveat to all the above. The issue may just be that the cam chain is pushing up on the chain guide, which reduces the available space for the tensioner body. To solve that, put the gearbox in a high gear and turn the rear wheel forward a little. Doing that rotates the crank and cam chains in the forward direction, and ensures that the slack side (the side the tensioner is on) of the chain is slack, and allows the maximum room to install the tensioner body.

[rdwalker]

Originally Posted by Poolside

... Here's one way to remove the oil. ....

This is quite useful info, thanks! This thread caught my eye, as I am just now ordering the tensioner for my 1150RT; how timely!
Great reference, appreciated.

By the way, for any lurkers here: this is Jim's write-up on tensioner replacement: http://advwisdom.hogranch.com/Wisdom...ionerSwap.html.
(I still have in my archives a snapshot of his original pictorial thread from 8 years ago, when Poolside was a young'un, with only 1,725 posts to his credit... )

And, to add to installation hints: apparently, a lot of swearing eases tensioner compression. Check out between markers 6:45 and 8:30 of this video. I like that "encouragement" method - I use it a lot myself!

[slipperyeel]

Originally Posted by 1reddawg

I am having trouble getting the spring Loaded Cam Tensioner upgraded bolt started to finish the job.Any ideas or suggestions on how to get this bolt started.There just isnt enough room to get a good turn on the bolt to get a thread started. Any ideas will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks as always
1 Frustated Reddawg..

I didn't have much trouble with this job so i am wondering why you might be. I wondered if the cam chain is somehow at its tightest point, but it should be on max slack without the tensioner in there and besides, you're only talking about getting the threads to start engaging.

I would check the bolt threads carefully and make sure you haven't been unlucky with the part you've been supplied (compare it closely with the old one). Maybe it has been dropped or machined badly?

Otherwise stick with it. It's a worthwhile job, makes a big difference.

Good luck

[1reddawg]

Originally Posted by Poolside

BUT WAIT there is a caveat to all the above. The issue may just be that the cam chain is pushing up on the chain guide, which reduces the available space for the tensioner body. To solve that, put the gearbox in a high gear and turn the rear wheel forward a little. Doing that rotates the crank and cam chains in the forward direction, and ensures that the slack side (the side the tensioner is on) of the chain is slack, and allows the maximum room to install the tensioner body.

Thank You Poolside This did it.It took longer to get the bike in a higher gear than to get the bolt started!! I litteraly was trying yesterday for 4 hours trying to get that Bolt started.. Thank You all again for your advise & Help!!!

[kimokk]

What model years does this upgrade apply to?

[rdwalker]

Originally Posted by kimokk

What model years does this upgrade apply to?

Not yours.
I don't know exactly which models had the "old" tensioner originally - I believe it was through 2005.

But, in any case, my 2006 already had the "new style" from factory.

Robert.

[trc.rhubarb]

I recently replaced the right side on my 07.
The old one seemed fine but replacing it made all the startup noise go away.
New looked the same as the old but wasn't as notchy.

[Poolside]

Originally Posted by 1reddawg

Thank You Poolside This did it. It took longer to get the bike in a higher gear than to get the bolt started!! I litteraly was trying yesterday for 4 hours trying to get that Bolt started.. Thank You all again for your advise & Help!!!

You bet. It's nice when it's easy like that.