Valve Tapping

I know that the vales on the XJ's tap a little louder than normal. But, has anyone ever used Motor Honey or something similar to quite them down a bit? I used to use in it my car. Would it screw up the wet clutch?

 

They are not hydraulic lifters- - more like a "solid lifter".
I wouldn't use Motor Honey to solve this "problem".
Have you adjusted your valves?? What oil are you running??

 

Get over the idea that Valve Tapping is a bad thing.
Valve's Tapping is music.
When you DON'T hear Valves Tapping you got trouble.
The Valves tapping shut mean they are closing and not getting burned.
Valve train noise is GOOD Noise.
You are confident that the Valve is closing and not letting superheated air seep by causing expensive to fix damage.

If the noise is bothering you ... Go through them and adjust them to the TIGHT Limit ... around .0035 ~.004
But, you have to INSPECT them more often to avoit them getting too tight.

 

Thanks Rick. I will just ignore it then. (as an issue). It was just a little un-nerving. Especially at high revs.

 

Maybe you need a louder pipe :wink:

 

Don't adjust your valves too tight just to shut them up, and don't dump something into the oil to "fix" a non-issue. Rick is right, happy valves are noisy valves.

CHECK your valve clearances to ensure everything IS in spec; a suddenly LOOSE valve usually indicates a sticky or warped condition.

Quite often a "valve ticking" is actually a small exhaust leak at one of the head pipes, or maybe you just need a camchain adjustment.

 

I'm going to bring back this thread for a related question...

I just (an hour ago) adjusted my valves on a bike I got around 500 miles ago. That being said, I have no idea when they were last done. It was easier than my volkswagon, that's for damn sure. One of the exhaust valves ended up being at the upper limit (.008) after I put a new shim in it. After startup, there was a much more pronounced ticking coming from that area of the head. It almost sounds like too much. Will this smooth out or should I pull it back apart and recheck? I just hate having to wait for a new gasket after I just got her dialed in...

What I'm worried about is measuring .008, but after it seated a little more, it could have gone into the .01 range. There sure is a lot of oil under those shims, and I'm hoping that didn't throw off my measurements.

 

You could always double check if you're unsure of your measurements, it would only take 10 minutes or so to check. I just put in new shims on some overly tight valves today. It's a lot more "clacky" than before. I don't mind it because I'm sure of my measurements, you're better to be on the loose end than too tight. Just not so loose that you'll throw a shim. Plus the old saying is "slappy valves are happy valves"

 

Well then I'll probably leave it, I don't think the gasket will hold up for a second round, and there's no way the shim will pop out. I was pretty damn sure of my measurements, so I'll try to trust them. It runs like a top now. I had a flat spot in the RPM range from 7-9...now it seems to be gone. Holy shit it's fast up there.

 

Personally, I LOVE the sound. It's right up there with the 'WHINE".

You can always tell when an XJ is coming.........fun to watch at the Carb Clinics when people are working on bikes---bikes go by on the road, nobody pays much attention, BUT...........when an XJ gets around a mile away, all of a sudden heads start turning up and you hear, "hey, sounds like and xj coming in........" Sure enough, about a minute later...........incoming!!!!!

Dave F

 

Dave, I'm definitely looking forward to making my first trip in next year Sounds like fun!

 

Might have to venture up to one myself!

 

XJ's have a unique sound? Hmmm...never noticed. :wink: