VTR1000.ORG

I have just bought a 99 storm in blue, thankfully the previous owner knew what he was about and fitted some manual cam chain adjusters. Can anyone advise on the on going maintenance of these and how to do it if poss. Its my first V twin I have always had inline 4's in the past, so I am looking forward to lots of torque, less gear changes and a bit of comfort.
Regards
Rob

Welcome aboard robc990

My advice would be to invest in a Haynes workshop manual.

The bigger services which include checking/adjusting the valve clearances are at 16,000 and 32,000 miles,

Cheers,

Chris.

Hi Chris,
Thanks for the reply.
I already have the Haynes manual, but it doesnt cover manual chain tensioners only the automatic sprung loaded ones. Sorry if my original post was confusing.
regards
Rob

Rob,

You're right the Haynes manual won't cover anything that's non-original such as your APE tensioners. The final adjustment for fixed tensioners such as APE is done by ear. Not that easy if you're not really mechanically minded.

As a rough guide they say if a fixed tensioner is too tight you'll get a squeak or chirp on the press of the starter button as the cam chain is pressing too hard on it's guide. If it's set to slack the cam chain will cause a rattle noise.

Others who have fitted APE's will perhaps be able to give more detailed advice. If you happen to live in Lancashire pop along to see Roger Ditchfield at RevolutionUK he's an expert at setting them.

Cheers,

Chris.

Hi, Rob. Hope you're enjoying the Storm.
Where you at?

Thanks chris I will have a listen for that.
Hi Tony, Tim.
I am in drizzly bournemouth. Yep the bike is graaaaaaat.
Rob

Hi. I have one of the better coloured ones - Yellow.

I also have fitted the APEs

If you speak to Debben Racing, who sell them here, they are very helpful, but essentially their advice is that the slack at the top of the chain run isn't that crucial.

I fitted mine about 5000 miles ago and checked this summer before going to Wales for our annual "pilgrimage". I did this by removing the rear cam cover (dead easy to get to) and the plugs, then turning over by the starter to see if the chain slack was excessive. It wasn't, so I left alone.

I didn't check the front on the assumption that the wear rates would be similar and there was no chain noise or slap.

I imagine that if there was too much play then you would hear the chain slapping a bit and then tighten the adjuster a tad. At least you know the adjuster can't back off and allow the chain to jump a tooth or more and cause valve damage.

Hope that helps

Hi Stratman,
Thanks for the info.
Rob