Centrifugal Noise?

[80mdnt11]

Well, the 13/32 bit worked fine. However I did flatten & center punch just for good measure. After all this only found mechanical unit in need of a little cleaning & lube. Did bump timing a couple degrees. And as per my "luck", the valve cover bolt application didn't quite work. Lower one just fine, upper....bolt too long. Apparently hole not drilled & tapped as deep at the factory. Next shorter bolt,too short. Had to cut/nip 1/8" off to use with collars. Worked fine.
So, noise must be transfer from either primary or cam chain? I know the "11" has always had more "clatter" than most. Seemed more noticable with timing cover off. It's not that bad, just like to try to stay on top of things.....before they get really bad!
Will post some pics of Elvira, name just hit me. Heard the song at work the other day.....don't normally listen to country. "Elvira....Misstress of the Dark" fits.
Thanks Guys

[3Phase]

Jim, it's hard to say without hearing the noise you're hearing but it could be the primary chain.

How many miles are on the engine in your bike? The engine in my '80G doesn't knock, ping, rattle or tick unless it's starting to overheat or it's low on oil, then it starts to act and sound ... needy.

Some primary chain noise is normal. Unless the engine was badly overheated, has a lot of miles on it or if it was just ridden hard and put away wet for most of its (brief) life it shouldn't be a problem.

Are the valve clearances set correctly? Really? If so, you can try to determine if it's cam or primary chain noise by adjusting the cam chain tension EXACTLY the way the manual describes the procedure, then listening to the engine again. If it still rattles it's probably just the primary chain but there are a few other, relatively expensive, possibilities. Again, it depends on the miles on the engine and how it was treated.

Oh, by the way: the stock cam chain tensioner can back itself out after it's adjusted and allow the cam chain to run loose again. It doesn't always happen but it is possible when it shouldn't be possible. It's also very easy to strip the set screw threads in the Velveeta cheese tensioner housing so be careful and don't overtighten the set screw or the lock nut. It's a serviceable but minimal design and the parts are over thirty years old, that's why some of us have dumped the stock tensioner and switched to a self-adjusting tensioner gleeped from more recent year/model bikes.