New Auto Cam Chain Tensioner/Timing Issue?

[ejhamelin]

I've just replaced my old cam chain tensioner with an auto adjuster from an 83 Venture as my old one was near at the end of it's adjustment. I followed the procedures posted here on the site and all went smoothly. The new cct bolted right up and fits perfectly.

On the flip side, the bike is now idling low (at around 500rpms), lopes a little at idle and is stumbling, almost like it's loading up, until approximately 3000rpm. Seems to be lacking power now above 3000 as well.

I'm at 42000 miles, have recently rebuilt the carbs and synced them and have had no running issues whatsoever until I swapped the CCT. Obviously I need to check the timing first, but has anyone had an issue like this or have any thoughts?

[650mark]

was your bike on the centerstand when you did this swap? any new, funny noises coming from the top end?

[bikerphil]

I would pop the valve cover and check the cam alignment dots if you noticed a definite loss of power. Chain could have skipped a sprocket tooth when the tensioner was out.

[James England]

If your OEM CCT was near the end of its adjustment, it means the cam chain is worn and should be replaced. Putting the acct on wouldn't resolve that.

But, you said the bike ran fine before the swap. My guess is the worn chain has so much slack that it's jumped a tooth when you were doing the job. As has already been said, I'd check the dots on the cams for correct alignment

[IanDMacDonald]

I'm praying for you buddy . . .

[ejhamelin]

Thanks for the advice. I'll pop the valve cover in the morning, take a look and reply.

[James England]

You may as well check the valve clearances while you have the lid off.....

[Bonz]

You didn't say if it was on the center stand, did you line up the correct mark on the timing wheel, did you line up the correct timing mark by turning the engine clockwise and not turning it counterclockwise even the slightest amount if you over shot the timing mark? Did you rotate the engine by hand a few times after the swap?

Yeah, you gotta take a look inside now but just curious about the answers to the stuff above...

[Diskman01]

Ya, I did this upgrade early last summer and ended up being off 1 tooth. No damage done according to my compression tester and butt-dyno. I ended up replacing the chain this past winter anyway. The two dots were starting to wander apart too much for me.

Ill bet your chain slipped off the crank one tooth when you installed the tensioner.

Good luck!

[jetmechmarty]

+1. If the OEM tensioner was near the end of travel, you need to replace the chain. Don't wait for it to break!

[ejhamelin]

Morning Gentlemen,

Worst fears confirmed after taking the cam cover off - it's definitely off a tooth. With the crank (after rotating clockwise a few times) lined up to the 'T', the dots on the cam's are about 1/4 inch to the left of the alignment arrows.

I'm going to attempt to correct this in the bike by unbolting the cam sprockets, removing the tensioner, tying the chain up to the frame to keep tension on the intake side of the chain and rotating the cams manually. There's a great post on 'this' procedure by Crazy Steve that I've gone over thoroughly.

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread.php?t=35129&highlight=cam+adjustment

Any last minute suggestions or pointers? Thanks.

[IanDMacDonald]

Yes, follow Steve's post exactly. Make sure wheel is on "C" mark, and hand-rotate the engine clockwise many times to assure cam dots align.

[ejhamelin]

'T' when lining up the dots on the cams and 'C' when reinstalling the tensioner. Correct?

[skids]

Dots and arrows at top dead center - the T-mark!

[IanDMacDonald]

Yes, and "C" when pulling/installing CCT. DO NOT rotate the crank till the CCT is installed, and only then hand-rotate that thing a gazillion times making sure the dots line-up at the "T" mark. Oh yeah, one more thing: when u pull the chain over the sprocket, pull as hard as you can from the back side to make sure there is no slack, and it is indeed on the crank sprocket.