I forgot to get the valve clearance adjustment at 20 hrs on a ranch 05. I now have 45 hrs. Did i do any damage to it? It runs and sounds great.

 

Most likely not, other issues could result if left too long though.

----- Gimpster -----

 

i have a 130 hour on my 420 and i need to adjust the valves

 

Just spend a few minutes and get it over with...

 

this is my Q to but how exactly do you adjust the valves

 

It's really not that hard. The tough part is getting all of the plastic off to get to them. My advice would be to spend the money on a manual and read about it. Their well worth the $40-$50.

I can't tell you exactly how to do it as I don't want to steer you wrong. I kinda had to play with mine a little until they felt right. It did make a difference in how smooth the machine ran afterwords.

There are some pictures on my page that show the timing marker and plastic removed though. I hope it helps.

 

so adjusting the valves has nothing to do messing with your motor taking things apart other then your plastic??

 

Typically the procedure involves removing the fuel tank cover, fuel tank, and a heat deflector to get to the top of the engine. Clean the area so dirt won't fall into the motor and remove the inspection covers on top of the motor.

Generally there is a chrome allen head plug over an inspection hole in the side of the motor. You remove that so you have a little window to see the flywheel. Then turn the motor with the pull starter until you see a T in the window. Bikes that don't have a manual starter will often have another cover that allows you to turn the crankshaft with a socket.

This indicates the piston is at top dead center, but if both rockers have no play the piston is top dead center between exhaust stroke and intake stroke, and the rockers are tight because the valves are slightly open in the overlap phase.

So, if the rockers are tight, rotate the crank another turn until the T is back, and there is play in the rockers, indicating the piston is at the top of it's stroke between compression and power stroke, where you want it to adjust.

Then use your feeler gauges to see if the gap is correct or if it needs to be adjusted. If you do have to adjust, recheck after tightening the lock nut.

Listed gap is generally for a cold engine.

500 Foreman spec is .006 + or - .001 for both intake and exhaust. 680 Rincons are .006 intake and .013 exhaust. Rubicons are .006 intake and .009 exhaust.

As noted above, having a manual for your particular quad is a worthy investment.

 

Great discription. Three minor things to add.

One: try to use an open or closed face wrench instead of a socket wrench when tightening the nut on the rocker arm. This way you will be able to see if the adjustment screw in the middle moves as well (throwing off the adjustment). It probably wouldn't hurt to kept the screwdriver on the screw while tightening the nut to keep it from moving.

Two: make sure you turn the gas to off before removing the tank. That was my mistake and I got gas everywhere. lol

Three: the metal screw clips attached to the plastic that the screws go into. Don't overtighten these as it will rip the plastic and ruin the screw hole. Another boneheaded mistake of mine. Live and learn, right?