Valve adjustment problem

[DeeG]

I got my heads back from the shop, put the new rings on the pistons and put it all back on the R45.  Adjusted the valves on the left side, then went to do the right.  Found that I could not get ANY free play on the right. Its so tight the valve doesn't fully close.

Took the rocker arms off, confirmed that the pushrod is seated properly then put the rockers back on.  checked the free play as I started tightening up the nuts.  Not even close to getting the nuts tight and the rocker is snug up against the valve.  Exhaust is fine, left side intake and exhaust are good.  What the heck?

Could it be that the shop ground the seat down too far and now the valve is just a bit too long? (can that happen??) I don't know what else could be wrong.  help!

Dee

[Bob_Roller]

Is the adjuster on the rocker arm for the problem valve backed off  ?

[DeeG]

Yes. Its all the way to the stop.  Can't back it off any further.

[Barry]

The lifters (cam followers) are hollow.  Is the push rod properly located in the bottom of the lifter.

[Tony Smith]

Ok, first up, unless they are the most incompetent morons in recorded history I doubt it is a machining fault. In fact I doubt that you could in fact actually cut the seat to a depth sufficient to run out of adjustment clearance. The fault I'm afraid is most probably an assembly error.

Can we have a photo of the offending please? In particular are you absolutely certain that all washers/spacers (if fitted) went back under the rocker shafts?
 
Are you certain that you didn't accidentally pick up a set of pushrods from a larger BMW?

Are you certain that the cam followers are "home" against the cam, if not, why not?

[montmil]

Visualize the ball & socket joint in the body's hip and shoulder.

The engine's pushrod has a ball tip that must seat into the lifter's socket. You most likely have a pushrod that is resting on the edge of the lifter body rather than being placed into the socket.

Loosen or remove the rocker shaft, adjust the pushrod's location to where you actually feel the ball fitting into the socket, then replace and re-torque the rocker body.

After everything is properly installed and the engine is running, put a couple hundred mikes on the odo and re-torque all the head bolts. I just completed a ring job and head replacement on my '81 R65. Checking the initial torque required an additional pull to recover my selected 26 ft lbs. Plus resetting valve lash.

Confirm TDC on each side. You should be good to go.

[Bob_Roller]

As Monte had already said, the camshaft is probably in a position, that it's trying to open the valve .

Rotate the engine using an allen wrench in the alternator bolt at the front engine and you'll probably find that the cam will move and you should be able to tighten the nuts with no problem ..

[DeeG]

I was thinking about pulling the head and cylinder off and starting all over again.  When I took it apart, I marked the push rods and the rocker arms, so its the one that came out of that spot.  There were no washers on the rocker arms.

I have cranked the engine around to different spots and I still cannot get any free play off it, even though the adjusting screw is all the way out.

The exhaust side is as it should be.  

I wonder, being as there are new push rod tube seals on it, could it be that the intake side has not been pushed in far enough???  I had that problem when I put the R90/6 back together, but it just leaked oil, I was able to adjust the valves as normal.

I am pretty sure the rod is seated properly. It had that bit of resistance when I pushed it in as the others did.

What the heck, its pouring rain out, and its either pull it apart and get it fixed or put new rubber on the F650.  

So, I will take everything back off, check to see that there isn't any FOD on the cam follower, check that the o rings are set in the recess, and check to make sure there isn't any baked on gunk on the mating surfaces of the head and cylinder.  I dd put a thin coat of Hylomar on the cylinder/case side, but that shouldn't be a problem.   I did notice some grey colored stuff on the case when I took everything apart, perhaps I didn't get that all off.   :-/

[DeeG]

Well, Took it all apart, cleaned up the surfaces again, checked everything, put it all back together.... no luck.  grrrrrr

I wonder, would it hurt it to put on the spacer shown on parts fiche?

[Bob_Roller]

What spacer ?

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/partgrp.do?model=0364&mospid=51897&hg=11&fg=34

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=0364&mospid=51897&btnr=11_1708&hg=11&fg=12

[Barry]

A very long shot.... but is it possible the inlet and exhaust valves are swapped over allowing the smaller valve to sink further into the intake seat. Even then I wouldn't have thought it would make enough  difference to make it unadjustable.

[DeeG]

What spacer ?

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/partgrp.do?model=0364&mospid=51897&hg=11&fg=34

On 'part 18', second thing down, is that not a spacer/washer in front of the support block?  Mine does not have that.

[donbmw]

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/partgrp.do?model=0364&mospid=51897&hg=11&fg=12

Check this on the cylinder head and cover.  Item 8 if that is missing it would give the problems you are having.

Don

[Tony Smith]

Deeg


If, the pushrods are installed correctly, the rockers are installed exactly the way they came out then I am sorry but the only remaining thing to be examined is your technique.

The reason I say this is that after carefully examining a spare head last night I am of the opinion that it is not possible to seat a valve so deeply so as to remove all adjustment and no workshop of any pretension to quality  would deeply pocket a valve anyway.
 
I have discounted the possibility of them installing the wrong valve as the stem diameter is rare - they would have noticed.
 
So, if comes down to you. I re-read your initial post and I wonder if you fell for a Noob trick. Did you by any chance carefully bring the engine up to compression on the LHS and set the LHS valve clearances and then immediate goo to the RHS and try to set the valves without turning the engine over to bring the RHS side up to compression?
 
The giveaway is that you managed to set the RHS exhaust, but not the inlet.


Sorry to accuse you of this, but I simply cannot see any other rational reason for the symptoms you describe.

[Luca]

Can the tappets go in upside down so that the cupped end rides the cam and the flat end keeps the pushrods pushed out farther than they should be?