I think any time one of us tackles something for the first it's a good opportunity for that person
and others to learn. With that in mind, I hope I'm not just increasing the overall bulk of this forum with the following.
My bike turned 10k miles recently and I decided it was time to check the tensioner as long as I would be dropping the oil (been hearing just a bit of noise lately, too).
Step one: read a bunch on SS.com for other folks experiences and general learnin'.
Step two: gather necessary parts. Mostly the clutch cover gasket and exhaust header gasket.
Step three: get to work.
Draining the oil and pulling the exhaust is no big deal. My exhaust gasket actually looks pretty good so I think I'll just hang on to the new one for now.
TIP: Two ways to deal with the right side foot peg. Either let it hang by pulling it off both bolts or use Diggers method of just tapping the top/forward bolt and rotating it forward. I tried that and found it easiest to go ahead and let the entire foot peg assembly hang, but, I suspended it by a big twist tie (wire would work fine, too 'course) from the frame so there was no danger to the brake switch connection and clip.
The clutch cover came off remarkably easy and the gasket is intact. I'm now torn between re-using the gasket (which would be taking a chance for a leak but saving the new gasket) or using the new one. I will probably just err on the side of caution since I already have the gasket. Wish they were cheaper. Any thoughts one way or t'other?
Here's how it looks:
I used the cardboard box technique for keeping track of the bolts (just traced around the new gasket) and a "redneck parts sorter" for the other bits (aka egg carton).
Props to my local shop. I went in and talked to the guys in the shop instead of the parts counter and explained that I wanted a back-up circlip in case the one holding the tensioner deformed too much to re-use. He said he's never encountered that but went in back and then just handed me 2 different sizes; a 7 and and 8. Great service there!
The hardest part of this (thus far) was getting that darn circlip off. But only because I didn't have the right tool. My snap ring pliers are huge and no amount of effort with small flat-bladed screwdrivers would work. I even impaled my finger with a jeweler's screwdriver before giving up last night. On my way home, I stopped at Sears and picked up a small snap ring plier and when I got home, walked up to the bike and took that clip off on the first try.
TIP: don't start this project unless you have the right tool to remove that clip! Save yourself a whole bunch of aggravation and injury!
Here's the one I picked up for $9:
I sent the funds to Verslagen and have my parts cleaned and bagged for the post office tomorrow.
Hope the tips help someone in the future and any feedback from folks who have re-used the clutch cover gasket would be appreciated. I don't want to bother with RTV except the few places it's recommended (by the wires and the 3 washer gaskets).
Oh, and my tensioner was out by about 19.5 mm at 10K miles. Most of those miles were from me (from about 2700 on) and the ride length is usually 24 miles to work and then back home. Maybe my tensioner went out sooner since the rides aren't long?
Another tip: If you don't have calipers, you can mark a piece of paper and then just measure that with a ruler.
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