valve adjustment

little fish · October 29th, 2011, 10:19 AM

well that was easy, just adjusted the valves to the 250 and it only took about an hour, pretty straight forward. runs ALOT better and idles great now.
two of the exhaust vavles were real loose and the rest were too tight all good now.

Alex · October 29th, 2011, 10:25 AM

choneofakind · October 29th, 2011, 10:25 AM

How many miles on the bike?

WhiteRice · October 29th, 2011, 10:27 AM

One hour? That's awesome. Was it your first time? What informational materials did you use?

little fish · October 29th, 2011, 10:48 AM

the bike has a little over 15000 i followed the steps i found at http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/What_is...t_procedure%3F

Jono · October 29th, 2011, 10:58 AM

Glad it went smoothly!

greg737 · October 29th, 2011, 03:07 PM

Glad to hear the adjustment went smoothly.

Because your bike is younger than a 1996 model and because it has 15,000 miles on it I think you'll find that this valve adjustment will last for quite a while. In other words, it should take a while for the valves to tighten up again (probably 5000 miles or more of normal riding).

The aluminum alloy used in casting the EX-250 cylinder head prior to 1997 was softer and wore more quickly than the alloy they've used since then (about 1997 to present model). Also, with 15,000 miles on your bike most of the deformation that will occur in your engine's valve seats has already happened.

The valve seats in the cylinder head get harder and wear more slowly as the miles add up (maybe the repeated heat-cycling of the engine over all those miles tempers the valve seats). Things should be pretty stable for about 5000 miles as long as your engine is never overheated (which can cause the valves themselves to "tulip" which will also cause them to go out of proper adjustment, becoming "tight").

pop0tart · November 4th, 2011, 08:32 AM

Did you notice a different sound when riding with the adjusted valves? It definitely sounds like my valve train is making a bit of a different sound since I did my valves. All of my exhausts were too tight before adjusting.

little fish · November 4th, 2011, 10:10 AM

only that the rattling sound went away. i adjusted mine to .005 / inch on the intake and .006 / inch on the exhaust i'm not racing so i didn't need them on the tight side. my idle is set at about 1100 rpm. and at @ 100 mph i'm hitting 11k-12k rpm ( just wanted to see if the little rocket would go that fast).
just make sure, after you adjust the valves and you ride for about an hour ..go back and make sure the valve cover is still snug. i noticed i could tighten mine a quarter turn after my first ride....one week later still no leaks.

October 29th, 2011, 10:19 AM	#1
little fish ninjette.org member Name: Ken Location: middle Ga. Join Date: Oct 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2003 Nija, 1984 es200 ATC Posts: 44 Blog Entries: 1	valve adjustment well that was easy, just adjusted the valves to the 250 and it only took about an hour, pretty straight forward. runs ALOT better and idles great now. two of the exhaust vavles were real loose and the rest were too tight all good now.

October 29th, 2011, 10:25 AM	#2
Alex ninjette.org dude Name: 1 guess :-) Location: SF Bay Area Join Date: Jun 2008 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 (white, the fastest color!), '13 R1200RT, '14 CRF250L, '12 TT-R125LE Posts: Too much. Blog Entries: 7	__________________________________________________ Montgomery Street Motorcycle Club / cal24.com / crf250l.org / ninjette.org ninjette.org Terms of Service Shopping for motorcycle parts or equipment? Come here first. The friendliest Ninja 250R/300/400 forum on the internet! (especially Unregistered)

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October 29th, 2011, 10:25 AM	#3
choneofakind ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: . Location: . Join Date: Feb 2011 Motorcycle(s): . Posts: Too much. MOTM - Feb '13, Feb '14	How many miles on the bike?

October 29th, 2011, 10:27 AM	#4
WhiteRice Kamikaze Squirrel Name: Zach Location: NJ Join Date: Sep 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2010 250r Posts: 300	One hour? That's awesome. Was it your first time? What informational materials did you use?

October 29th, 2011, 10:48 AM	#5
little fish ninjette.org member Name: Ken Location: middle Ga. Join Date: Oct 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2003 Nija, 1984 es200 ATC Posts: 44 Blog Entries: 1	the bike has a little over 15000 i followed the steps i found at http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/What_is...t_procedure%3F

October 29th, 2011, 10:58 AM	#6
Jono ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Jono Location: Memphis, TN Join Date: Sep 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Triumph Street Triple, 2009 KLX250SF, 2003 Suzuki SV650S (Sold), 2006 Ninja 250 (Sold) Posts: A lot.	Glad it went smoothly!

October 29th, 2011, 03:07 PM	#7
greg737 - Name: - Location: - Join Date: May 2009 Motorcycle(s): - Posts: A lot.	Glad to hear the adjustment went smoothly. Because your bike is younger than a 1996 model and because it has 15,000 miles on it I think you'll find that this valve adjustment will last for quite a while. In other words, it should take a while for the valves to tighten up again (probably 5000 miles or more of normal riding). The aluminum alloy used in casting the EX-250 cylinder head prior to 1997 was softer and wore more quickly than the alloy they've used since then (about 1997 to present model). Also, with 15,000 miles on your bike most of the deformation that will occur in your engine's valve seats has already happened. The valve seats in the cylinder head get harder and wear more slowly as the miles add up (maybe the repeated heat-cycling of the engine over all those miles tempers the valve seats). Things should be pretty stable for about 5000 miles as long as your engine is never overheated (which can cause the valves themselves to "tulip" which will also cause them to go out of proper adjustment, becoming "tight").

November 4th, 2011, 08:32 AM	#8
pop0tart ninjette.org member Name: Dash Location: PA Join Date: Jun 2011 Motorcycle(s): stolen :( Posts: 158	Did you notice a different sound when riding with the adjusted valves? It definitely sounds like my valve train is making a bit of a different sound since I did my valves. All of my exhausts were too tight before adjusting.

November 4th, 2011, 10:10 AM	#9
little fish ninjette.org member Name: Ken Location: middle Ga. Join Date: Oct 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2003 Nija, 1984 es200 ATC Posts: 44 Blog Entries: 1	only that the rattling sound went away. i adjusted mine to .005 / inch on the intake and .006 / inch on the exhaust i'm not racing so i didn't need them on the tight side. my idle is set at about 1100 rpm. and at @ 100 mph i'm hitting 11k-12k rpm ( just wanted to see if the little rocket would go that fast). just make sure, after you adjust the valves and you ride for about an hour ..go back and make sure the valve cover is still snug. i noticed i could tighten mine a quarter turn after my first ride....one week later still no leaks.