CB360 cam chain adjustment - pending problems?

[pkoster]

Hi all,
Another cam chain question from a newbie. I've read through the Honda manual and followed the instructions. I have a couple of questions, not sure if what I see is normal or indications of some problems:

1) I think the chain is still loose: Posted a video (http://youtu.be/jawDdXdSB7w) after the adjustment with the generator rotor moving back and forth a few degrees. Sounds like the chain is slapping/tapping against something. The same sound happened before I did the adjustment as well, I found this as I was trying to get the compression stroke.

2) When I pulled off the generator cover there was a bit of oil in bottom, posted pics. Is this normal or a sign of some seal leaking? The oil is dark/dirty, but the engine oil on the dip stick is clean/new looking, much lighter in color.

My next step is to measure the distance to the bottom of the push bar in the access hole of the tensioner, according the manual supplement from Honda.


Thanks for the expertise and advice,
Peter

 

[plagrone]

I can't offer much help on your mystery noise, but I can tell you a bit of oil in the stator area is perfectly normal.

 

[irk miller]

Oil in the cover is normal, and any air cooled engine will have dark oil. You should be more concerned if there is metal in there.

 

[frogman]

The sound of a chain is possibly from the starter chain that is behind the stator. If you spin the engine back wards you will cause the starter clutch to engauge and when you let it go or turn it correctly it will dis-engage and make a weird noise. This also happens when you shut the bike off, the engine spins backwards just a touch once it slows down which engages the clutch and makes kind of zip sound then spins the starter.

Should NOT turn the engine clockwise very far as that can cause tensioner problems, since you are technically trying to pull the slack out toward the blade which could pop it loose or break it. A little back and forth rocking when setting timing is fine, but don't try to go more than that.

 

[pkoster]

Thanks frogman, makes sense. Takes a load off my mind.

I'll take it out for spin, hopefully tonight to see if there is any improvements.

I'm on the hunt for a power loss & missed firing when cruising at about 4-5K RPM. I suspect it's in the intake or carbs. I was told to check the timing & points, so that is next on the list.

Also when I lifted the tank yesterday I noticed the following patch jobs to the carb boots/connectors (see pic). There seems to be some black tape and silver glue or something. Earlier I did a quick test with engine starter at idle and didn't notice any revving up. However I've seen posts with both WD40 (slowing the RPM) and engine starter (increasing RPM), so I may try again targeting these spots once everything is nice and warm. In any case, I'm ordering some replacements as I can't imaging what's there now will last very long.

Cheers,
Peter

 

[xb33bsa]

good luck looks like you are on top of things
for future reference the way to tell if the cam chain is loose is to watch the cam (under points cover)
if you gently rotate the crankshaft a few degrees to and fro you should see very little to zero lag at the cam
what you are shooting for is zero lag or as close to that as is possible,the cam chain tensioner is designed to remove all slack and actually load the chain slightly with tension

 

[plagrone]

good luck looks like you are on top of things
for future reference the way to tell if the cam chain is loose is to watch the cam (under points cover)
if you gently rotate the crankshaft a few degrees to and fro you should see very little to zero lag at the cam
what you are shooting for is zero lag or as close to that as is possible,the cam chain tensioner is designed to remove all slack and actually load the chain slightly with tension

This is a super handy trick. Thank you. On my old 650 sometimes doing the tension maintenance wouldn't "take"... This would have saved me a lot of time

 

[pkoster]

Great tip plagrone - I'll check that.

What a great site!

Cheers

 

[frogman]

Boots are cheap or at least they were last time I checked. The Flat spot at 4-5k is being discussed else where on this forum. Seems to be a common thing with 360s that might have been rejetted for a change in exhaust, intake, altitude or with worn out parts in the carbs.

I have the same issue except mine happens from around 3500-4100. Its always done that far as long as I've had it, just was much worse when I first got it. I spend about 2% of my time riding it down there so I just deal with it. I usually keep it up around 5-7K, makes most of its power in that area anyway.

Edit--Just saw this as I was closing the thread, the lock nut on the PUSH cable is very loose on your carbs, it should be all the way back down against the mount not where its at. That cable end also looks very different from mine. Either way you need to snug it down so it doesn't come loose and fall out and lock things up.

 

[pkoster]

Thanks again frogman. I noticed that too when I looked at the photo. Once more thing to fix This is why I got a 40yr old bike - to maintain it as well as enjoy it.

Cheers