Fred Harper
Member
Well done, the manual I copied off internet was wrong and you got it squared away.
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Thank you very much for posting this. I've placed this on my list of new things to add to my maintainence scheduleI found a great YouTube video on Valve Adjustment Step by Step. I hope someone finds it as useful as I did and I’m putting it in the right place:
John in Colorado
I didn’t realize there was any confusion about which cylinder is #1. The Honda service manual says to check the valve clearance for the No. 1 cylinder, then illustrates that by showing a photo of a feeler gauge at a valve stem of cylinder #1. I don’t see how this wasn’t clear already. Is the Honda manual not correct, or did Honda publish a conflicting procedure in some other document?Bumping this legendary topic because there is too much confusion on That Other Forum about which cylinder is #1
Bless this thread
I didn't see anything which clearly defined which cylinder or which valves were intake or exhaust. I wanted to be sure that I was checking the correct cylinder and figured double checking would be quick and easy. The British forum came up first on Google and was full of uncertainty and bickering.I didn’t realize there was any confusion about which cylinder is #1. The Honda service manual says to check the valve clearance for the No. 1 cylinder, then illustrates that by showing a photo of a feeler gauge at a valve stem of cylinder #1. I don’t see how this wasn’t clear already. Is the Honda manual not correct, or did Honda publish a conflicting procedure in some other document?
Elsewhere the manual illustates the #1 spark plug and the #1 coil, and they are shown as being on the side of the engine that has the water pump, so it seems like a consistent message.
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I understand your point of view. What I read in Honda's valve check procedure seems clear enough. I don't visit That Other Forum, so I wasn't aware of any confusion on cylinder identification, but I'm puzzled as to why it would even be questioned.I didn't see anything which clearly defined which cylinder or which valves were intake or exhaust. I wanted to be sure that I was checking the correct cylinder and figured double checking would be quick and easy. The British forum came up first on Google and was full of uncertainty and bickering.
My manual didn't say which plug or spark coil was which, at least not in the Maintenance chapter.
I've only worked on the Honda and my single thumper DRZ, and I have only been riding for five years this year. I don't come with a wealth of information and knowledge of how engine layouts are normally described
@670cc - yeah, unfortunately Honda NC750X Stuff on YouTube did a tutorial video where he got the cylinders backwards, and many people seem to follow that as a guide. Esp. on the NC700/750 FB groups, where many do not bother to look at the shop manual, in spite of the fact that links to the PDFs are posted right there on their page.Is the Honda manual not correct, or did Honda publish a conflicting procedure in some other document?
It's been a very long time since I have read the General Information chapter.... Coming up on four years now....I understand your point of view. What I read in Honda's valve check procedure seems clear enough. I don't visit That Other Forum, so I wasn't aware of any confusion on cylinder identification, but I'm puzzled as to why it would even be questioned.
In the General Information section of the Honda manual, the motorcycle's components are illustrated and identified. There, it is defined which is spark plug wire#1 and coil #1.
If anyone adjusts their bike's valves on the wrong cylinder or wrong TDC, they'll know they did it wrong when it needs a lot of adjustment, and consequently the engine runs poorly.
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Yes, that is unfortunate. People that rely on youtube videos in lieu of a product manufacturer's provided service manual run the risk that the information may be, well, incorrect. Now to be fair, Honda did screw up one thing in the valve adjustment procedure in the very first version of the NC700X manual but I understand it has since been corrected.@670cc - yeah, unfortunately Honda NC750X Stuff on YouTube did a tutorial video where he got the cylinders backwards, and many people seem to follow that as a guide. Esp. on the NC700/750 FB groups, where many do not bother to look at the shop manual, in spite of the fact that links to the PDFs are posted right there on their page.
Note that NC750 Stuff is a great channel with many accurate and well done maintenance videos. He also replies to comments promptly. Just an unfortunate mistake!
I read the manual and typically watch youtube for stuff I haven't done before. If I did read the first chapter closely (which I didn't), and took the video as the correct methodology, I would have done it wrong.Yes, that is unfortunate. People that rely on youtube videos in lieu of a product manufacturer's provided service manual run the risk that the information may be, well, incorrect. Now to be fair, Honda did screw up one thing in the valve adjustment procedure in the very first version of the NC700X manual but I understand it has since been corrected.
You can lead a motorcyclist to a manual, but you can't make them read it closelyIf I may be very blunt, RTFM.
I completely agree. I don't really think it is blunt at all.With apologies, if I may be very blunt, the rule is RTFM.