Re:How do I adjust the distance between the can arm and the valve??
(Date Posted:08/14/2009 09:35:11)
The adjustment is a screw threaded into the end of the rocker arm. The screw is adjusted in or out to increase or decrease the clearance between it (the screw) and the end of the valve.
This adjustment is done at top dead center (or thereabouts) on the compression stroke so you're sure the valves are fully closed, and the cam is not trying to lift either valve.
The screw is held in place by a lock nut. Loosen the lock nut, adjust the screw, hold the adjustment fixed and tighten the lock nut. Tightening the lock nut will tend to move the adjuster too so you kind of have to hold it fixed with a screwdriver in one hand and tighten the lock nut with a wrench in the other hand.
The clearance itself is supposed to be set using feeler gauges. You insert a feeler gauge (a thin piece of metal of an exact, known thickness) into the gap and tighten the adjuster screw until it just creates a slight drag on the feeler gauge when it's inserted/removed.
Intake valves on our vintage Hondas typically run with 0.002" ~ 0.003" clearance and exhaust usually runs 0.003" ~ 0.005". Your specific year/model may vary. You'll need to look it up somewhere.
And that's about it.
Good luck with it, and keep us updated.
Kirk
|