Timing check done the easy way

[danf]

My friend loaned me two site glasses, one has both glass pieces in place with the crosshairs, the second one only has one glass piece in to bottom, I tried both and I found that the one with only one glass piece reads a lot better than the other with two, fresh oil and I only used two quarts.. :grin:

 

[dan filipi]

I would have guessed the one with one glass would work better.
Good to know.

Can you see the marks with it now while running?
Did you paint the marks?

 

[danf]

I would have guessed the one with one glass would work better.
Good to know.

Can you see the marks with it now while running?
Did you paint the marks?

Yes, I see everything, I'm gonna mess with the vacuum advance to see what happens if I turn it, I want to see if it actually has any effect on the timing..I know that the manual says it isn't adjustable but I want to see for myself, Joe said it was and I want to see..Now that I have a site glass..I was hopeing someone else would step up on this but it hasn't happened yet..I shall be the tester ha ha...I already removed the wheel again and the swingarm, man I'm getting good at this..

 

[danf]

Dan when I went to clean up the crank in the site hole the marks were all ready red so I just painted it white, I found that there is really no need, thank's for the tip on the oil, removing some and adding fresh made a big difference..My friend will be happy to know this trick..Oh, the two glass one sucks..I'd get rid of a lense..but that's me..

 

[danf]

My friend told me I was doing it wrong I should mark t-1 on the wood and the pulley not f-1, I tried it and it sure looks closer, the f-1 mark was a little low and was freaking me out..I'm not arguing with him he has worked on more goldwings than I can count, really smart dude..some of my ideas blow him away though, ha ha..He called me a profectionist,, them there's is fighting words man...I'm far from that and I make my mistakes, but usually correct them..Well how are you supposed to get it right if you don't fall on your face one in awhile [everyday] :smilie_happy: I'll take the pulley check over that site glass any day of the week..I'm on the hunt for a cam pulley cover now for the left side.. :grin: that idea is original just like my stand.. I like them both because you can see the marks no problem.. :grin:

 

[joedrum]

beav i cant weigh in on anything .....it just to cold to do anything with the wings.....so you have swingarm off again .....im assuming you got the headless bolt out .....on my bike ive got the tank out but the swingarm is still in....i think im going to take it off too.....it sould be aesy to tell if it works ....idont know what keeps the thresded rod from moving or how much stress it can take ......yours is probably nice and clean with all the work you have done .....but with the plate off and the bolt loose on vacume canister you should be able to move the timing plate back and forth.....

anyway i cant wait for your report on it ......as soon as i can do something i will ....good luck beav... :mrgreen:

 

[danf]

beav i cant weigh in on anything .....it just to cold to do anything with the wings.....so you have swingarm off again .....im assuming you got the headless bolt out .....on my bike ive got the tank out but the swingarm is still in....i think im going to take it off too.....it sould be aesy to tell if it works ....idont know what keeps the thresded rod from moving or how much stress it can take ......yours is probably nice and clean with all the work you have done .....but with the plate off and the bolt loose on vacume canister you should be able to move the timing plate back and forth.....

anyway i cant wait for your report on it ......as soon as i can do something i will ....good luck beav... :mrgreen:

Yeh Joe, this weather is bumbing me out man, I like the heat not the cold..Yeh, I have that aftermarket one on and it works really well, I'm gonna see today if I can turn it while it's running, one full turn so it goes back into the bolt slot, it will spin easier than the original because the air pipe is on the end.. :grin:

 

[joedrum]

i dont think one turn is going to make that much differense but you will see .....so your confident that when you turn the canister ...it will turn the threaded rod too thats my only concern i have ....how stable the threasded rod ....its obvious that at the factory they adjusted the timing and secured it ...but how much stess can it take ....and how much corrosion dose it take to make this not do right...i think a lot of 1100 ignitions are in bad shape with corrosion and stiffness to the point of that being the biggest problem and trying to adjust the timing is just going to tear up the vacume canister......be careful how you go about it beav... :mrgreen:

 

[danf]

i dont think one turn is going to make that much differense but you will see .....so your confident that when you turn the canister ...it will turn the threaded rod too thats my only concern i have ....how stable the threasded rod ....its obvious that at the factory they adjusted the timing and secured it ...but how much stess can it take ....and how much corrosion dose it take to make this not do right...i think a lot of 1100 ignitions are in bad shape with corrosion and stiffness to the point of that being the biggest problem and trying to adjust the timing is just going to tear up the vacume canister......be careful how you go about it beav... :mrgreen:

Joe you can advance the timing as you said by turning the canister, if anyone ever removes a vacuum advance don't turn that arm screw because it's factory set, by turning it you will make your timing off..

 

[danf]

Well here are a few tricks if you are going to look into the site glass to check your timing, Do It At Night, you will find that you will see the marks much easier in a dark back ground, the day light doesn't help viewing it, I noticed it as the day went on, And you can also place a magnifying glass and shoot your light thru it..I was off one turn, I'd say I did pretty good with setting my vacuum advance arm on the after market one..Those are fine threads too, on the arm...I turned it while it was running then checked my timing marks, My friend is right t-1 to t-1 is the way to go for the pulley method.. I went with the red nail polish on the crank...I can see it with full oil..I was freaking out running the bike with oil low so I put in that quart it was low..and could still see it.. It advances fine and I made a advance mark on my stand, it's about an 1" up from the idle mark.. so when you throttle up it raises about that inch..These are my findings.. :grin:

 

[joedrum]

good stuff beav ....im feeling pretty good about timing adjustability....if it would just warm up some so i can do it.... :mrgreen:

 

[danf]

Hello folks, I am always thinking, always trying to do things different than most, my friend told me how to check the timing using the left pulley and paint marks, but as much as I like my friend he told me wrong, Well, let me explain,, he told me to mark the t-1 mark then mark the t1 on the pulley when you think about it that's not right, it should be the f-1 mark at idle and it should line up with the t-1 mark on the case.. just like when your reading it in the hole..So here's what I did, I first found that it was kinda hard to see the marks from the pulley to the side case so I changed it, I made a custom cut piece of wood [1/2" ply] and nailed it to a 4x4 and made a stand, I put the t-1 mark on it after lining it up thru the site glass, then I moved the crank to the f-1 and f-2 marks and made my paint marks on the pulley, the t-1 is that same thing as the crosshair mark in your site glass, now while it's at a idle the f-1 mark should line up with the t-1 on your wood, here are some photo's to show you how I did it and you can see the marks with ease now..View attachment 2View attachment 1 Yes, i don't see why a striaght piece of wood wouldn't work, when you throttle up the mark should raise up..if it doesn't the vacuum advance is probably not working.. Just another way to check your timing.. :grin: or you can do it the other way. I was able to read the marks and throttle it by hand at the carbs at the same time and you can see the marks raise up.. :grin:

This is wrong, F-1 mark is wrong, should be t-1 to t-1, ect. I confirm it with the site glass, I didn't have before I wrote this..Joe I did turn the canister 4 times to see if it did anything and it moved it for sure..The timing.. :grin: I'm gonna try white out today on the marks to see if it's better, the white paint I used before didn't do so good..

 

[danf]

good stuff beav ....im feeling pretty good about timing adjustability....if it would just warm up some so i can do it.... :mrgreen:

Ok, you can adjust it, but if you have a leak in your vacuum advance forget it, with it running you can get that mark by fine tuning it if it's off, right turn clockwise will advance it..This really has been a new learning experience for me, not being a trained mechanic and all..I trained myself and I made plenty of mistakes in the process.. :grin: That pulse generator does alot more than people even think about..Joe you can remove that circlip at the front shaft but I just remove the one in the rear and pull out the swingarm, I find it easy with my custom made long needle nose from harbor freight [cheap].. just grind down to make your tips [long tips], I use a fine file to make a small groove in the tips on each side so the circlips don't slip off once you grab them and you must bend them out a little so they look pigeon toed if you don't it won't open enough, I go right in grab it and come right out just like nothing..Not hard might ned to remove some grease first but you need new anyway right..Maybe the front one's easier, I don't know..Seems like it would be a pain with that rubber boot in the way, never even tried it.. :grin:

 

[danf]

Is anyone having any luck using a site glass, all I'm getting is oil and can't see the marks, I took out a quart of oil, should I remove more?

Have a look at the site glass made for this.


The big difference in this thing is it's deeper than the one I made from an old oil fill cap.
With this window and a dab of white paint on the timing marks should make them easier to see.
I'll order one if I can find it cheap then I'd be willing to loan it out to members here.

Dan you can borrow mine if you want, I bought the one from my friend with the single glass, he's getting the other one back, send a pm and I'll send it to ya.. :grin:this way you won't even have to remove the glass.. :grin:

 

[joedrum]

yah beav ive got the same tool modified from harbor feight....i might do that today ....its starting to warm some ......good work beav ......were all trying to get a wingnut degree .....knowing every nut and bolt on our oldwings..... :whistling: :hihihi: :mrgreen:

 

[danf]

Yes, Dan has a really nice how to sync your carbs on youtube..He explains it perfectly so a dumbbell like me can understand what he's doing so I can do it too..Man that platform I made sure does help alot..Joe maybe you could frame ya up a 4x8 platform to work on the bike, if it's not level ground just block it up level..just a thought..A deck for the bike ha ha :smilie_happy: Joe same offer for you on that site glass..But the pulley method is a lot easier..and you sure can see the marks better..When I get another cam pulley cover I will post some photo's of the timing check with that window cut out in it ha ha :grin:

 

[danf]

If anyone uses the timing stand method can you please let us all know how much exactly it raises, Mine raised to full advance about 1" from the t-1 mark on the stand at about 3000 rpm..We need the same measurments so we know it's right... .. :grin: It would be most helpful..