Cam Chain Tensioner
adjust cam chain tensioner on a 1982 KZ1300?
Just bought the bike. It seems to run good, very fast. Everything I have read online about it says do not even start it in the spring without adjusting the cam chain.Now that I have read this I have convincedmyself I can hear it rattling.Have not found a manual yet , can anyone explain the proceedure? Thank you for all help.
You don’t adjust the tensioner because it does it automatically. Or at least that’s what it’s supposed to do. They wear and then won’t keep the chain tight. You then go to start the bike and especially if the battery is a bit low, it stumbles a bit when cranking, the cam chain jumps a tooth or two and the pistons hit the open valves. You then have a VERY, VERY expensive problem on your hands!
You have three options, very inexpensive, not very expensive and kind of expensive, but still MUCH less expensive than looking for hard to find valves, $100+ head gaskets that Kawasaki no longer carries, etc.
Very inexpensive is to remove the lock bolt on the top of the tensioner (the larger tensioner on the right side), take it to an auto parts store and get one a little longer with the same pitch thread (metric). Reinsert it slightly, run the engine and with it running, tighten the bolt down snuggly. This will lock the tensioner rod in place. This works as long as the rod and balls aren’t worn so much that it prevents it from tightening the chain properly. If it doesn’t, all you’ll do is lock the chain in the loose position, which isn’t good. In addition, if the tensioner is still working as it’s supposed, it now can’t.
The second is to remove the tensioner, disassemble it (don’t loose the balls or spring), bore and tap a 3/8″ hole on the back side of the cylindrical part and insert a 3/8″ bolt and lock nut. Replace the tensioner, tighten the bolt finger tight, run the engine and with it running, see if it will tighten up any more by using your fingers or VERY lightly with a wrench, then tighten the lock nut. If the tensioner is still tightening as it’s supposed to, it will continue to do so. Just loosen the lock nut and check periodically (5,000 miles). This is what I did on my bike.
The third is to spent $80-100 for a ratchet type tensioner for a ZX 1100 Kawsaki. Make a gasket out of a cereal box and install. This will lock the tensioner rod in place and not let it back out.
My friend bent valves not once, but TWICE on his bike! Too bad he didn’t fix the tensioner after the first time! You have a good bike, so fix the tensioner right now before you damage it and junk the bike. If you bend valves and take it somewhere to be fixed (if a shop even will), you’ll blow a good $1500 (if you’re lucky).
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