Raptor8

most ppl avoid valve adjusts on those cuz they require shims, and according to Yamaha, special tools too. You have far more skills than the average user so you can go buy a shim you don't have- most folks folks just let 'em go until they have burned seats.

A page from the Honda book: if it's ticking then it's not too tight- if it's quiet, then it needs to be examined.

That little shim box and tool kit represents a significant investment to the dealer cuz he has to buy the training as well.

In my travels I have found more and more HIGH PRO quads out there without the proper maintenance- and just one leaky valve can drive you into the Tylenol jar in the first aid kit.

Funny, my 1981 street bike is bucket and shim, but my Raptor 660 has adjustable tappets....

I have 2 Honda accords and they both make little ticking sounds that way I know theyre not doing damge by being too tight and not closing- plus it makes em great 'sleepers' harharhar

MOST OHC quads that are quiet in the head are too tight.

Marc, do me a favor and hit that THANKS button at the bottom of your post!

excellent! good for you!

a 'little' water should make it bark and snort, but not quit. remove the filter and see if it goes. If not, pull the plug and put your thimb over the hole, kick it- see if you have good compression. It should easily push your thumb off the hole. While the plug is out, hook it to the wire, lay it on the head and kick it- look for a nice blue spark.

Make sure your fuel is new and turned on.

If you have compression, spark and fuel it should start.

It may not be the air filter at all.

Let us know

swap using what? cmon, tell us what yer doin

Aw Josh you beat me to it! that's how you test a starter switch/relay. Most, but not all, Yammers are ground to start. Rem I said 'not all,' at any rate the book you just got should have a test procedure in it. And yes, the valves are CRITICAL on those and can cause many problems, including hard starting. Unfortunately, they have to be done at a shop since they use shims like a race bike or a Ferrari. Now had you bought a Raptor you could adjust the valves yoursel;f...

you might call Barker's and ask them whatz up?

yeah, too much oil, wrong kind of oil [car oil], valves need adjusting. more than likely in there.

adjusting the valves the first time is a bear but after that it's easy. They should be adjusted a couple times a year.

Tell him to buy a shop manual! he's gonna need it:yes:

depends on what it is. I start at ebay, like Bio, then I go online and get the part number. next GOOGLE the part number and you'll find some great deals. Takes a few minutes but you can save a lot of money- many many dealers have free online parts catalogs... I just found a place for Yamaha parts that sells 25% off dealer price! I ordered some PARTS! hahaha I'll be using them more.:partyc:

no. you having trouble with breaking timing chains?

almost impossible to diagnose without hearing it- I'm happy you found it!

Oh Man that's good news!

Hondas= screw it down, Yammers=no. make sure to use ATVOIL, NOT car oil.

I always buy a service manual when I get a new rig- there's just too much to remember hahaha

A measuring cup called a Ratio-Rite or similar is a great investment, about 5 bucks. All bike stores will have them- at Harley they're right next to the drip pans...

2 wires on coil- one is hot with the ignition ON, the other is the trigger wire. so one should be HOT and one COLD [off] If you don't have one hot one, head for the battery. does it turn over?

grab the link to that manual- it should help you a lot!

Let us know!

I still think it's the cables/connections or maybe the battery.

1. bad connection or cables, bad cables unlikely on that new a unit. pull the ground lead and clean it where it bolts to the frame. Positive: goes to the starter- take it off and clean it. battery end: take em off and clean them. these MUST be clean or you won't get enuf voltage to the starter, just like now.

2. starter button is a ground. did you change bars recently?

3. battery. I've never seen 3 bad in a row, but who knows? that is a 12 volt remember when you charge it up.

4. starter: it could be shot. here's where you need to take it to a shop where they can bench test the draw- that'll tell you if it's OK or not. maybe an auto parts store will do it for you. AutoZone could do it if they WILL do it. They have the right equipment. If not, dealer- just take the starter. this is #4 on the list cuz it is least likely. check the other stuff first OK?

the cracking/pinging sound worries me, and the idle up. it could be valves hitting the piston- not good!

weird idle adjustment could be slack in that timing chain and that could let the valves smack the piston crown. I'll think on it some more.

Swing by Harbor freight and buy an automotive stethoscope- cheap and many uses- including scaring your friends! If not, use a long screwdriver. start it up and put the screwdriver in various places on the engine, put your ear aginst it and see if you can isolate where the sound is coming from. that could tell us a lot.

timing chain would have to be pretty whipped to do that, but it's possible. I agree I think you should start at the valve adjustments- it is often neglected. check your book for how to adjust the timing chain. most Yammers have the adjuster sticking out of the back, under the carb. you'll need a book to adjust it correctly.

if the chain is loose enuf to rub against something and make noise, then your valve timing is all over the place and that could easily be your slow idle- retarded timing. It's usually a simple procedure but check out a book first.

Sounds like the starter is being used as a ground path... I don't rem if those have a starter relay or not- it will show up in an online parts catalog- if it does they are usually right next to the battery. Good, clean battery connections? Yamahas very rarely have harness problems, but chasing some wires with a continuity meter would not hurt...

Service manuals on ebay if you dont have one already.

let us know how it goes

good call Bio

looks like everyone on here is an old fart, except bot and cat! ask any teenager, 35 is 'over the hill' lol

Bio and QN, I agree, I don't think rap is music- its a reason for cops to pull over annoying teens

and some of that metal! holy cow! no wonder the kids are deaf and stupid

hahaha of my three rides, only one currently has a deck that works... I found an old CARS greatest hits disc the other day, that was fun. I'm an old fart so I can get away with it.... huh? what day is this?

I've changed plenty of those in my travels... the blink sequence is a closely guarded secret of Honda. It may be in service manuals now, but in the past only Honda dealers knew! Check walk into any Honda dealer and say 'shift angle sensor' and they will know what you mean.

the way it's described that's about all it can be...

too much fluid or the wrong fluid- another one with car oil in it?

just do it right and do it once.... stuck rings= bad sign...

just a cleanup wont make the rings new again- they are shot.

sounds like you'll need a bore job, a new piston and rings.

as for the valves- ashop can do that for you.

buy a gasket set- shop around online you'll find one at a decent price.

if it's worn out- and it sounds like it- there's only one way to fix it.