Camshafts. B and C kit

HI all.

I have been watching the camshaft chatter with great interest as have most I would suspect. My GRiSO was sold as a 2010 8V but the VIN number indicates it was manufactured in 2009 and lack of a stamp on the head would indicate it is a C head or at least a C kit is needed if I were to go to a roller rocker set up.

My flat tappets were upgraded under warranty to the hardened flat tappet upgrade at 14,000km. The bike has now done 27,000 km's and is running fine. I bought it with 25,000 or so km's on it and the servicing though regular has not been done through a dealer so no warranty. It is still something that niggles though as most would agree. If the tappets were to fail again, I would need (as I see it) a C kit which here in New Zealand would be well over $2000 which I find a lot of dosh. The actual difference other than price between the B and C kit is the head gaskets and valve shims as well as few other bits and bobs and nearly half the cost.

My question then is this. Is there a reason the valve shims can't be fitted with the heads in place. When I was mechanic many years ago we used to replace valve stem seals and the like with the heads on. Remove the camshaft or the rocker shaft dependent on configuration, pressurize the cylinder with compressed air through a drilled spark plug with tube braised in and hooked up to a compressor and remove the valve spring collars with a special spring compressor (very easy to make). The compressed air in the cylinder holds the valves in place for removal of the collars, spring. This was a very common practice and very effective.

Can this be done with the GRiSO or do the valve collars stick making it difficult to do it this way. It would save both time and cost if successful.

Cheers Mark

Probably, but the time you get to that point apart from the inlet manifolds and exhaust headers there is really no benefit and you'd have to cobble together some sort of Heath Robinson arrangement to actually hold the head on! Once the Cambox so off the head is only held in place py the loosened cam Jain tunnel bolts and the exhaust and inlet bits. Really, it wod be a case of one of those things that people do to save five minutes that will add two hours to the job.

Buy the 'B' kit and the other bits and either buy the head gaskets after measuring them or just go for the middle ones. Then just do the job properly!

Pete

Sorry. Never realised the cam box bolts were also the head bolts. Makes sense to take them off.

Mark

No worries, sorry about the spelling, I was using my phone.

All good.
How much to purchase a B kit and xtras to make up C kit from you should I choose to go the conversion.

Cheers Mark

Shit! Don't buy it from me! The bloody thing will of been around the world three times before it gets to you! With the current exchange rates everything is shit anyway.

My guess would be price up from a variety of suppliers in Europe, then check on US prices and do the sums. U.S. Pricing is weird, no idea why? Sometimes things that are pricey elsewhere are cheap in the U.S. Sometimes the opposite.

Pete

Just a query, will the cylinder base gaskets not be compromised on removal of the heads ? I know with some bikes using through studs that this can happen,harleys for instance .

Nope. None of the gaskets head or base are kingerlite or kingerlite composite. They are more coated steel shims than gaskets per-se.

Pete

I'm going to rollerise my Sport at some point, would a B kit do it ? Cheers Andy.

Nope, 1200 Sport 8V has stand alone 'D' kit and heads have to come off for shimming.

Thanks Pete, there's obviously a reason a reason why a D kit has to be used , are there extra things to consider with this motor over a GRiSO or Stelvio ? Do you have the part number ? Regards.

Nah, it's just that the 1200Sports use the floating valve covers and need shims. You could buy an A kit and add the other bits as you can with a B kit to make it into a C kit. You will need to remap after the swap as all roller cams are the same but the flat tappet sport cams were a stand alone profile. The factory suggests some shitty old Stelvio map. Mark has developed a good map for the rollerised Sport.

Pete