I am feeling pissed!

[Regular Guy]

I bought a bike for my wife from some friends for a really good deal. It ran flawless! My wife has been riding the bike around the neighborhood, getting a feel for it. She hasn't ridden much because she was waiting on me to get my bike back together. I told her that she can ride around the hood without me so she took it for a spin about a week and a half ago I guess and came back asking me if the noise it was making was normal. She wanted to know if it had always done THAT?

I tell her I didn't think so, took it down the road and back and parked it. I changed the oil and filter the next day and didn't see any weirdness in the oil, no shimmering metal. I started it up and it still is making the racket, maybe worse. I made a recording of how it sounds.

https://youtu.be/z-LJhm6sOwU

Talking to a guy on the Honda Shadow forum, he thought maybe the valves needed adjusting and possibly a bolt had come loose and caused a valve to stay open. I tore it down to check the valves. Took tank and seat off, valve covers and crank case cover to set the valve timing. I checked both intakes valves and the exhaust valve in the front cylinder first, they were pretty much within spec but I went ahead and set them to what the manual calls for.

I did the same for the back cylinder, advanced the crank to the proper spot and measured and readjusted. Put it all back together, hoping for a miracle and still the same. For shits and giggles, I went and bought new plugs just to see if that was the ticket. Nope, still ticking. I am bummed the hell out. I am NO mechanic, I have done what I am capable of doing. My wife now can't ride and I am stuck with a big ass paperweight on 2 wheels.

:bang head::angry flame devil:

 

[42Below]

Try a long screwdriver as a stethoscope. Put the handle against you ear (like you are trying to insert it) and the other on various parts of the motor.
Pull the clutch cover to look inside too? Stator cover?

 

[sdt354]

Check the chain tensioner on each cylinder bank,inspect then reset them. Search the threads here on that. Or, a manual will help you do it. These engines can be noisy and run fine. A bearing issue is going to get louder as you rev it.
Steve-o

 

[Regular Guy]

Check the chain tensioner on each cylinder bank,inspect then reset them. Search the threads here on that. Or, a manual will help you do it. These engines can be noisy and run fine. A bearing issue is going to get louder as you rev it.
Steve-o

Just to clarify, her bike is a 2007 Honda Shadow 750 with 7900 miles on it. Maybe your advice still holds true, but my bike is the VMAX.

 

[carrizog60]

doesnt seems valve or chain related,sound like something is loose.
remove clutch cover and see if everything is torqued,same with flywheel.
honda engines arent noisy.

 

[Fire-medic]

I agree, though 7.5K miles isn't much, chain tensioners can and do go bad. Hondas of various vintages and designs have had issues with them. I don't know that's the case w/the V twin designs. An out of adjustment tensioner or deteriorated chain tensioner 'foot' would be noisy because you would have chain 'slap,' as you accelerate and decelerate, the chain moves in a cycle like two people holding onto a rope and making it move up and down creating 'waves.'

Is it so-noisy that you don't want to run it for fear of something happening, or has the bike stopped running?

Check the chain tensioner on each cylinder bank,inspect then reset them. Search the threads here on that. Or, a manual will help you do it. These engines can be noisy and run fine. A bearing issue is going to get louder as you rev it.
Steve-o

 

[Regular Guy]

I agree, though 7.5K miles isn't much, chain tensioners can and do go bad. Hondas of various vintages and designs have had issues with them. I don't know that's the case w/the V twin designs. An out of adjustment tensioner or deteriorated chain tensioner 'foot' would be noisy because you would have chain 'slap,' as you accelerate and decelerate, the chain moves in a cycle like two people holding onto a rope and making it move up and down creating 'waves.'

Is it so-noisy that you don't want to run it for fear of something happening, or has the bike stopped running?

It runs but I am afraid to run it. It runs rough as well. In that video the bike goes dead, I didn't turn it off! I don't think a chain tensioner would cause that plus they looked good as new when I looked at them. It's crazy! The issue came out of the blue. Literally fine one day, noisey a few days later on the next ride. It's got me frustrated to say the least.

 

[CaptainKyle]

I wish I was closer to you. I just can not here the noise good enough on my crappy laptop or my phone.

 

[carrizog60]

if flywheel is for some reason loose it can cause bad timing and ignition.
remove and check it,in worst case is just a new gasket or you just can put some silicone sealant.

 

[Regular Guy]

Hey guys, just an update on this. I had the bike towed to a shop just down the road from me and they were backed up 4-6 weeks and I just had to wait for the call when they got to it. I called last week just to see where I was in the queue and he said that they had 6 bikes in front of mine, 2 were awaiting parts so they were moving on down the line and then back to the 2 waiting for parts once said parts arrived. He said they do about 1 bike a day so mine should be gotten to later THIS week, as in by the 19th. I was cool with that, it seemed that it would be closer to 4 weeks rather than 6!

Today, I got home from work, tired as hell and decided to take a nap. I feel asleep HARD. I had the house all to myself, just me and the dogs. All snoozing. My phone was sitting on my nightstand and it rang. It scared me half to death! I kid you not, I jumped out of the bed, was looking around for the source of that loud ringing. Found the phone, held it in my hand, sat it on the bed, staring at it not knowing what the hell to do to it, lol. I was out of mind, lol! I was in such a deep sleep which is beyond rare with me, that I didn't even know where I was! Hahahaha!

At any rate, I answered it before it went to my voicemail, good thing I did. It was the mechanic telling me that my bike was ready! Still not all together with it, I managed to finally come out of my trance and asked him what the issue was. He said that the rear cylinder valves were way out of adjustment, that they had NEVER seen one that out of whack! He said the front was fine. I was happy that it was something simple but began wondering what in the hell I had done. I did adjust the front ones myself as well as the back ones! I followed the same procedure on the back as the front and it made no difference. ??? So, I don't know what I did but it makes me a little pissed knowing that I could've fixed it myself

Oh well, it at least has a happy ending and it didn't break the bank. $200.00 plus $78.00 for towing fees. I can live with that. Now, my wife wants to sell it and get a Kawaksaki Vulcan, lol!

I really do appreciate you guys helping out with all of the above advice. You guys rock! Even though her bike is not a Max, you took time to help me and I really appreciate each of you!

Now I just need to diagnose my latest issue with the charging system of Maxine so we can both FINALLY go riding

 

[effingidiot]

Well.At least it's fixed,the honda is good for loads of miles now.I wouldn't swap a honda for a kwak,but thats just me.

 

[Regular Guy]

Well.At least it's fixed,the honda is good for loads of miles now.I wouldn't swap a honda for a kwak,but thats just me.

I'm with ya man. The thing is with my wife, she goes with what looks good versus what might be the better one mechanically. She already wanted a Vulcan but once she rode my Max around the neighborhood, she definitely wanted something else. The Vmax steers so much better than that Shadow, it's comical. The Shadow takes a country mile to turn. I can do U-Turns on her bike but it's not the easiest thing. She can't do it. She tries, she fails, lol!

Since riding my bike she told that when hers was fixed she wanted to sell it and get a Vulcan. We shall see.

Which do you think looks better?

or

One thing she likes is the riding position of the Vulcan as opposed to the Shadow. She also likes mag wheels better then the spoke wheels. Other than that, power wise I think they'll be close even though the Vulcan is 100cc smaller, it's also lighter. If I were to get her one, it'd be the ABS model as well. I actually like the look of the Vulcan better. It stands out like our Maxes stand out. Looks a little Mad Max themed, lol.

 

[Bill Seward]

Vulcan.

 

[Jan Bee]

I'm with ya man. The thing is with my wife, she goes with what looks good versus what might be the better one mechanically. She already wanted a Vulcan but once she rode my Max around the neighborhood, she definitely wanted something else. The Vmax steers so much better than that Shadow, it's comical. The Shadow takes a country mile to turn. I can do U-Turns on her bike but it's not the easiest thing. She can't do it. She tries, she fails, lol!

Since riding my bike she told that when hers was fixed she wanted to sell it and get a Vulcan. We shall see.

Which do you think looks better?

or

One thing she likes is the riding position of the Vulcan as opposed to the Shadow. She also likes mag wheels better then the spoke wheels. Other than that, power wise I think they'll be close even though the Vulcan is 100cc smaller, it's also lighter. If I were to get her one, it'd be the ABS model as well. I actually like the look of the Vulcan better. It stands out like our Maxes stand out. Looks a little Mad Max themed, lol.

In the future there is another v4 site called v4musclebike.com. A guy on there named MagnAndy that will be able to tell you anything wrong with that bike.

 

[Regular Guy]

In the future there is another v4 site called v4musclebike.com. A guy on there named MagnAndy that will be able to tell you anything wrong with that bike.

I spoke with a guy on the phone and he had me thinking the damn motor was a goner! I think sometimes you just have to see it in person. I am just glad it's fixed so she can ride with me.

 

[effingidiot]

I'm with ya man. The thing is with my wife, she goes with what looks good versus what might be the better one mechanically. She already wanted a Vulcan but once she rode my Max around the neighborhood, she definitely wanted something else. The Vmax steers so much better than that Shadow, it's comical. The Shadow takes a country mile to turn. I can do U-Turns on her bike but it's not the easiest thing. She can't do it. She tries, she fails, lol!

Since riding my bike she told that when hers was fixed she wanted to sell it and get a Vulcan. We shall see.

Which do you think looks better?

or

One thing she likes is the riding position of the Vulcan as opposed to the Shadow. She also likes mag wheels better then the spoke wheels. Other than that, power wise I think they'll be close even though the Vulcan is 100cc smaller, it's also lighter. If I were to get her one, it'd be the ABS model as well. I actually like the look of the Vulcan better. It stands out like our Maxes stand out. Looks a little Mad Max themed, lol.

Yes i can see why she likes the vulcan,it is better suited for her.

 

[liptoss]

Preference of appearance is one thing, but from what I've seen on the street, your Honda v twin, engine is a pretty solid performer. Probably able to last a good long time. MUCH like the Max engine.

 

[radley]

that vulcan is sweet lookin...

 

[firebolt]

I agree - the Vulcan looks sweet