Attempting to adjust the valves, questions...

[Sundowner750]

Originally Posted by Water Warrior

First time I've heard of adjusting valves with a warm engine. The engine must be cold. Find another mechanic.

Quite True!!!. My mechanic who taught me how to do it, showed me in this order:

1) adjust closed intake valves to spec, hand rotate the engine till all intake valves are adjusted.
2) repeat the above with the exhaust valves,
3) rotate engine and check all valves again.
4) replace all covers, replace carbs and the rest of the fuel system
5) sync carbs (if your bike has more than one carb.)
6) start bike andcheck for vacuum and other leaks, adjust as nessasary

the above method was taught to me on a 16valve 4 carb Suzuki GSX-F model bike

[Water Warrior 2]

Good method. Did he say to remove the plugs to ease the engine rotation? I am assuming you just forgot to write it in.

[Sundowner750]

nope not all. We never pulled a single plug out of the engine to do it. all we removed was the carbs, tank, air cleaner, Valve cover (and of Course Forward Plastics) and the right side cover where the ignition advancer was and used that to rotate the engine

My only real gripe with the GZ (and is a personal preference) that the bike lacks a Center stand for making this job a lot easier to do.

I did see the make them yourself stand here on the site, but coming from the world of sportbikes, I would use a race stand myself.

[jonathan180iq]

Several members have toyed with the idea of converting the center stand from a similar bike to the Gz, but I don't think that any of them ever came to fruition. The closest thing I have seen as a workable center stand was from a long time ago and it was one of our European members. they had basically used a universal, long-handeled bike stand and would just prop it under the front frame. I don't remember the clearances with the exhaust, but it seemed to work in the couple of photos that I saw.

[Water Warrior 2]

I wonder if anyone has a bike lift from Harbor Freight. They are similar if not identical to the one I have and it is a pretty good bang for the buck. Up here in the GWN they are available at Canadian Tire. Didn't have it with the GZ but it will fit under the M-50 very well and is rated for more weight than any bike should ever weigh.
A center stand is a must on a bike in my opinion. It will make a big difference in all things concerning maintenance and adding farkles.
A one off custom stand is easy to make at home if you have a welder or a buddy who welds. All it takes is a few feet of tubing and a few minutes of measuring. You only want to make it high enough to lift the rear wheel of the floor an inch or two. Uh , maybe two inches to make rear tire removal easier when the time comes.

[Water Warrior 2]

Hope this helps for a DIY stand. Square tubing and a welder. The stand is slid under the bike under the frame. When the handle is pulled back and down the bike is lifted up. The handle must be positioned/welded on the stand to allow the stand to overcenter and come to rest with the handle on the floor.
You will have to do careful measuring for the bike. I had mine made up for a dirt bike with at least 2 times the ground clearance so my numbers won't work on a GZ. The frame of the stand must be wide enough for the handle to clear the foot pegs etc when you pull the handle down. This was really slick for maintenance and very portable when we took our dirt bike on a trailer to the Rocky Mountains for a few days. The stand would effortlessly lift a 250 lb bike. The GZ would be even easier due to less clearance and different measurements.

[mrlmd1]

Much easier just to use a 2' piece of 2x8 or 2x10 with a piece of pipe through a hole in it and lever it up on that.
There has to be a small block of 2x4 or something under the frame of the bike so the bike is supported on the frame and not on the exhaust pipe/muffler if I remember correctly about the GZ. You can't just put a lift under it, the pipe is the lowest point underneath the bike and you don't want the weight resting on that.
While we're on the subject of bike lifts, here's some other ideas-

Another way to lift it, if you have one, is to put a small scissor jack under the frame and use that and the kickstand to get either the front or the rear wheel off the ground depending on where you locate the jack, making sure the bike is balanced and supported well so it won't fall over. I did that with my S50, picking it up a few in. to be able to remove and replace the battery from underneath the bike.
There is also on here somewhere (haven't searched for it yet) a couple of posts of a foldable or collapsible support rod that slides under the right rear axle nut and using that as a pivot in combination with the side stand, can get the rear wheel off the ground. Very cheap, easy to use, and effective for cleaning the chain or working on and rotating the rear wheel.
I also have a cable/strap boat lift underneath my house and have put a rope through the back wheel and one through the front around the triple tree and have picked up the bike to a comfortable height to change the oil and filter, but that's cheating altho very effective.
Ingenuity is great, and where there's a will, there's a way.

[Water Warrior 2]

Oh yeah, forgot about the board and pipe method. Gotta be the cheapest and easiest too.