..... Seems a lot of honest dealers out there. I'll find out what  my dealer says in 2,000 miles when I have to get it done. I just can't see them telling anyone not to spend money when the book calls for it.

UMMMM, I think many of them are Honest to a point, but if pressed further thay may admit they had NEVER done one before, and this was the case for A LOT of dealers the first 3 years out with this bike....they simply did not have the clearcut methodology, or confidence in doing the job, let alone had they done any of them.... (even though the 1400Ninja was out prior, most never got high miles by the time the new Conni was released...and most didn't care to have them maintained by dealers either), so the dealers seemed to all be saying it didn't need it, or they pulled tha plastic off and put it back on, or maybe some did actually go thru the motions but said they "were within spec", because they didn't want to get hosed on the flat rate.
I believe there are still a lot of dealers out there that are actually afraid to tackle this job, and tie thier shop up till it's done, and they simply say it doesn't need to be done yet.

That being said, I had about 8-10 actual hours of "work" invested in mine the first go, but feel confident having the shim maps I made, I can accomplish everything second time in about 6 once I have shims. The key word is waiting for shims.... They time consuming part is actually mic'ing, and removing and measuring evrything the first time.

Mechanical valve actuation, vs. hydraulic, permits higher RPM and, most importantly with an interference engine design, better control of the valves/less "float" at high RPM.

Do you "need" mechanical valve actuation on a S-T bike? No, but then you can't ever have too much power....

Goldwing's have hydraulic valves...

The Goldwing has not used hydraulic valves since 2000 in the GL1500.

The 2001 and newer GL1800s' have mechanical valve adjustments, cam over buckets.

Honda calls for check and adjustment every 32,000 miles.  Most are not out of adjustment at that time.

My 2002 GL1800 that I bought new has 166,000 miles on it.  The first check was at 32000 and all was good.  The first adjustment of 2 out of the 12 valves was at about 75000(and I only changed them to center like the other valves were).  At 160000 almost all of the valves needed to be loosened up slightly (about .001).  Still they were actually in spec but on the tight limit.  All are now centered once again. 

As you can see they really never changed very much and in my case could have been ignored for almost 200,000 miles without consequence.  I do not plan to open the heads up again until around 225,000.

On my C14 I will most likely check the valves at around 20,000 or so.  It will be just to make me feel good and safe even if they don't need adjusting.

The Goldwing has not used hydraulic valves since 2000 in the GL1500. The 2001 and newer GL1800s' have mechanical valve adjustments, cam over buckets.

You're right, I should have specified I was refering to the 26 years before the 1800's that they were, from 1975 to 2000...

On my C14 I will most likely check the valves at around 20,000 or so.  It will be just to make me feel good and safe even if they don't need adjusting.

I don't think that anyone who doesn't think they should check their valve's lash should do so....

You're right, I should have specified I was refering to the 26 years before the 1800's that they were, from 1975 to 2000...

Then you still are missing the mark.  The GL1000 and GL1100 used the old screw and locknut method to adjust the valve clearances.  Goldwings did not have hydraulic valves until the GL1200 was introduced in 1984.

Then you still are missing the mark.  The GL1000 and GL1100 used the old screw and locknut method to adjust the valve clearances.  Goldwings did not have hydraulic valves until the GL1200 was introduced in 1984.

Well damn, when I'm wrong I'm really wrong. I'll have to reflect more on my ancient history before making statements about which bike had what.

The only reason I mentioned GW's was to illustrate that hydraulic valve actuation has been commonly used but that it also has different physical limitations. Little did I realize I'd provoked the GW faithful to rally to defend their honor by doing so....

Thanks for the clarification!

The only reason I mentioned GW's was to illustrate that hydraulic valve actuation has been commonly used but that it also has different physical limitations.

I think there is another limitation to hydraulic valves.  In 1984, Honda also put hydraulic valves on a couple of Nighthawk models (I think the 550 and 650) and there was quite a discussion at that time about the need to keep the oil very clean and a shorter oil change interval to keep the hydraulic valves working as designed, especially at high rpms.  I don't think that design was very successful for Nighthawks because those models were dropped after a couple of years. 

The nighthawks also suffered from poor sales since everyone wanted Honda Hurricanes at the time.  At the time, the valve topic never came up.

It isn't the type of bike that requires mechanical type tappets, it is the RPM range. Hydraulic lifters will not function properly at engine speeds over about 7K RPM and so would not work on a C-14. They tend to 'pump up' and get longer (easy boys!) and thereby reduce the valve lash until a valve hangs open.... the exact thing we are discussing here should a mechanical tappet (or solid tappet) go far enough out of adjustment.

Another problem with hydraulic lifters is that they are fairly tall- because the valves and cams are in-line on a C-14 (and most modern motorcycle engines), a taller lifter would result in a taller engine and therefore a taller frame. The actual height of thickness of the mechanical lifter currently used is really quite small- something like 1/8" or so.

And finally there is the additional cost. It is one thing to say that we would all pay more up- front for the motorcycle if the maintenance were less but in reality the price on the dealers' floor is what makes or breaks the deal. It is almost always impossible to justify a higher sales price based on some potential future savings.

Brian

Very good info here, but I still wonder why in this day and age of vast internal combustion technology does any engine need adjustable valves? As I understand it hydraulic valves produce less horsepower than conventional valve set-ups.

I can see where the squids and tuners would want the conventional set-up but why does a sport-tourer need it?

The nighthawks also suffered from poor sales since everyone wanted Honda Hurricanes at the time.  At the time, the valve topic never came up.

The Hurricanes were a vast improvement over the Nighthawks but they didn't hit the showrooms until 1987.  I think the Nighthawks had been discontinued by then.

The Hurricanes were a vast improvement over the Nighthawks but they didn't hit the showrooms until 1987.  I think the Nighthawks had been discontinued by then.

1986 was the last model year for the Nighthawk, I believe.