adjusting valves while hot

This is another of my not so relevant or on topic comments.

Have you seen Jim Comstock's video on STP and valve guides? I have no idea if it means anything other than don't fill your oil tank with straight STP, but it is interesting.

I was using some STP and quit after the last motor build. It took a lot of cleaning to get that slippery stuff off my engine internals. Plus, it made them hard to hold onto. It really wants to stay on parts and make the oil slippery. Maybe it's too clingy. I'm considering putting a little STP back in the oil tank on the next oil change. It does make my Norton motor a little quieter.

Years ago, just about everybody I knew added a can of STP at every oil change. Lots of folks/shops used it for engine assembly lube. Richard Petty demonstrated that it made screw drivers hard to hold on to!

Those are facts! What do they prove? I have no idea.

But did you use hot STP?

I actually do put the bottle of STP in hot water before pouring it. It doesn't pour well cold. I would say it ends up warm enough to pour, but not hot.

First time I rebuilt the Norton I still have, I put some Slick 50 in the oil tank.

Schwany said:

This is another of my not so relevant or on topic comments.

Have you seen Jim Comstock's video on STP and valve guides? I have no idea if it means anything other than don't fill your oil tank with straight STP, but it is interesting.

I was using some STP and quit after the last motor build. It took a lot of cleaning to get that slippery stuff off my engine internals. Plus, it made them hard to hold onto. It really wants to stay on parts and make the oil slippery. Maybe it's too clingy. I'm considering putting a little STP back in the oil tank on the next oil change. It does make my Norton motor a little quieter.

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Jim’s point was simply to not use STP or similar as an assembly lube on valves.

FWIW, We used engine oil on the valve stems and a touch of assy lube on the valve stem tips. Not sure I've ever seen a shop use assy lube on valve stems though I do know of some that used standard grease - like wheel bearing grease - if they were assembling an engine that was going to be assembled and stored for a period of time as opposed to being assembled and immediately run-in.

MexicoMike said:

FWIW, We used engine oil on the valve stems and a touch of assy lube on the valve stem tips. Not sure I've ever seen a shop use assy lube on valve stems though I do know of some that used standard grease - like wheel bearing grease - if they were assembling an engine that was going to be assembled and stored for a period of time as opposed to being assembled and immediately run-in.

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Same here, only ever used oil.

I did the job this eve, cold motor. Only one was out, the right exhaust at .010.

seattle##gs said:

I did the job this eve, cold motor. Only one was out, the right exhaust at .010.

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Was that the cause of your noise (I would doubt it, but it would be nice) ?

Mike40M said:

On race slicks, we always adjust tire pressure just before taking off the tire warmers, immediately before race.

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Indeed, but the pressure you set is appropriate to that temperature. And isn't something from a manufacturer's chart on a garage wall!

Fast Eddie said:

Jim’s point was simply to not use STP or similar as an assembly lube on valves.

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OK... Just wondered if anyone had watched it recently.

Did I say not to use STP in the oil tank? I don't believe I even implied that, but I'm so misunderstood. ha I think I made a joke about not filling the entire oil tank with it. I must have forgotten the wink smiley.

Who uses STP for assembly lube? Must be somebody looking for followers on YouTube that does it. I usually mix up some oil concoction and use copious amounts of it on everything.

This is more than likely irrelevant as well.

Are 850's a bit quieter with stock parts in them than 750's because of how the barrels are attached with the long added through bolts? Less ringy dingy

seattle##gs: But is it valve clatter?
Who last worked on that motor? After being stored for 14 years, when I fired up my Atlas it had an alarming tic tic tic. OMG, what's that?! After riding it a bit, when idling in the garage it was gone. Next start up the noise was back. I adjusted the valves, which were maybe .001 out. No change in the noise, of course. It took a couple of weeks before I remembered the non-Hepolite pistons that came from Australia, bought from Rabers I think, in the late nineties. Much less expensive. Pins were way tight, spent some quality time on the Sunnen pin fitter, and later figured out that the pistons weren't cam ground. So they're set loose and they rattle when cold but quiet when hot. Fortunately, I didn't hone the pin bores too much. But I used them because they achieved the balance factor I wanted and I didn't want to start that over again. I don't remember if they were lighter or heavier than Hepolites. There was something to be said for Hepolite pistons. Still the case today? No STP cans were harmed in writing this post.

Thomasa said:

I don't remember if they were lighter or heavier than Hepolites. There was something to be said for Hepolite pistons. Still the case today? No STP cans were harmed in writing this post.

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STP doesn't come in pop top cans round here anymore. What a mess that was.

My P11 was similar about getting a little quieter when fully warmed up with the stock tappets, and that was with flat top Hepolites I got from Phil Radford in the 90's. STP did make the engine quieter until the oil warmed up. But it was always 2S cam noisy after the nutty modifications started. It got really noisy when I put Keihin FCR carburetors on it. People that don't like noise would not be happy listening to the slides rattle on the rollers. The motor was quieter than the previous build when it was all stock with low compression dished pistons. It's actually fairly quiet now, but the build is irrelevant to this thread.

Not sure what to say about Hepolites. I took a set of Hepolite +.020 pistons mentioned above out of my motor with at least 10K miles on it and they looked good to me.

Thomas, are you in Seattle?

marinatlas said:

JP Pistons

Hi, Does anybody have any recomendation towards or against using JP Australian made pistons in Norton Commando 850 engine?. I would appreciate any advice, or experiences with this brand of piston. Thanks guys, Brewer.

www.accessnorton.com

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