The International CBX Owners Association

Ok, since I'm mucking about in the top end of my X these days, can anyone expand, explain, expound on the "Cam Degree-ing" procedure I've heard about? Is this in the OEM manual?



Still no resolution to the odd top end noises, still looking for help or possible explinations on that one. See previous post.

JBee,



Take a look in the Tech Tip Chronicles, there's an excellent article in there on how to do this from I believe Mike NIxon. I've done this a lot on Hot Rod's and must say it's a normal part of tuning for me. On my 80 X and my 76 Wing this proved to be well worth the effort by flattening the power curves out and making the low-mid ranges MUCH stronger. The Wing (+4 degrees advanced) picked up 4-8 hp and ft lbs from idle to around 6800 rpm but gave up 1 hp and no torque at the peak, this bike is much stronger than either X up to the 6800 rpm point. This bike only varies by 2 ft lbs from 2k to 6800 from the peak torque and you will notice it. The 80 X ended up with the intake cams at +5 degrees and the exhaust at 0 degrees and had similar results as the wing but picked up 2 hp at the peak as well, this bike pulls cleanly and strong from idle up. How do you know where it's right ? It's when you achieve the highest cranking compression that it's best for your combination. That's one of the reasons why 2 otherwise identical vehicles can be so different where 1 of them is clearly faster and more efficient.



Good Luck & Patience :) :)



Steve P. #5220

JBee,



Take a look in the Tech Tip Chronicles, there's an excellent article in there on how to do this from I believe Mike NIxon. I've done this a lot on Hot Rod's and must say it's a normal part of tuning for me. On my 80 X and my 76 Wing this proved to be well worth the effort by flattening the power curves out and making the low-mid ranges MUCH stronger. The Wing (+4 degrees advanced) picked up 4-8 hp and ft lbs from idle to around 6800 rpm but gave up 1 hp and no torque at the peak, this bike is much stronger than either X up to the 6800 rpm point. This bike only varies by 2 ft lbs from 2k to 6800 from the peak torque and you will notice it. The 80 X ended up with the intake cams at +5 degrees and the exhaust at 0 degrees and had similar results as the wing but picked up 2 hp at the peak as well, this bike pulls cleanly and strong from idle up. How do you know where it's right ? It's when you achieve the highest cranking compression that it's best for your combination. That's one of the reasons why 2 otherwise identical vehicles can be so different where 1 of them is clearly faster and more efficient.



Good Luck & Patience :) :)



Steve P. #5220

Yeah, cam degreeing is a wrench-head's pleasure, and even in mildly-tuned bikes like the CBX can result in noticeable changes, but I think you should get your bike working right in standard condition before you go down that road. Make every effort to solve the clanking and whatnot before giving yourself even more headaches. Here's a link to a brief explanation of the whys and wherefores of cam degreeing --

http://www.motorcycleproject.com/motorc ... bectr.html

Mike, Is there more to the article you reference above? it explains things very well and I'd like to read more on the subject but I didn't see a page two.



jeff b

Yeah, Jeff -- The article *is* very basic, but that's because the bottom line for cam degreeing is really that simple -- intake valve closing (due to the effect of charge inertia). Perhaps I will expand the article. I expect that by "more" you mean why some engines like some lobe centers while others like different ones, how the procedure really looks (with the dial indicator and all), the best way to find TDC, and details on cam sprocket slotting as well as the actual moving of the cam in the sprocket to get the indicator reading right where you want it...? :) I'll work on it. Meantime, you may want to read some more about camshaft design. Try this link.



http://www.motorcycleproject.com/motorc ... clear.html

Mike- Great article! You da man! Very useful information, I've printed it out to re-read when all of it can sink in. JJD

Thank you for the kind comments. Thanks to encouragement from the other Jeff, the article has now been updated and a second page added.



http://www.motorcycleproject.com/motorc ... bectr.html

OK, that all makes sense, and I agree I need to get to the bottom of the unusual noise before I go further. I had a dream about a transparent valve cover last night. Does this mean I'm weird?



At least the valves aren't desmodromic.



Muchos Gracias.

JBee