Vibration! A cure for bad vibrations, Spark Plug Caps!!

[FinalImpact]

If they were higher (over the spec), i'd be more concerned i.e. like greater than 12K. Being on the low side is not likely to be an issue although those plugs may show a different hue (color) on the porcelain if examined.

You might for kicks and grins measure the spark plugs themselves. They also seem to have some variability. Mine were all on the low side. Spec says 5K, measure 3.8k from the plugs electrode to the connector at the plug end.

The main thing is to make sure the caps tighten on to the wire securely and resist rotation. Also keep the plugs gap UNDER spec and you should be good. If using fancy plugs take care as not damage them should adjustment be required. ((Do check the gap and do not assume its correct for our application))

Good luck!

 

[Water Bear]

I just did this to my bike, and the results are impressive.

A couple things to suggest: Scott (Townsendsfjr) suggested using dielectric grease to reseat the spark plug covers, and this works amazingly well. Also there's a ridge on the spark plug cover that the dust seal snaps onto, so if your covers are at the wrong height, just snap them down onto that.

I also replaced a missing bolt that secured the radiator, so I'm not sure what exactly is responsible for reducing the annoying noise around 6-8k rpms but after this maintenance it is definitely reduced. By a lot. Wholeheartedly recommend.

 

[FinalImpact]

Very interesting! Tally so far.....

Helped: 10 owners
No Help: 1 owner
Comments: 4 owners (Comment but no action, Indifferent, or no report back)
Count is 15 owners total

11 viable points for reference

10 helped / 11 tried = ~ 91% success rate
So, anyone on the fence as to weather it could benefit them, it might be worth a shot to try it!

 

[Kenfz6]

As a long time lurker, I thought I might add a positive comment.

Thought I would look at this on a whim, bike has 47k miles, and pretty smooth overall.

After looking at 1,2 and 3 cyl loose, went ahead and trimmed #4 as well.

Made no other changes, and did see further improvement. Combined with a fresh throttle body synch (#3 was off a bit), very happy.

My opinion is that this is worth looking at during the next spark plug check even if you think you have a smooth ride.

Thanks FinalImpact!

 

[andyfazer600]

+1 on another owner helped!

Pre-winter hibernation I did feel a slight vibration through the bars which translated as numbness in my hands but I just dismissed it as a bit of 4 cylinder character (my first bike not to be a 2 cylinder format) and thought the Grip Puppies would help

When I stumbled across this advice I thought why not check it when I change the plugs and guess what? No. 3 plug cap was loose! We'll see how this helps when I'm back on the road

 

[andyfazer600]

I didn't go as far as to measure the resistance of the caps or plugs and I did notice that when I spun 1, 2 and 4 caps clockwise to check them they rotated more than the mentioned half turn before they were snug (more like 1 or 2 full turns)

 

[MrMogensen]

After valvecheck I have just looked at this before I install all that lies above the spark plug caps (battery/airfilterbox).

Seems like all 4x SPC was vay to loose. I could nearly almost just pull them apart without turning with ease :steve:
All 4 cables had the tiny threads against eachother along.
Having owned the bike from 20.000km to the 56.000km it has now I am very sure that this has never been looked at. Have been repairing myself since 36.000km.

Just as this guide suggests I cut the cables a tiny bit shorter, separated the tiny threads (I counted 5 or 6 of them) and then back on with the SPC (clockwise).
They seem kind of snuggish now but I am not totally convinced - do they automatically get a little tighter once they are lit up?

Measured resistance with each of the SPC's.
2 of them was 10,6-10,7 ohm and the other 2 was respectively 10,3 and 10,2 ohm.
Being above the recommended 10 ohm it shouldn't be that important to look at the internals - or should it?

Sparkplugs are brand new and already installed them so didn't want to pull them back out. I haven't got the correct measuring tool for this I chose to forgot about this for now. Townsend mentioned a specific tool somewhere in this thread but I forgot the name of it.

Will report back once I have fired up the engine and done the Throttle Body Sync... fingers crossed... because I have am growing tired of those bad vibes :banghead:

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Sparkplugs are brand new and already installed them so didn't want to pull them back out. I haven't got the correct measuring tool for this I chose to forgot about this for now. Townsend mentioned a specific tool somewhere in this thread but I forgot the name of it.

Will report back once I have fired up the engine and done the Throttle Body Sync... fingers crossed... because I have am growing tired of those bad vibes :banghead:

On either the stock spark plug or iridiums, you want to use a "wire thickness gauge" (page 3-10 in the S2 yamaha PDF manual) NOT A FLAT gauge, to check them. You can adjust either style plug but ONLY at the ground base of the plug. As they wear, the gaps get wider so I try to keep new plugs on the tighter side of spec's.

Plugs, straight out of the box are NOT necessarily to your spec's (their used in other applications as well). When I went to iridiums, one of three plugs had a very slightly different gap, (.001") from the others but within spec(right out of the box). I left that gap alone.

 

[andyfazer600]

On either the stock spark plug or iridiums, you want to use a "wire thickness gauge" (page 3-10 in the S2 yamaha PDF manual) NOT A FLAT gauge, to check them. You can adjust either style plug but ONLY at the ground base of the plug. As they wear, the gaps get wider so I try to keep new plugs on the tighter side of spec's.

Plugs, straight out of the box are NOT necessarily to your spec's (their used in other applications as well). When I went to iridiums, one of three plugs had a very slightly different gap, (.001") from the others but within spec(right out of the box). I left that gap alone.

+1 on checking gaps. I replaced mine with NGK Iridium's and had to alter the gaps as they were all above the maximum 0.7mm out the box

 

[FinalImpact]

+1 on another owner helped!

Pre-winter hibernation I did feel a slight vibration through the bars which translated as numbness in my hands but I just dismissed it as a bit of 4 cylinder character (my first bike not to be a 2 cylinder format) and thought the Grip Puppies would help

When I stumbled across this advice I thought why not check it when I change the plugs and guess what? No. 3 plug cap was loose! We'll see how this helps when I'm back on the road

So, have you had a chance to ride this and did it help reduce the vibes?

Tks!

 

[REO Scorpio]

The next person to try this, please make a video.

I have to "see" how this operation looks before attempting!

Just pulled the cover off the bike and prepped for spring. So excited to not have snow in the two week forecast anymore!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[FinalImpact]

The next person to try this, please make a video.

I have to "see" how this operation looks before attempting!

Just pulled the cover off the bike and prepped for spring. So excited to not have snow in the two week forecast anymore!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

If you feel confident enough to change spark plugs and can twist a household style wire nut on, its allot like that. Hold the wire and gently spin the cap. It should snug down. If you don't feel any increased rotational resistance, remove it (screw counterclockwise) and cleanly cut off a small section of wire. Spread them and screw the cap on Clockwise. That's it. It would be a boring video! lol

 

[andyfazer600]

So, have you had a chance to ride this and did it help reduce the vibes?

Tks!

Not as yet, I'm still in the midst of my winter service

Will report back on my findings though

 

[I JET]

im gonna check this tonight. The cup bike vibrates like crazy.

 

[FinalImpact]

OK - I fixed all the broken links again. Pictures in OP have been restored so hopefully it makes sense again. Thanks Yamaha! :spank: ((www.600riders.com)):thumbup:

 

[darius]

I might have to do this soon. Starting to get some vibrations up through the bars for the first time.

 

[darius]

I just performed the operation and each wire had about a 1/4 turn of play before becoming snug on my 8 year old bike.

Hopefully I can keep that little bit of tension when I perform the tricky maneuvering required to reinstall the caps.

Currently I do get vibes through the footpegs and bars. NGK Iridium plugs come in on Wed.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

I just performed the operation and each wire had about a 1/4 turn of play before becoming snug on my 8 year old bike.

Hopefully I can keep that little bit of tension when I perform the tricky maneuvering required to reinstall the caps.

Currently I do get vibes through the footpegs and bars. NGK Iridium plugs come in on Wed.

Some tips(no pun intened here re gap / torque, etc)
NGK Spark Plugs USA

A little bit of di-lectric grease on the edges of the rubber boots, where it meets the valve cover, makes installation quite a bit easier.

Re the vibs, check the torque on the engine mounts, (40 Ft lbs).

Also, when was the last time you did a throttle body sync?

 

[darius]

Some tips(no pun intened here re gap / torque, etc)
NGK Spark Plugs USA

A little bit of di-lectric grease on the edges of the rubber boots, where it meets the valve cover, makes installation quite a bit easier.

Re the vibs, check the torque on the engine mounts, (40 Ft lbs).

Also, when was the last time you did a throttle body sync?

Thanks. As far as I know a throttle body sync has never been performed so that will be next on the list. I don't have a carb sync tool so looking at options there.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Thanks. As far as I know a throttle body sync has never been performed so that will be next on the list. I don't have a carb sync tool so looking at options there.

If you can't borrow one, folks have made their own.

Yamaha charges way more than you can buy a professional grade one.

I have the Morgan Carbtune and its paid for itself many times over between my bikes and doing others, WELL WORTH THE investment. No fluids to screw with, very simple to use...

www.carbtune.com