Hi guys.

Had been meaning to check my valve clearances since i bought the car over a year ago and thought id give it a go this morning now that i understand (i think) how to do it.

So got the haynes out and followed the little chart for which valve to adjust etc and got it all done.

Put it all back together (with a cross-threaded spark plug!!!!) and fired her up....

now sounds very noisy from the top of the engine... and it doesn't get that much better once its warmed up either....

Have i adjusted them wrongly or something... getting sick of repairs now! lol

Think i will get the garage to do it for me when its in for the rear caliper and shoes doing.

I did this with my Favorit - years ago - and I think I made it much noiser - however it went much better lol!

A common mistake is to set the clearances to 20 thou'' [imperial] rather than 0.20mm [metric].

It would explain your tractor like engine, worth a check!

Loose, noisy valve clearances are better than being too tight, that causes burnt out valves and poor starting!

Also did you check and adjust the valve that had just closed (i.e. spring uncompressed and at highest point the valve can go) where the valve opposite had just fully opened (i.e. spring compressed due to push rod being pushed on the top of the egg shaped bit of the cam)?

Not sure I explained that too well.

Definitely the haynes is bad at explaining it anyway.

It's not a difficult job to do once you get your brain around what's going on and what to do (maybe I have a small brain). I recommend giving it a go again when the engine is stone cold.

I adjusted mine and it started sounding like a tractor. Did it again and it wasn't too bad. You just need to take yur time and double check the gaps. Be very methodical and careful

Right... so when the valve is open the spring is compressed! I got it the other way round! hehe

Yes you're right the haynes doesn't explain it very well... i think i may have the wrong feeler blades too... think i got imperial ones instead of metric!! i always get confused when it comes to stuff like that.

Do each of the valves just have one purpose i.e. in or ex? Cos using the rule of 8 (8 compressed, check 1 etc) how do i know whether to set the valve to in or ex... do i use the haynes to tell me which is which?

Thanks guys!

Yes looks like you did what I did. And you found the one opposite the valve that had just been compressed was closed (spring open)?

Also an easy way to rotate the engine is to put the car in 5th, jack up the front drivers side wheel, and turn that.

It's rule of 9 AFAIK. 1+8 = 9, 2+7=9, 3+6=9 etc. I think the Haynes manual says which ones are in and ex. Might be a good idea to make a note with 1 - 8 left to right and write in/ex as appropriate, maybe tick each off as it's done.

0.2mm = 7.87thou, so use the 10thou feeler guage.

Got it sorted... i found i had another imperial/metric feeler guage set so used that.

Used the haynes method of which valve to adjust when which valve is fully open (compressed) and got it done in about 20 mins!

And what a difference!!! I could only just hear the valves tapping away under the bonnet and once it was warmed up it was a dream to drive pretty quiet and still pulling like a train!

Cheers for your help guys... at least i know what im doing now... this has confuzzled my brain for months and months now! hehe

Phil

Well done - pleased to hear you got it sorted.

You don't need feelers to set valve clearance - in fact on an engine that has had a bit of use they are simply not very accurate. What you do is this:

Locate the valve you want to work on (opposite of the one that's currently fully open, as someone else has pointed out) and loosen off its lock nut with a ring spanner (11mm, from memory, on a Skoda OHV) by a quarter turn or so. Leave the spanner on there. Now put a screwdriver in the slot and turn it clockwise until the adjuster just kisses the valve stem. This will be quite a definite 'bite point'. Look at the slot orientation and remember where it is. Back the screwdriver off by one-fifth of a turn (72 degrees) - just under a quarter, in other words. Hold the screwdriver in that position and retighten the lock nut.

The point is that the screw thread is M6 - pitch 1mm, i.e. each full turn advances the screw by 1mm. 0.2mm is one fifth of a turn. Because the valve stem and the rocker mating face usually wear slightly unevenly, this method is more accurate than feeler gauges and is also quicker.

on a lazy note when I took mine to a dealer to adjust the clearances it only cost just over £30

on a lazy note when I took mine to a dealer to adjust the clearances it only cost just over £30

When you know what you're doing it's only a 30 minute job at most, and you know it's been done and done properly when you do it yourself . Lots of time is saved using Richard Black's method above. Suppose it would become obvious when doing it, but if using that method make sure you slacken the nut off quite a bit so when you tighten the screw it mates with the valve and is not the nut mating with the rocker gear.

You don't need feelers to set valve clearance - in fact on an engine that has had a bit of use they are simply not very accurate. What you do is this:

Locate the valve you want to work on (opposite of the one that's currently fully open, as someone else has pointed out) and loosen off its lock nut with a ring spanner (11mm, from memory, on a Skoda OHV) by a quarter turn or so. Leave the spanner on there. Now put a screwdriver in the slot and turn it clockwise until the adjuster just kisses the valve stem. This will be quite a definite 'bite point'. Look at the slot orientation and remember where it is. Back the screwdriver off by one-fifth of a turn (72 degrees) - just under a quarter, in other words. Hold the screwdriver in that position and retighten the lock nut.

The point is that the screw thread is M6 - pitch 1mm, i.e. each full turn advances the screw by 1mm. 0.2mm is one fifth of a turn. Because the valve stem and the rocker mating face usually wear slightly unevenly, this method is more accurate than feeler gauges and is also quicker.

I like it; that's an engineering brain at work - No arsing around!

Hi Briskodians,

I've adjusted the valve clearances using the rule of 9 and adjusting the clearances to 0.2 mm all round. Very easy to do and rewarding results in terms of performance and engine noise

if you only have imperial feeler blades, use 8 thou for 0.2mm and use 10 thou for 0.25mm

i just wanted to say, great creativity and sences of humor on the title of this thread, you made my day...

on a more serious note, Gillette Ultra thin razor blades are 0.10mm thick, so two would be 0.20mm what you need for intake

and is it 0.20mm intake / 0.25mm exhaust or the other way arround, for my experiences, exahust has always had mor clearance so i dont know if im mistaking

You don't need feelers to set valve clearance - in fact on an engine that has had a bit of use they are simply not very accurate. What you do is this:

Locate the valve you want to work on (opposite of the one that's currently fully open, as someone else has pointed out) and loosen off its lock nut with a ring spanner (11mm, from memory, on a Skoda OHV) by a quarter turn or so. Leave the spanner on there. Now put a screwdriver in the slot and turn it clockwise until the adjuster just kisses the valve stem. This will be quite a definite 'bite point'. Look at the slot orientation and remember where it is. Back the screwdriver off by one-fifth of a turn (72 degrees) - just under a quarter, in other words. Hold the screwdriver in that position and retighten the lock nut.

The point is that the screw thread is M6 - pitch 1mm, i.e. each full turn advances the screw by 1mm. 0.2mm is one fifth of a turn. Because the valve stem and the rocker mating face usually wear slightly unevenly, this method is more accurate than feeler gauges and is also quicker.

I set the valve clearance doing exactly that, measuring exactly the degrees of after bite, what i did is i tighend the screw untill i created resistance and then backed up as you said ¼ of a turn for 0.25mm and a fifth for 0.20mm i did it using the rule of 9 and now my valves sound alot, sometimes they sound more after warming up a bit then setle down after full warmup

did i do somthing wrong cus i can hear the valves while driving

I set the valve clearance doing exactly that, measuring exactly the degrees of after bite, what i did is i tighend the screw untill i created resistance and then backed up as you said ¼ of a turn for 0.25mm and a fifth for 0.20mm i did it using the rule of 9 and now my valves sound alot, sometimes they sound more after warming up a bit then setle down after full warmup

did i do somthing wrong cus i can hear the valves while driving

All I can think is perhaps you didn't fully slacken off the nut, therefore the clearances are loose?

All I can think is perhaps you didn't fully slacken off the nut, therefore the clearances are loose?

i actualy slacked the nuts pretty well, then tighen the screw until i felt resistance, not only the bite but the screwdriver not movin, then released the screw by ¼ of a turn for the intake, and a little less for the exhaust

maybe i just need to change my oil and not worry

This has been great reading and, for me, great timing!

Will be, weather depending, doing a few jobs this week and this is one of them.

since i THINK! i did the right valve clearance correctly and they still are taping a little more noisi the i mind i bugh a filler gauge, its great i can check the spark plugs the valves and everything, and the best part i was cheap as hell like a dollar or less

tomorrow when the engine is stone cold im going to set them .25, and ,20 (intake exhaust) with my brand new filler gauge