clav3

I was wondering if anyone has had the rubber washer in the spring side of a 2008 front shock disintegrate. I found bits of it in the bottom of the outer fork leg while I was changing the seal. Dimensions are roughly 32 mm outer 24mm inner and 4mm high. Sought of square in profile. Like a square O ring. I cant figure where it came from and its not in any of the parts books. I think the 2007 and 2009 fork are the same parts as the 2008 and its not in those parts books either. Its a mystery? Also has anyone had to replace the damping pump or parts in the right fork? Mine is pumping oil into it alright and sucking up when I put new oil in, but lately the shocks are topping out sometimes when I pull up hard while riding. When I took the fork brace off the right shock doesnt suck back up. I bled the air out the top and it pumped oil back into the cartridge but it doesnt take long for air to displace the oil and the shock loses its effectiveness. Im going to change the oil to see if that will help.

I've been told by the Aus dealer that the red Dellorto goes hand in hand with the 300 top end that only fits the 2010. The carb and top end package costs about $1800.

Is it just me or, after alot of video and photo analysis, is Cabestany sporting a shiny red dellorto on his 2010? There is a promo pic with the Keihin on but since then it looks like a Red Dell. Could it possibly run better (more stable) with the new fuel pump system? I've changed back to the Dell about a year ago. More engine stability while running lean idle settings. More engine stability while running at horrible angles. Virtually no flooding after horrible crashes. Smoother power delivery as the throttle is wound on in loose, steep, cambered conditions. The engine is just consistently more happy with the Dell. Although I doubt Cabestany is too worried about the engine being consistently happy. So I wonder why the change?

Use your knees instead of shoulders and arms when hopping the front. With front and rear, back off damping slightly and increase preload spring. I still use the standard rear shock, and doing this makes the bike feel nearly half as light again. But you have to get use to the extra spring when riding normaly. I use the standard factory settings on the front of my 08 and it feels really light.

Thanks for that, guess we just live with it then and keep riding!

I have just replaced the top and bottom shock bearings and have about the same amount of play as before. About 3 to 4 mm. The new bearings from Sherco have play in them from new. A mate of mine has a Gas Gas shock bearing that he hasn't installed yet and it's really firm with no play, just like you would expect. I've had another look and it seems to have play in the swingarm bearing and the dogbone bearings that bolt through the frame. Getting rid of all the back end play in a Sherco is like trying to find the holy grail. My 08 only took a month or two to clearly show play in the back. After spending a fortune on my old 2000 on the full bearing kit and bolts and still not completely getting rid of all the play, I tend to just live with it. If anyone know how to keep the a*** end of a Sherco nice and tight PLEASE give us some tips.

On the colour issue of seals, I don't think there's a problem with black seals from the factory. Is it suggested in previous posts that they are not viton but nitrile? Check this link... Particularly BCAREY at the bottom of the page. http://74.125.153.132/search?q=cache:K4eJB...=clnk&gl=au

It sounds like it's starving for fuel or sucking air.

Nearly impossible to tell how many hours cope. Every weekend from 12.30 pm until somewhere between 7 and 9 at night (good fun riding when all the critters come out), with two other riders, sometimes 2up or 3up in the section, so there's no waiting. A few sundays as well. Two or three 20 min practise sessions through the week, just to keep the knees creaking. If you can figure it out good luck!

Hi Neo, When I was running a 35 pilot on the 290 I was using Boysens. Had to change to a 42 when I went back to standard reeds. A 45 would still run, just in air screw range. It sounds like you have the results of a nice fresh engine with good seals. Enjoy the feeling. Just make sure the carb stays ultra clean to avoid any frustrating confusion on how it is running.

I backed my rear dampening off one click and never touched the front. My 08 was very stiff from new compared to my old 2000,and I didn't like it at all, but they do come good and soften with more riding. It should have about 20 to 30mm static sag (that's standing on its' own with you off it) ,from fully topped out. A new bike every year would be nice, but taking a few months for everything to settle down would be frustrating. How old is your bike?

I just when down stairs to see if I still had the replaced rings. Yes I did, and no, they don't bend , they do break. My piston from new was a B size and the replaced was also a B. We all try to do the right thing by our engines but sometimes we all slip to the dark side. Perched halfway up a hillside, waiting for your turn to ride that section requiring high loads and rpm, while the engine gets colder. It's an uneasy feeling with a fresh tight engine. You sit there not expecting it to go cold as fast as it does. And then you're up. It's funny now you mention it, standard rings in a B size bore and a ring gap of only 0.009. I do know that the second and third set when placed in the bore also had 0.009 gap. I suppose it would only be about 0.0004 tighter in an A size bore, maybe just enough to turn a nip into something really nasty?

I just help with the top end and fixing of the crank and let one of my riding buddies (the engine reconditioner) take control. We did notice, when changing to the cabestany head, the cylinder had some, (forgive my terminology) heat marks. It seemed the engine had nipped up at some point. New engine, hot aus weather, long hillclimb, who knows? He thought the ring gap might be on the tight side. At that time we couldn't find anything on the net on ring gap so my mate used a standard formular to work out what the gap should be. He's had many years experience on bikes, cars, trucks so I trust his judgement. Yes we did file the gap, and the same when we recently did up the top end. He was the one who straightend my crank, bashing it against his gut with a copper hammer and checking on a pair of blocks with a dial guage until it was perfect. I'm very lucky to have him as a riding partner. If my bike's not going, he's not riding either. Check Ryans forum, but I was under the impression that someone had asked for the ring gap on re-build.

Hi Neo, I've dug up some exact dates. New bike 27/09/07 After the engine was run in I replaced the standard head with a Cabestany head and inspected the cylinder and rings. The factory ring gap was 0.009 inch and was re-set to 0.011. The funny thing is, on Ryan Youngs forum, he suggests a ring gap of 0.020? Any comments are very welcome on this. Eleven months after, 02/09/08., twisted crank, and replaced rings on rebuild. Piston tolerance was 0.0018 so I didn't replace. At this time I replaced Boysens with standard reeds and changed idle jet from 35 to 42 and did not have a hunting problem until about nine months later. 30/06/09 I did up the top end. I'm sorry to all but I was mistaken about the amount of ring wear on my previous post. The ring gap at 02/09/08 was set at 0.011 to 0.012 inch and on re-build at 30/06/09 ( that's 10 months after) measured 0.022 to 0.023 inch. So that's more than 0.010 inch wear in ten months. I'd just like to add that I don't ride the whole time at 3/4 throttle, far from it. Neo, with your having to clean out a blubbery engine when first starting, my bikes have always done the same if you don't carefully regulate how much choke you give them. Worse with Dellortos. I hope this helps.

I bought the rings from the Sherco importer in Aus. I assume they were standard factory. All the guys I ride with thought I was nuts doing up the top end so soon. One of them did the work for me. He is an engine reconditioner and has owned all types of bikes all his life. Very trusted. He was more shocked than anyone. There were no other signs of engine wear, but I'd tried everything else other than seals. I was happy with the 6 psi leak down test so I thought the only other problem could be engine wear. And I was right. Neo my bike is running so sweet! Its' been run in for about a month now and not a fault. I've tried the Dellorto and it runs well too. I realy believe that if your tuning at idle is on the border of just wanting to hunt for fuel, the effects of a worn engine show up when using a Keihin and don't when using a Dellorto. Maybe that's why Dellortos' are still fitted to all standard bikes. They run well for alot longer.

Hi all, I've been trying to find an answer to a similar problem. Just on the leak down topic, my 290 wouldn't hold 5 psi and would slowly leak down in about 5 minutes, but would hold 6 psi indefinitely, tested several times. I searched the net and found a site that suggested all new bikes should be tested, and minimum leak down pressure should be 6-8 psi. "Perfection is an engine that will hold 6 psi for 20 minutes" Quoted from said site. Has anyone actually seen a sherco hold 2-3 psi. Mine sure won't! Also how much pulsating pressure would actually be going on inside a running engine. Probably alot more than 6psi. I didn't change seals but did replace piston and rings. In less than one year the rings showed more than 0.020 inch wear. That's actual wear, 0.020 was the difference measured on the ring gap. My bike now runs great with the Keihin. The funny thing is, before I did up the top end, it ran well with the Dellorto but not the Keihin or even a brand new Keihin. My theory is if you're going to use a Keihin you need to keep the engine fresh. This might be misguided, but the proof, for me, is sitting under my house waiting to be ridden this weekend.

I use 15w50 with great success for the same problem and never had the clutch grab from a cold start unlike 10w30. Never looked like slipping under big engine loads either. But my clutch is still in good nick.

Hi all, Burnt out my muff last week and over did it. The packing turned molten and started to rattle when cool. I decided to cut a small hole in each section just to have a look. Eventually got all the packing out of the front ( it looked like medium steel wool) and decided to do the back which didn't have much left in it (fiberglass). I cleaned and wash it and thought I may as well try repacking. I used medium grade steel wool in front an rear sections and just packed it as tight as I could. A mate of mine who is very good with a welder, welded the pieces back on. By the way the front hole was just forward of center and underneath about 20mm X 25mm. The rear hole was about 50mm X 50mm and cut to pretty much to line up with the plastic guard that screws on to the muff. The bike now sounds great. Much like it did when it was new. I took it out to test the next day. Unusually cold and wet conditions. Still cant get it to run with a 42 at 1 1/4 turns but runs well with a 45 at 1 1/2 maybe a little rich but many wouldn't think so. I did try the Dellorto with standard settings 33 pilot 2 3/4 turns out D36 on 3rd groove and it seemed to run great, very minimal pinging if any (this may be due to the cold wet weather) and pilot gas screw in a full turn. I have to state very strongly that with the Dellorto fitted you would never no there was any problem. It just runs so smooth down low it's a pleasure to listen to. But....the linear power of the Keihin makes the bike far easier to ride, particularly in slow slippery conditions, and with faster power when needed. The Dellorto gas screw can be adjusted lean enough to give a very smooth throttle and still idle well. The Keihin now needs a richer bottom, slightly blubbery,for it to idle, but still no where near as smooth as the Dellorto. Repacking the muff made the bike sound like new but I feel minimal change to performance and running. I'd be surprised if there is an air leak especially after your findings Neo and the fact that it runs well with the Dellorto. ( For those not wanting to bog down in this 6 page thread, I have allready tried a brand new Keihin with the exact same results) I will be freshening up the top end in the next few weeks and we'll see after that. Cheers.

Hi all, Weighed the muffler again today. Came in at 2074 grams. Nine months after the first weigh and 54g heavier It's been raining alot here and not working much for the last two days so the muff is soaking in fuel tonight ready for a burn tomorrow. I'm not too worried how it goes. It's dented and have noticed, after filling it with fuel, a 15mm split in the top weld. I will weigh it, or the pieces after the burn. Dont know what it will mean. Just a reference if it fixes the problem. I can understand your thin patience Cope, mine vanished two weeks ago. But thats what this forum is all about. Some poor ******* going through weeks of agony so that another poor ******* dosen't have to.

I haven't cleaned the muffler. Did think of trying but mine is also dented and would like a new one anyway. Not much spare time and sick of wasting time on things that aren't working. My muff was 2020gr on 24/8/08 when I fixed the crank. If I get time tomorrow with all the rain here I will weigh it again and let you know. Iwill definetly be weighing the new one as a reference. Neo I found while testing the other day If you have a lean needle particularly with pinging and a fast idle setting it will hunt. Turn the idle down and if the pilot and air are set right it wont hunt. About the engine wear, alot of people just ride it no matter how it runs, and its amazing how many people have never heard the pinging blasting from their engine that others can hear. Also most still run Dellortos which tend, I feel, to run richer from the pilot to the low mids. I think this is why they dont tend to hunt with (whatever this problem is). Also, more higher grade riders would use Keihins and I know for a fact that the expert riders in Aus rebuild the engine each year maybe even more. Don Murry has told me that he attended the SSD a few years ago and the Sherco mid silencers were replaced each day for performance purposes. I might be totally off base but thankfully we're running out of things to try. Just thought of another clue for someone with good engine knowledge like Cope. I used to fix the hunting idle when the bike was about 7 months old by increasing the idle slightly. Even with a lean midrange. The other day with the hunting 42 pilot I tried a rich JJG needle on 4th clip position to see if increasing the idle would stop the hunting and it did not. I have also previously tried a number 3 slide with the same results.

Hi Neo, I did alot of testing on the weekend trying to find a solution to what seems to be the same problem. I have made my 290 run very similar to what it used to by going up one pilot size (42 to 45) and up to the next richest needle (jjj 4th clip to jjh 4th clip). Main jet is still the same (112). Its like the motor has decided it just wants more fuel. Here is the reasoning behind my wild theory of this problem being motor wear and or exhaust clogging. Both happen gradually in the life of the bike. I have owned my bike since new and just after run in I fitted Boysens and the Keihin. At that time the bike ran sweet with a 35, yes thats what I said, a 35 pilot and jjh on 3rd clip. After about 6 months of head in the clouds bliss, it started hunting at idle. I always keep my fuel and carb clean. You have to, especially when running a Keihin. I used to wind up the idle to stop the hunting but in the end this did not work. I changed back to the standard reeds looking for a solution and realising I would probably have to change the jetting. A 40 pilot worked at 1/2 turn but I used a 42 at 1 1/4 turns and JJJ needle on 4th clip. I was sure that the Boysens were the problem. Maybe I was wrong? Not long after this I twisted the crank and on rebuild naturally replaced rings, bearings and crank seals. The bikes tuning did not change. So that meant the original seals had nothing to do with the hunting 35 pilot. And hear we are about 7 months on. New reeds, spotless carby... all the crap from previous posts! Now 42 pilot only justworks at less than 1/2 a turn out which is pretty much out of tunning range and JJJ on 4th clip nearly sent me into orbit while blipping across some triples. But 45 works at 1 1/4 out and JJH on 4th clip seams alot like I remember the old needle setting was. Now to the Dellorto. While I was never fond of the standard 3rd clip D 36 needle, this setting is now unusable, alot like, if not worse than the JJJ orbit needlefrom the Keihin. Bottom clip works fine. The 33 pilot used with this bottom clip needle is still rich enough but is out a full turn ( 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 ) from when the bike was new with the bottom clip needle. Now all of these points through the life of this bike seem to point towards a slow but sure change in the way the motor runs and uses fuel. In the next month I,m going to try,in this order, A new exhaust A new piston and rings This motor has done alot of work in 2 years and not just weekends. It's due for a treat and we'll see what comes of it. I really do feel these changes are not as noticable when using a Dellorto but are still there. My last resort will be crank seals but maybe that will change if you changing yours works. Hope you have luck, Mark.

From page 2. The reeds were the first things replaced. Standard reeds.

Yea thats the sound. I held it wide open for no more than realisically three to four seconds to clean it out and it cleaned out like never before. Then I gave it a little blip and rattle rattle. Thats the risk you take. Ryan Young said "Pat Smage did it to his crank in 08. Ray Peters to his crank in 2000. You can weld the pin to keep from happening, but it is very rare! 2 times out of over 1000 bikes imported, well now three with yours". I put a brand new Kiehin on today. The bike runs ok but still not right. All the settings are still way richer than two weeks ago. (42 1 1/4 turns out to 45 1/4 turn out. Seems like it needs a 48 but I haven't got one. Also needle needs to be richer. I was able to run 42 5/8 turns out with jjh needle in middle. Although Ifound this setting weak in the mid, the idle was still quite rich......This setting is now impossible.) I feel I've had to richen the Dellorto settings slightly. ( with the needle all the way up it used to run 33 pilot at 2 1/2 turns out and now 33 pilot at 3 3/4 turns out.) I must add It seems to run very smooth with the Dellorto. Maybe the Kiehin fluctuates more with slight engine changes or wear? It's comming down to piston wear or a seal...... I THINK?

This was the first post! This was the second!It ran well in the first post because, as I stated, the needle clip was down on the bottom position. I've spent hours with my first 290 and some with the second on pilots and different fuel types, even racing fuel. This was with the Dellorto. The only thing that helped was when I ran a richer needle setting and softened the timing slightly. I think softening the timing is why you have had success in getting your bike to run well, yet in one of your other posts you did say the midrange ping was still unaddressed by the factory. I,m not changing my timing! I have two timing maps and with the dell it pings in the mids. With the Keihin it dosen't. You wouldn't believe my dissapointment when I rode my new 08 first time out of the crate and heard that horrible engine knock. All the hours spent trying to get rid of it on my 2000 came rushing back to haunt me. I've spent way way too much time dicking around with the Dellorto carb and had much more success with the Kiehin. And yes I have tried a 35 and 38 and even higher pilot on the 2000 with Dellorto. Just made the bottom end rich and poppy and still pinged in the mids. And yes I have tried a 115 main in the Dellorto on my 08 and have not once been able to clean it out. I know I could just keep going leaner on the main until it dose but......... I have a Kiehin and until two weeks ago, was over the moon with its performance. Neo my bike arrived in September 07 and I nearly ride as much as you, so it has a few hours on it already. When I did the engine teardown about six months ago to fix a twisted crank, new rings were installed and the piston was just within tolerence so I kept it. The problem may be piston wear, I dont know. I've ordered a new float bowl gasket, top gasket and needle valve for the Kiehin and should arrive Wednesday. Fingers Crossed. Has anyone ever notice the Kiehin idling slightly rich when bike tipped foward and slightly lean when tipped back?

Thought it might be something like that. I'm no expert like some and I've only owned two Sherco 290s. Both pinged there heads off in the low mids using the standard D36 needle on the third groove. Funny how the Gassers dont do this. I originally bought the keihin for more power but found I can run the bike either smoother or harder than a dellorto,with no mid pinging, cleaner top end, no horrible popping on rev down. Sounds like a few good reasons to give one a go and there's alot of very good riders on the planet that would agree. But like I said before, I'm no expert. I'm still not convinced that my problem is the carb, but, keeping an open mind.