wayne thais

Dave, Did you have to drain and remove the radiator in order to remove the valve cover on the 08?

Thanks Jon, I think all of the credit goes to her mother. We will be in OK, the WE before your Octobertest, I will be at Langley with Ron, will have the 4T, come take it for a ride if you like. Wayne

Mqrk, We were very fortunate, three of our children decided to go to college and for the most part paid their own way. The middle daughter moved to California right out of High School and became a resident, that allowed her to get her education fairly inexpensively, she worked and went to school and did get some student loans, she now has a family and two Masters degrees and lives within a mile of where we live. The youngest daughter received some athletic scholarships, attended a junior college, lived at home, worked and then finished up most of her classes from one of the state colleges at the local junior college, she did have to drive to some of the classes but she lived at home and that kept the cost down, she is now living in Oklahoma and working on her Masters. ( I think you know her) Our youngest son received basketball scholarships to the local junior college and then he went to a small school in Iowa, also on scholarship to get his BA. He moved back home and attended the U of I to earn his Masters, he was able to work in the athletic department which paid his tuition, he does have a student loan he has to pay off, however he is out on his own and has a full time job. We have been very blessed in that we did not have to go into dept to pay for our kids education, that is one reason that I have been able to have so many toys. Hang in there, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Wayne

I understand! Are there any opportunities for scholarships? If I can pull it off, I will upgrade to the "09". So the "08" will probably be for sale in the spring, sooner if someone really wanted it. Wayne

Mark, Come spring, I may know where one will be available. Wayne

Watch it closely, you may have to install a new o-ring, mine would seep a little. Wayne

Why did you over tighten the the oil filter plug? Was the o-ring seal leaking? Mine was leaking so I found an o-ring that had a larger cross section and replaced it, leak fixed. Wayne

If you are riding in high water and have those vents open that could certainly be a source of water intrusion. The valve in my airbox was factory installed. You might check the 08 parts book and see if it is in there. Wayne

How deep is the water you are riding in and how fast are you trying to go. You may need to slow down, or stay out of the deep water. My 08 does have a one way valve in the bottom of the airbox to let water out if it gets in. Water is very hard on engines! Wayne

A VERY SIMPLE solution to keeping water out of the Sherco airbox is to remove the rear fender and put duct tape over the airbox opening before washing, then replace the rear fender. Be sure and remove the duct tape before attempting to start. Ask me how I know. Wayne

"You see, I always get these weird notions like "Where is this bike going to be in 5 or 10 years? Can you afford to maintain it? Will a fuel pump cost more than the bike is worth? Just thoughts!" Good thoughts Mark! I am of the school that says KISS (keep it simple stupid). FI is great but as you say it can get expensive. Wayne

Mark, The jetting is not the same: Original: Pilot 42 Main 122 SPS: Pilot 45 Main 128 From a casual look it looks like the original carb could be upgraded to SPS with the longer emulsion tube and the extension on the bottom of the float bowl. Much less expensive than a new carb. If one could find a source for Keihin parts it should be a simple change (if indeed it will work, I am not going to take the new carb off to find out today). Wayne

Ian, I use Mobil 1, Racing 4T fully synthetic 10W-40 4 cycle motorcycle oil. I actually use Mobil 1 oil in allof my vehicles. Wayne

Good Morning, The SPS is the new carb that Sherco released on the 10th anniversary edition and will be using on the 09 4T's. At this time the only way to purchase it is by getting a complete carb. I asked about a retrofit and was told no! The body of the carb may be unique because of the way the emulsifier tube screws in, I did not check, it may be simply a new float bowl and the new emulsifier tube. On my stock carb, I went up one size on the pilot jet to a 45 and set the air screw around 1/2 - 3/4 turns out and it ran very well. The air screw adjustment is very critical for crisp running and good starting. Wayne

I actually had some free time this afternoon and took the opportunity to install the new SPS carburetor on my 08 3.2. It was a simple remove and replace operation. Took the old carb off and installed the new one. Started it up, warmed it up and was amazed at the engine response, you can whack the throttle wide open and it does NOT sputter or cough, it just revs. Rode around the yard and the neighborhood for a few minutes and was very impressed. Hopefully I will be able to take it to the club in the next few days and give it a proper test. The significant difference between this carb and the stock one is the float bowl has a hollow knurled knob on the bottom and the main jet holder is much longer and extends down into the hollowed out portion of the knob. Wayne

Where are you getting your bearings? Are you going to a local bearing supplier or are you getting them from your local Sherco dealer. If I remember correctly Sherco updated the bearings a few years back, I do not know if they are anything special other than clearance but you may want to check with the local dealer or importer to see if there are improved factory bearings available. They may be more expensive but for the number of times you have had to replace them you may want to try the factory parts, especially the latest 08 parts. I just looked at the 05 and the 08 Sherco Spare Parts book and there is a difference in the bearings, the 05 is a 6206 C3 and the 08 uses a 6206 TN9 C3C3, I don't know the specific differences but a good bearing shop should be able to tell from the numbers. Wayne

Mark, I have one of the SPS carbs and have not installed it yet. It DOES NOT have an accelerator pump, that was my original thought also. There is a modification on the float bowl, it looks like a large knurled knob that sticks down, the jet holder extends down into this hollow knob. Once I get it installed I will post a report. Andreu Codina has a 3.2 with the carb and he says the performance is definitely improved. He also said the starting was even better. Wayne

There is a better translation coming. It should be available in the next few days from Sherco. Wayne

Nigel you said "which is a better all round bike than most for what I ride", that is where I am at with the 3.2 4T. I no longer compete and just ride for fun. The 3.2 is providing that for me. Who do you think that i work for? Wayne

Nigel, are you familiar with Ryan? He is the US importer for Sherco and a very good rider, he was the US National Champion six times and can still hold his own with most of the young hot shots. He has made the comment the comment that in certain conditions riding the 4T is almost like cheating. Give one a go. I am confident that the importer would make you a deal that if you did not like it he would let you return it and go with a 2 T, I would lay even money that once you got used to it you would stay with the 4T. Wayne

I rode the bike a lot over the past weekend, we had a trials at out local club and I helped with the set up. I had to start and stop it numerous times, it never gave me any problems, always started, usually on the first kick. I was playing around and made a misque and stalled it (one of the few times) and it took 4 kicks to start. It just runs so darn well. I was following a mate the other day and found that at the pace he was riding I could just put it in 1st gear and not even touch the clutch, it just pulled me everywhere he went. Ryan Young came on Saturday and conducted a school and then on Sunday rode the trials, afterwords he rode the 4T in a section that had given him a bit of a problem on the 2T because it was very wet and slick, he cleaned it with no problem, he says the 4T gets traction much better than the 2T and has a decided advantage in wet conditions. We are in the process of getting our house ready to sell so I am spending an inordinate amount of time getting it in top condition. We are going to downsize from a large house to one that is a bit smaller, instead of a family of 9 it is just the wife and I. Once the house is ready, I will spend more time on the 4T. It is loosening up nicely and still amazes me on every ride. I think I am a 4T man now. Wayne

I have now ridden the 4T several times and have it adjusted to the point that it "Usually" starts on the first kick after the initial start up (initial start up usually takes 1 - 4 kicks). Here is what I have done: 1. Replaced the 42 pilot with a 45 2. Set the "Air Screw" at 3/4 turn out 3. Raised the idle speed to a "Fast Idle" 4. Make sure that I am at Top Dead Center before attempting to start it (every time) 5. Always put the bike in neutral 6. Give it a firm solid kick, (EVERY TIME) like starting a big bore twin. If I can, I put my left foot on the left peg, this gives me good leverage. 7. Throttle closed 8. If it does not start on the 4th kick (again this is when it is hot) I open the throttle all the way and kick it through 2 or 3 times, then close the throttle all the way and it usually starts on the next kick. The engine has NEVER failed to start, even after stalling it, as of yet I have not had it upside down or for that matter I have not had it down, close a couple of times is all. I am really enjoying this bike, it has just really good power and the suspension is so supple, no hard hits after a drop off, the rear suspension really absorbs those big bumps. Wayne

The "08" does not even have a "Hot Start" lever. Wayne

I completely understand the noise issue, however the Sherco when ridden normally is not that loud, the only time that it get loud is when you really drop the hammer. I was actually experimenting with the bike when my friend came into the parking lot. I wanted to see what kind of power was available when I really opened the throttle, most of my riding is in the 1/4 - 1/2 throttle area, in this area it is totally acceptable from a noise standard. The area in which we ride is primarily a MX area that has been there for 40 years, they recently purchased a sound meter and all bikes must meet certain noise standards in order to be allowed on the grounds. Wayne

I have learned that finding TDC is very important and also deliberate kicks work much better than 2 stroke prods. I was able to ride again today and made an effort to find out exactly what I needed to do to consistently start it on either the first or second kick. What I had to do was set the idle at a decent speed, not to slow/not to fast and set the air screw on this carb on this bike right at 3/4 turn out. Today every time I shut it off or stalled it (only once) it started either on the first or second kick, usually on the first one. Using the before mentioned practices, TDC, deliberate kick. I was climbing some hills when another rider came into the parking lot, he thought someone on a MX bike was out in the woods, it really barks when you get on it hard, I really like the sound, not to loud but it speaks with authority. Wayne