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Hey Gang - I was helping a friend put together his 1000 LTD top end tonight and busted a cam cap bolt. I had set my new torque wrench to 9lbs as per the Clymer manual but the bolt snapped before the wrench did. I am going to bring the wrench back to the dealer tomorrow to have it looked at.

I need to know the specs on the cam bolt for this motor and the Kawasaki parts page is not loading on my computer. Can anyone post the specs for me asap.

Thanks-Cheers-Colin Firth
1977 Kz650 Custom - 810 Big bore with lottsa go-fast goodies hidden inside.

Colin...are You sure that the cam was actually seated in it's proper place,when You were tightening the bolts on that cap?
If You have the bike on the kickstand,the cam tends to slide over to that side,and the "locking" cam cap will grab the top edge of that part of the cam,and when You think You're in the safe zone,as far as torqueing,You WILL snap a cap because it won't seat properly.
SO...it might NOT be Your torque wrench,Bud...

Forgot to ask...is it the torque specs,You're after...for the cam caps?
In inch-pounds,it about 95

Better off only going about 5.5 ft/lb on any bolt with a 10mm head. I've never broke one, but stripping is common even at 5.5 ft/lb. I think 8 is high.

Sandy wrote:

Colin...are You sure that the cam was actually seated in it's proper place,when You were tightening the bolts on that cap?
If You have the bike on the kickstand,the cam tends to slide over to that side,and the "locking" cam cap will grab the top edge of that part of the cam,and when You think You're in the safe zone,as far as torqueing,You WILL snap a cap because it won't seat properly.
SO...it might NOT be Your torque wrench,Bud...

Sandy- We were bench shimming on a flat, level surface before putting the head on the motor in the frame.

RonKz650 - The Clymer Manual called for 9 ft/lbs of torque on the cap bolts. It seems my new $250 torque wrench seemed to be acting up as we tried it afterwards on some other bolts in the garage and we couldn't get the wrench to break at even the 1 ft/lb setting.

I used the same wrench on my spring 810 rebuild and didn't have a problem with the settings and didn't overtorque any bolts. I am going to get a replacement bolt for my friend so we can finish the job tomorrown night. I just need to know the exact size and length. By the way, is anyone else having trouble looking up the parts diagrams on www.buykawasaki.com?

Any help would be appreciated.

I hate to say this but i would use new bolts here and stronger ones wouldnt hurt. If the bolts have been twisted some they become your personal friends by getting your attention when they break. Some may have been used for valve cover bolts and overtighened, twisted. Ive learned the hard way that loctite must be used to insure they wont back out. Ive had mine do this and it almost ruined the head. Ill never take that chance. And i never took that rc51 either. The rotor bolt is another piece of work. Not strong enough. Say you have a helicoil in one hole for a cap and want to take it easy on the tightness? The loctite will save the day. I drink a gallon a day myself cuz i got loose screws. Im a little shaky but im together.

9 lbs for the chrome bolts and 7 for the black steel ones. Since this is at the bottom end of a 1/2" torque wrench, they are usually not all that reliable... better to switch to inch/lbs (108 in/lbs) and use a 1/4" torque wrench... the 1/4" torque wrench will prove more accurate at the lower torque ratings. There was also some very good advice... the sidestand is dangerous for cam caps as the cams can slip down a tad, as has been noted and you may not be tightening the cams in place where they should be. I also agree with nads.com on this issue... doesn't do any harm to get some grade 8 bolts and use on the cam caps... kind of pathetic to snap bolts at 9 lbs of torque. If you do have a problem with the expensive torque wrench, they can likely check its calibration... for $250, they should. I would also pick up a 1/4" torque wrench and use it for all 6mm fasteners (case bolts, cam cap bolts, cover bolts, etc).

On the buykawasaki.com sit, I believe you need to upgrade the Flash player as there is a different format that they are using. I had problems and I had to up grade the Flash player and all was fine. I hope this helps.

M6x1.00x45
Flange head.
Partially threaded.

Use the gallon of milk torque technique.
Gallon of milk weighs in at 8lb.
Same force as you feel from gallon on your finger is max you should feel at the end of a 9" wrench to give 6 ft lb torque.


IMO...If it's an old bike and hase been worked on a lot...
best to measure thikness of cam cap and subtrace from length of fastener. Add one mm and mark this on your m6x1.00 tap plus the number of starter turns on your tap.

Measure the hole depth. It should be deeper than the mark on your tap. Run the tap down to the mark to clean up the hole.

If hole is not quite this deep, chuck up a drill bit and put a stop collar on it and clean up the bottom of the hole and then run the tap.

If you don't check the holes, you'll end up with your 6lb of torque on some cap bolts and they will not be holding the cap down.

-Duck

PS, if threads are buggered use a m6x1x12 helicoil and tap.
Drill for this is 1/4"

Post edited by: Duck, at: 2006/10/06 10:21

Thanks Duck. That's what I needed.

Cheers-Colin Firth -Ontario Canada

Colin-
Manual actually calls for a 43mm length but they were impossible to find. I used 45's you could probably use 40's as well.
-Duck

letthegoodtimesroll wrote:

On the buykawasaki.com sit, I believe you need to upgrade the Flash player as there is a different format that they are using. I had problems and I had to up grade the Flash player and all was fine. I hope this helps.

Clicking "Owner Info" at buykawasaki.com returns the following:

Directory Listing Denied
This Virtual Directory does not allow contents to be listed.

I don't think upgrading flash is going to do any good.

I e-mailed them and begged for the return of the parts diagrams

Post edited by: steell, at: 2006/10/06 11:07