So we sat and had a nice chat. I asked the questions, and No Quarter answered, albiet I had to ride it to get the answers.
I decided she may be suffering from a lack of advance. I mean, she runs great, but you have to hold the throttle wide open to maintain 70mph, and the pipes are all carboned out. Everything else in the ignition system is either new or high end, and she purrs right along. but no giddiup in her giddiup.
Before I go through all the motions of removing a swing arm to get at the advance unit, I thought it prudent to check the timing - to see if she is advancing (or not). To check the timing, I need to take the inspection cap off and peer down into the case. With a timing light in one hand, and the throttle in the other, I can to watch the timing mark move (or not) as I work the throttle up to 3K.
All fine and dandy, except I remember the day I forgot to put the timing inspection cap back on. I also made certain I would never do that again - my punishment - two hours cleaning the oil that came out of the case and went on the bike, the floor, the wall, the tool bench, the car, the tool storage bin....
Honda makes this great little timing inspection tool that allows you to look at your flywheel without having oil go all over the place. It costs about $15, screws into the case in place of the stock cap, and works about as well as that oil level window they put under the exhaust on the right side of the engine. That is to say, barely. But if barely is what Honda wants, who are we to question.
I did not have the time to order one of these cute viewports, so I decided to make one. Besides, few things are more fun than spending 45 bucks worth of labor to make a 15 dollar tool. Right?
My final design works just like the Honda one. Oil splashes against the portal, but hey, we Goldwing guys know what it is like to peer through a small clear window with oil splashing against it. We never question the training that Mother Honda has bestowed upon us. We are experts at peering through small oil soaked windows looking for something that may or may not be there. All the practice we have put in viewing through that little window pays off. Seeing a timing mark through the window is cake compared to finding the oil level while you lay on the floor. We can see it. Barely. But we do.
Here is the basic recipe for making a home brewed Timing Mark Viewport.
Skill level: Basic familiarity with Materials fusion (mixing epoxy) Tool proficiency equivalent (TPE): Baboon or Otter.
Ingredients:
1 preferably used timing inspection cap
1 plastic magnifying glass
1 application of jb weld or epoxy of your choice
1 400 grit sand paper
Tools required:
Drill Press
fine toothed hand saw
3/4" drill bit
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Epoxy the magnifier to the cap. allow 24 hrs to set up.
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, and a great story for first thing in the morning (where's my coffee?).
