Smoke Blowing out of exhaust

[Highliner]

I'm troubleshooting oil smoke out the exhaust.

Previous owner replace CC seal, messed something up, head gasket started leaking, so he replaced HG, bike started blowing oil into the exhaust and causing smoke. sold me bike cheap:)

I started it and ran it a bit, no expensive noise. so I gave it a couple troubleshooting runs, smoked at first startup, stopped smoking after a few miles, checked oil, it was barely on dipstick, added 4 oz. it was full. rode around town...no smoke, took for high speed I-68 run for about 3 miles, was smoking after exiting and at light, pretty noticeable and probably annoying to the guy behind me as I'm revving it up and trying to determine what's up.

Rode it home check oil it was down an oz or two. pulled the tank to check and see if airbox has oil in it (negative). Pulled plugs, they were clean, dry and brand new. so I am thinking the oil isn't going by the rings because it isn't fouling the plugs. So the oil is blowing by the exhaust valves. ( bad EX Valve seal) (no oil in the cylinder during compression).

Ruling out gasket for 3 reasons, its new, there is no coolant in the oil, and the coolant is clean with no signs of oil.

I do wonder if the PO's opinion that he displaced the cylinder liner could bee the culprit but I can't visualize the oil path out the exhaust.

Where do you find the best price for a gasket kit for these things? (2005 995 Triumph Tiger)

[Timbox2]

Sorry, whats CC seal?  Going on your description I would be thinking Valve stem seals too. Liner seal normally results in coolant/oil mixing

[Highliner]

Crank case seal?  I've removed everything to inspect the camshaft in the cam timing and found the marks on the cam  gears do not lineup when the engine is at TDC.

I am wondering if they could be off just enough to not allow the exhaust valve to completely close at high rpm and is letting oil pass through the exhaust creating all the smoke.  I realize it could be a bent valve.  Since have more time than money I figure reset the timing manually son the motor to listen for expensive noises then put it back  together and see if the problem still persists.

Looking in the manual I'm hesitant to tear into this because it says to place a suitable wedge between the tensioner blade and crank case to hold the cam chain taught during removal of the tensioner. I  cannot seem to find any information on what a suitable wedge looks like and proper placement, any advice would be appreciated.

[CaptureTheBeer]

G'day Highliner,

I'm pretty sure the reason for the wedge is to prevent the cam chain slipping off the cam gears.  Your picture looks like this has happened previously and the cam gears have not been realigned. 

If you're going to align them anyway it shouldn't be an issue.  I had to realign it after an attempt to remove the intake cam (damn you torx screw) it was a bit of a PITA to get it aligned, hold the chain in place and refit the tensioner, a third hand would make it easier.  Luckily I'd already marked the chain and cam gear alignment with a sharpie before removing the cam chain tensioner.

However I'd wait until a more knowledgeable had than mine has commented, as I may have missed something.

  I assuming you're using the Allen key method to turn the crank rather than the in gear/rear wheel method,  I found it much easier and more accurate.

Cheers Dan

[AndyT]

From the picture it looks like you are two teeth out, you would be very lucky if there hasn't been any piston to valve contact, the best way for a quick check without taking the head off is to check the valve clearances, if you have any big ones then the chances are that the valve is bent, otherwise take the head off. The timing being out would not prevent the exhaust valves from closing just the timing of the closure i.e. open later close later. My money would be on the timing being out, piston has hit valve, valve has bent possibly cracking a valve guide or two and oil flowing down the valve stems, worst case a crack in the head but far less likely. Anyone who put a motor together out of time like this may also not have installed the guide seals correctly too!
If it were mine, I'd take the head off and check everything, make sure the guides and seals are good, whilst in there you can see the top of the liners and check for any problems there, then build up with new guide seals, replacing any suspect valves and new gaskets, get the timing right and check all valve clearances.
I hope it works out for you!

[Highliner]

The angle of the camera exaggerates the distance between the marks. I am praying one tooth off and no valve interference.

I ran the bike and rode it probably 20-30 miles I didn't hear any suspect noises, and the bike ran well, If it wasn't for the smoke I don't think anyone would notice anything wrong. If you are right I am going to have to find a head as I think it says in the manual the guides and seals are not replaceable.

Am I right in thinking I have to find a head off a 2005 engine, or is it the same as previous years. If my understanding is correct they only changed the bottom end of the engine in 2005.

[Timbox2]

The angle of the camera exaggerates the distance between the marks. I am praying one tooth off and no valve interference.

I ran the bike and rode it probably 20-30 miles I didn't hear any suspect noises, and the bike ran well, If it wasn't for the smoke I don't think anyone would notice anything wrong. If you are right I am going to have to find a head as I think it says in the manual the guides and seals are not replaceable.

Am I right in thinking I have to find a head off a 2005 engine, or is it the same as previous years. If my understanding is correct they only changed the bottom end of the engine in 2005.

Yep, all Tiger 955 heads are the same, but its a minefield on ebay. Ive seen 885 engines advertised as 955, as well as  Daytona and Sprint as being the same, which again they are not. Pretty sure stem seals are replaceable, but not the guides.

Oh yeah, and my arrows never lined up perfectly either

[Highliner]

I was able to move the cam gears so the arrows lined up a little better, I think it may of been a tooth off. After spending a lot of time scraping rtv from the cam cover gasket putting it back together, I started her up and have ran it about 40-50 miles, it seems to have fixed the problem. Looks like next thing to sort is replacing the hoses for the cooling system because they are a little old and suspect to failure. I wouldn't mind a better windscreen, better lights and a way to figure out how I can see the tach and speedo at night. I still haven't burned a tank of fuel through it, that will happen as soon as I get legal tags on it.

Thanks for all your advice on helping me sort this out.