Is this the dreaded DAR??

[DWNUNDR]

nope... I havent...

I find it doubtful that the bike runs almost perfect before parking it at winter then the valves tighten up while sitting... but what do I know?!?!?

[Henry James]

It is a simple check, and what you decribe is what I found to be the problem with mine.  One of the valves clearance had gone to 0.

[Henry James]

Oh, and do them when the engine is cold.
Good luck

[DWNUNDR]

It is a simple check, and what you decribe is what I found to be the problem with mine.  One of the valves clearance had gone to 0.

but arent the valves near the top of the motor...

this sound is bottom right side... like in under the starter area... and it sounds like a rotating part as it changes with engine revs...

[Henry James]

Maybe I missed something.  I though you said it was hard to start when cold?  If it is a noise issue disregard.  If is a a hard to start when cold then follow what I said.

[DWNUNDR]

not me... I may have said it was hard to start after sitting all winter hence why I cleaned the carbs... and never apologize for genuinely offering advice...

[fishnbiker]

Just to confuse the issue a bit more ... this morning I took a video with the exact same noise to my nearest dealer. His thoughts pointed towards a bearing inside the alternator. The check for that is to remove the alternator, reconnect the battery cables & run the bike without the alternator. You may have some oil spray that can be managed by a rag draped over the alternator opening. An easy check. He also suggested pushing a plastic rod against the through bolt (with engine running) to add end pressure to see if it has any effect on sounds, isolating it to a specific location.

Several years ago, I installed the fix kit for DAR & had great success dropping the noise level. It gradually came back over the last year. I also changed out the rubber cush drive parts on the alternator recently. It made a small difference in the noise level.

As to the carbs, I changed out my old Mikunis for Keihins last winter. No change to the noises, but about 30 miles more per fill up gain in fuel economy, even with 125 main jets on my K & N filter setup.

I have a 400 watt spare alternator from a Kawasaki Concourse that I may try to fit, just needing to change the cush drive end plate to make it work. Then I can dismantle the original to inspect further. My Felix has about 80,000 very hard miles on it now, so these types of problems can start to show up more frequently. This Tigertriple group has been anoutstanding help on keeping Felix manageable

Now ... you may all return to the usual backyard diagnoses ...

[nightrunner]

I'm joining this discussion late but will add my $0.02 FWIW.  I had the very similar problems a few years back.  The kitty (a '98) ran fine in the fall and like carp the following spring.  I kept thinking it was fouled carbs and kept taking them apart for more and more cleaning.  Well it was the coils, or one of them anyway.  So yes they can go from working fine before winter and failing on the very first spring start up.  Most folks here go with the Nology coils which bolt right in.  I did the switch to the TT600 on-the-plug coils which I bought used on ebay.  Its been running great ever since.  But along the way I did discover the idle mixture screws were set even more lean than they are supposed to be from the factory.  So it was pretty hard to start even with good coils.  My advice is get some new coils; either Nology or the on-plug.  Even if your coils are good now, they wont be for long.

On the DAR issue, my bike had it when I bought it (used).  This would be the more common version of DAR caused by the bolt holding the cush drive vane on the end of the alternator shaft breaking off.  The noise is not the bolt head rattling around but the [now] loose vane jiggling on the shaft.  If you just replace the bolt it will break again.  The factory bolt is a grade DIN 10.9 which is equal to US grade 8 which is a very tough bolt.  You have to address the cause of the bolt breaking.  The vane is held in place by splines on the alt shaft.  The vane can wiggle a tiny fraction of a degree even when the bolt is tight.  In some cases this tiny amount of play will gradually tighten the bolt until its so tight the head snaps off.  Its just a poor design.  The trick is to take up the play in the splines.  I used JB Weld to epoxy the vane on the shaft and then install the new bolt.   Use thread locking compound (Loctite?) and use just a flat washer.  If you don't like epoxying the spines, you could try just the flat washer and Loctite.  Don't use a lock washer as it helps create the progressive tightening problem.   

[fishnbiker]

Just to confuse the issue a bit more ... this morning I took a video with the exact same noise to my nearest dealer. His thoughts pointed towards a bearing inside the alternator. The check for that is to remove the alternator, reconnect the battery cables & run the bike without the alternator. You may have some oil spray that can be managed by a rag draped over the alternator opening. An easy check. He also suggested pushing a plastic rod against the through bolt (with engine running) to add end pressure to see if it has any effect on sounds, isolating it to a specific location. ....

So I tried removing the alternator & no difference on the clacking sound. Tried the screwdriver stethoscope method & seem to have unpleasant ticking located either in the counterbalance shaft or gears nearby. I just put in a new squish washer on the counter shaft, also with no difference, so will now look at the valve clearances. Meantime, the engine runs perfectly, cold or hot, so not likely the carbs or coils.

[rf9rider]

Another option to try is balancing the carbs.

Out of balance carbs can add to engine noise.