86 Bayou random knock??

[mikeday]

Hello all, new here and have a few inqueries, this seams to be a helpful place.

-I picked up an 86 bayou 300 off my fathers friend the other day (gotta love free stuff ). Needed some carb work as it had been sitting for a few years in a shed, after a good cleaning and a new diaphram it fired right up.

-Now for the issues... It has the reverse lockout problem that i just read about (i'll dig in once i get some time), And every once and a while it seams to have a knock. Its doesnt matter the temp of the engine (tho it got a bit louder when it almost overheated... i read about adding a fan wich i will do later) It almost sounds to me like its the clutch knocking around under different loads. Is there any known issues reguarding that? I'm hoping its not rod / piston slap issues

[86klf300guy]

well it kinda hard to tell because we can not hear though but you may want to check the oil and or change it and check for metal shaveins and also change the oil filter and if that does not healp you may want to dig in to it and find out whats going on it may also be the timeing chain tentsioner failing or and guide broke and flopping around and i have an 86 also i removed the 2 guards that r on the front fender to allow more air flow over the head and block if i can figure out how to post a pic i post it up to show you and it has not gotten hot sence i removed them but i get a little bit more muddyer lol -corey-

[mikeday]

Originally Posted by 86klf300guy

well it kinda hard to tell because we can not hear though but you may want to check the oil and or change it and check for metal shaveins and also change the oil filter and if that does not healp you may want to dig in to it and find out whats going on it may also be the timeing chain tentsioner failing or and guide broke and flopping around and i have an 86 also i removed the 2 guards that r on the front fender to allow more air flow over the head and block if i can figure out how to post a pic i post it up to show you and it has not gotten hot sence i removed them but i get a little bit more muddyer lol -corey-

I changed the oil and filter just before i got it to run. It had been sitting in a barn for 3 years so i figured it was due. The old oil had no signs of shavings... I had a pusher fan off an old ninja that i'll mount later today.

[86klf300guy]

hey my friend needs that fan for his 86 ninja 600r wanna sell it lol -corey-

[mikeday]

haha sure, its off a ninja 250... so if it'll work make me an offer

[slafreni]

Hey, I have an 86 Bayou and I've had some knocking,rattling problems also coming from the left side, I took the cover off the Generator/Starter to replace the starter and found the chain connecting the two is loose and I still cant figure out how to tighten it.

[RCW]

For the occasional rattle that gets louder when really warm, it is likely from a too loose cam chain.

Check your cam chain tension. It is manually adjusted by the little screw and set screw on the cam chain tensioner that is located on the back side of the cylinder.

The best way to set that tension is to make sure you have fresh 30 wt oil, and let it run a bit to fully circulate the oil, then let it idle and loosen the set screw on the tensioner, then back off the tension bolt just enough that it starts to rattle, then tighten it just enough that the rattle quits, and set the set screw to hold the tension. Once done correctly it will never need to be done again.

Do not do it with old or light oil, as the chain will tension too tight from a thin oil film in the links. Do not back the tension off more than just enough to make the chain really rattle at idle, or it will jump timing.

If you are not familiar with the adjustment pick up a service/repair manual and then go to Kawasaki.com and look up the parts diagram and become familiar with the components and how they work.

The starter chain is not adjustable, it has to be replaced when the slack is more than the tolerance called for in the service/repair manual.