Did my valve clearances today. 8 hours to do it all after having to take a few bits off again cause I forgot stuff. I did the oil and plugs as well. Next week is the rest of the service, better grade fork oil and -1/+2 sprockets and a chain (renthal).
Some pics
Sounds a good challenge 
Look forward to hearing how the bike’s running better after all this
IF its running :Whistling: :hehe:
bike ran well from the shop. a couple minor issues I had once I left was that the throttle cable needed adjusting as the free play was awfull, brake pads were not done yet along with the new chain and sprockets. the bike felt wierd to ride at first.
I was exhausted from the valve clearance job that I was making silly errors towards the end of the day. I’ll add that if you’re going down for a full day then have a good night’s sleep beforehand. Anyway, woke up this morn and went to my garage and did the brake pads and cable lubing/adjusting. Whilst doing that I noticed that the oil was at the low level. I didn’t check it at the omc ( I was that tired) Luckily I have oil in my garage and topped it up before taking it for a spin and now the bike feels new again. really tight and responsive 
I’ll be back in the week to do the chain and sprockets, fork oil and possibly a few other bits and pieces. I need to complete the service and take more photo’s for the evidence of the service as I dont get a stamp. All in all I’m happy. glad I made the mistakes as I’ve learned to keep an eye out for these things now.
it seems ‘your’ way of doing it has costed you more than a garage?
Bit confused how long it took you AND what you have left to do. Surely the cost and time to you is greater
How many hours have you had to pay for to complete your service.
It would be interesting to hear how much it’s cost you, but I think what you’ve learnt whilst doing it would have made it worth the money. I’d pay money for that kind of knowledge/experience. Nice one Jaime, hope it continues to go well.
Pls let us know how long it takes you to change the chain and sprockets Jamie. Mine will need doing at some point and I’ve considered doing the 12,000 mile service at the OMC. But as others have pointed out, it might cost a fair bit more compared to having it serviced at a garage. Having said that though, you’ll have learned invaluable skills 
I think OMC is great for general servicing like oil changes, brakes etc. Major work on a budget on the other hand is only possible if you know what you are doing.
the work was not just valve checking. I also had to do 4 of the 16 shims. the job would have taked a mechanic around 6+ hours to do. Most official Suzuki charge £50 plus per hour and that would have cost £300 in labour.
mine should have cost me £120 at the OMC but it cost almost half that as I bought the 24hour deal. I think most mechanics here would agree that valve clearances do take ages to do. I did the oil, plugs and other bits as well on the bike but the main thing is that I’m happy with the work, happy with the experience and more importantly VERY happy with the price.
best part for me was that Simon not only helped me locate the correctly geared sprockets and chain for me but also bought them for me and had them delivered to the shop. :D:cool:
For further Reference. My last BIG service at the OMC was oil, plugs, filters, brake fluid flush, coolant flush, brake pads and other bits and that took me 4 hours there to do. the time I spent doing my valves also included a lunch brake and a breather.
Cant complain at any part of Saturday at all. Quite the opposite really. Things only took longer and went wrong cause I had beer and a late night the night before (1am) and had to be up at 7 in the morn to work on the bike. Totally all my fault. That’s why you need a good night’s sleep to make the most of the day and service
I am not knocking it, just trying to see how the costs work out. It will always take you twice as long doing jobs for the first time.
You can’t beat the satisfaction of being able to do it yourself.
Do OMC check the valve clearances after you have adjusted them?
checked, adjusted and rechecked again.
I also rebuilt the bike and had 1 part left over:crazy:
it was the frame brace :pinch: had to take the bike apart again lol
GOOD on you, not many people would try it on a 4 cylinder, I did mine, but did it over a weakend, is better if you can lock up and go back to it. nice and fresh, you must of had the worry to get it done and ride it home,on your mind too. love doing it my self, but not in some one elses place, fear of not finishing in time.
the OMC are very good at allowing for extra time. They shut at 6pm during the week with an extention to 9pm if you’re taking your time on the bike. I called up at 6 to see if I could pop in and when I got there, there was no one there working on their bikes:w00t: . they stayed open just for me 
how cool was that! 
