Alternator rotor removal / crankshaft balancer LHS

[CDNRatMan]

  Yes good to know and as for your cush-drive rubbers the rear hub rubbers if we are talking about the same thing, I had to replace them in both bikes due to a wee bit of wear......

[Tfrank59]

Okay thanks.  good to know

[Ogri]

21,000 miles at the moment, it's a 2002, in the UK. I wouldn't get too concerned about it - I've mentioned this problem on two of the main facebook groups and no-one seems to have heard of it.

Interestingly, my rear wheel cush-drive rubbers also needed to be replaced; I'm wondering if it was a bad batch from Kawasaki's rubber supplier.

It's a distinctive sound: like a little elf under the LH engine cover with a tiny jackhammer as you pull away from a stop or when you accelerate. Through gentle use of the throttle and clutch it can be largely mitigated.

[Tfrank59]

OK thanks for the clarification. Can you tell us how many miles (or kilometers) are on your bike, because I got about 18,000 miles on mine and I'm hoping I don't have to get into it for a while like you did for those dampers.

[Ogri]

Yes, sorry, I was unclear. The fault must have been the rubbers as it was the only thing I changed. I think the two cog shaped ones were the problem as they pretty much fell out of their little sockets in the balancer whereas the two new ones were a nicer fit.

Prior to the work the motor didn't make any noise when it was cold so I'm thinking now that the old rubbers were prone to getting more squishy as the engine warmed up and allowed the balancer - which consists of two parts that engage each other via the rubbers - to clatter against itself...or something.
Hopefully the new ones are more resistant to the heat - they certainly felt tougher and less squidgy. If the noise returns I'll make my own rubbers out of heatproof/oilproof rubber.

Yes, nose is about that size.

EDIT: Pic below of the old rubbers. For reference: diameter of the round ones is 19mm, the distance across the 'teeth' of the cog shaped ones is 17.7mm  (Yes, I'm kicking myself I didn't measure the new ones :S)

[Tfrank59]

 Yeah, thanks for your explanation about what you were doing, but I'm a little confused – what was the problem? You mentioned the crankshaft balancer dampers were at fault but when you got in there they looked fine.  Was it that two of them were a little bit worn? Maybe I just don't read very well . Oh yeah and is your nose really that big?

[Pilgrim]

Awesome! Good report and thanks for letting us know how you got her repaired. Nice artwork too.

[Ogri]

All done! And apparently fixed. The noise I was trying to fix occurred when the engine was warm and under load: like pulling away from a stop or accelerating.
It seemed to be coming from under the LH engine cover where the generator is. Internet searches suggested the rubber dampers in the crankshaft balancer assembly were at fault.

Having got in there I was dismayed to see the old ones looked exactly like the new ones; no apparent wear or damage. There are two sorts; four that look like sealed skateboard wheel bearings and two that look like cogs. The latter two seemed slightly softer than their replacements.

I had a minor (okay, major) scare when the crankshaft balancer shaft moved out of sync with the crankshaft but luckily Kawasaki has put marks on the shaft, the balancer itself and the generator rotor.

What took longest was removing the old gasket from the generator cover - nightmare.

Tentatively started her up and it was obvious that I'd got the balancer correctly aligned - when it's off the bike shakes like an out of whack spin dryer.
I got the engine good and warm and listened for the noise...quiet. I took the bike for a long ride around the neighbourhood.....no noise.

All in all, I'm extremely happy. Total cost was about £75 - $104 for the rubbers, the gasket and the "rotor removal tool" .

I drew this a while back in anticipation of a good result:

[Ogri]

Thanks mate - it seems like no-one else has judging by the silence across the internet.

Anyway, for future reference: crankshaft balancer bolt is regular right hand thread. I'm taking a break and scouring the web for info on the rotor nut. Neither Haynes nor the Kawa manual state that it's LH thread so I'm gonna assume it's normal. Stay tuned.

EDIT:  Rotor bolt is regular right hand thread too. Rotor can be removed with a M18 X 1.5 X 60mm bolt rather than the OEM rotor removal tool.

[CDNRatMan]

  I would really like to help you but I have never delved this deep into the motor.

[Ogri]

Is it the alternator rotor bolt that has a left hand thread or the crankshaft balancer assembly that has it? My Haynes manual is a bit vague on the subject and the Kawasaki manual doesn't mention it at all.
I'm planning on replacing the balancer's rubbers tomorrow.