Motorcycle Repair: 1975 Honda cb360, 1975 honda cb360, cam follower

Question
QUESTION: My bike sounds like it has a gear drive.  I heard there is a recall and if it was done there are two punch marks on the engine serial #.  No marks on mine.  You know the sound you get when the kickstarter is held down when the bike is running...Like that.  It seems to be from the front of the engine, and increases with RPM.  Steady whine.  I checked the timing chain.  The two bolts that hold the rear tensioner plate, behind the cam between the intake ports, well, one backed out all the way.  I fixed that, but still with the gear drive sound.  Help!!!

ANSWER: William, it still sounds like a camchain tensioner issue.  Your's didn't get the recall work done or at lease it didn't get properly punched.  I did hundreds of those recalls myself and it wouldn't surprise me if it didn't get punched.

Have you tried adjusting the cam chain tension?  There's a lock nut on the front of the crankcase below the starter motor Loosen that lock nut and rotate the crank a little with a wrench to put all of the slack on the back side of the chain.  Then tighten the lock nut.  

If that didn't make a difference, take a long screwdriver and hold the handle up tight on your ear and put the blade end of the screwdriver on various locations on the engine.  It will act just like a stethoscope. You can pin point the location of the noise and I can give you better recommendations.

good luck
Rich

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you.  I adjusted it once, but will try again.  The noise lessened after I fixed the bolt issue.  What did the recall involve?

Answer
William, there were two recalls, if I remember correctly, on that model.  There was a cam chain tensioner slipper and there was the cam follower rocker shaft recall. The slipper had a different material that wore less and the socket it rode in also had a different material.  I think the original seat was rubber or something and deteriorated. The cam follower rocker shaft was originally a two piece design and it was replaced with one piece design.  If you pull the plug out of the cylinderhead top cover that covers the rocker shaft and the plug has an integral shaft, it's been updated.  The earlier designs wore out the bore for the rocker shaft because the shaft would spin in the bore.   

Regards,
Rich