Cam Chain Tensioner revised again?

[Dan23]

The CCT has a new part number and now sports a green dot. Not a blue dot.

The new number is 1MC-12210-00-00, the old number is 5JW-12210-01-00.

To my naked eye, excepting the color of the dot, it looks like the old one.

 

[FJReady]

gee, just when I was running out of things to worry about, this comes.... dammit!

 

[Dan23]

Um. OK.

 

[lnewlf]

Great..-I just changed to the blue dot...meebee time for an APE..

 

[Chuck35]

I have been considering the APE. I like an oil / spring fed tensioner to have locking pawls so it cant retract when stopped under a load.

 

[Mihalis fjr]

Or a like this double springs/ratchet tencioner from my good old XTZ 750/90model.Then they made good and trusty things..

22 years old bike and i have never replace the tensioner!

 

[Dan23]

I have been considering the APE. I like an oil / spring fed tensioner to have locking pawls so it cant retract when stopped under a load.

Playing with the new tensioner, I don't think you have to be concerned that it will retract in that circumstance.

It'll be interesting to compare this tensioner to the one installed in my '06.

 

[gixxerjasen]

Nobody tell Patriot!!!

 

[Mihalis fjr]

I have been considering the APE. I like an oil / spring fed tensioner to have locking pawls so it cant retract when stopped under a load.

Playing with the new tensioner, I don't think you have to be concerned that it will retract in that circumstance.

It'll be interesting to compare this tensioner to the one installed in my '06.

We waiting for your review..!

 

[ionbeam]

...It'll be interesting to compare this tensioner to the one installed in my '06.

The plunger in the CCT will be ~50% extended when installed and pressing on the cam chain slipper. When you compare the two you need to feel the spring force of the plunger with the plunger 50% extended. In my CCT, Patriot's CCT and all the CCTs that caused cam chain noise it is weak plunger tension that is the problem.

The issue with the original CCT was spring force rapidly reducing when the plunger extended past 50%. The design of the original CCT let the actual spring force vary with the way the end cap was installed on the CCT, some CCT may have good spring force but others were very weak. Ultimately Yamaha needs to have the CCT assembled so there can be no variation in assembly resulting in consistent spring force in all units. It is this variation that may have contributed to the spring breaking in 'Howie's CCT. Take a look at the end cap (where the plunger exits) and see what it looks like. The Gen I CCT had 4 notches and an interlocking tab that contributed to spring force and the alignment with the rectangular plunger.

 

[Dan23]

My x-ray vision isn't working well this morning, but it looks to me like the plunger moves on a helical guide that is forced outward by a spiral spring. When cold, the plunger won't back off any further than allowed by the play in the helical guide.

Look at the photo in post #17 of this thread:

https://www.fjrforum.com/forum//index.php/topic/150578-another-cct-question/?hl=1mc-12210

The one on the left looks like the new one I got, except on mine the dot is green. Maybe I'd see or feel a difference if I played with them. OTOH, the one in the pic on the right looks pretty much the same, too. This is not to say there's no differences internally, including but not limited to the spring.

IMHO, if the plunger is past 50% extended, the chain itself ought to be replaced.

 

[Dan23]

Oh, one more thing: A shout out of thanks to members of COG, one of whom used to be an FJR owner/rider and active here on this very topic. I ran into this group at a motel while on a cross-continent ride a few weeks ago and this guy pointed me toward the CCT when my bike made some noise on a hot restart. This saved me a lot of searching.

 

[Mihalis fjr]

We must admit that the Yamaha has failed in the tensioners the last years..

But,..i don't know the reason....

Why 20 years before she did the perfect tensioners and now she can not..??!!

Have you thought that it be a money play for spare parts..?!

Something going wrong here...

 

[ionbeam]

...it looks to me like the plunger moves on a helical guide that is forced outward by a spiral spring. When cold, the plunger won't back off any further than allowed by the play in the helical guide...IMHO, if the plunger is past 50% extended, the chain itself ought to be replaced.

Your x-ray vision was good enough to describe the way the two previous CCTs work, so the green dot must not be radically different.

The CCT is universal, one size does not fit any one application well. Even on brand new FJRs the CCT plunger is extended ~40% with the blue dot and green dot CCTs.

 

[gixxerjasen]

It's not just Yamaha. Off the top of my head, Suzuki has had tensioner issues on their bikes most specifically the DRZ. Even car manufacturers have issues including my MINI. You'd think something that's been around for so long and is so widely used would have been over-engineered by now.

 

[Dan23]

Three problems, among others, arise with CCTs.

First, heat expansion of both the chain v.s. the block/cylinders/head stack.

Second, wearing of the chain that we see as "stretch." Actually, it is cumulative wear at each link.

Third, wear at the slipper.

Today's pistons, rings, cranks, rods and bearings all last many many miles longer than a few years back... some part will remain as the weak link.

Yamaha is one of the world's premiere engine builders. Other companies hire Yamaha do build their high output engines.

One approach would be to make the full mechanism very easy to change out... chain, full tensioner, etc. Remember, what we are calling the CCT is actually only the CCT plunger.

 

[Bungie]

... maybe they just ran out of blue paint.

 

[wheatonFJR]

... maybe they just ran out of blue paint.

...or maybe it is "greener" for the environment.

 

[ionbeam]

... maybe they just ran out of blue paint.

Or, received a 'defective' batch of blue paint.