Ninja 650ER clanking noise?

[Mo NZ]

You might have a google around and find a Kwaka forum and play the sound.
If you do have to pull it out of the bike and take it apart.. it really is necessary to have some tools
and some tech skills. An online workshop book on the bike could be useful.
If it is a new engine a wrecker's 2nd motor would be the way to go.

[iranana]

But to pay $400 just to open the engine and find the problem is a prelude to a huge expenditure, which I can't and won't do. I am now after advices on how to actually get closer to the problem. It is technical help that I am after, not life coaching.

We can only make educated guesses towards what it could be. Cell phone videos of a rattle don't tell us anything other than that it rattles a bit. There's a lot of things that could rattle like that, and you're not going to know unless you open it up and inspect everything... Feeler gauges are cheap, and they can tell you a lot. Also, remember that noises and shocks can travel through an engine and make it seem like they're coming from places they're not. So... my technical advice is: if you don't want to pay a mechanic, the only thing you can do is observe the noise, get a service manual and the necessary tools, take the time to study it, and then disassemble the engine, starting with the top end. Patience is the key... and don't skimp out and re use gaskets or anything. Copper gaskets can be annealed, but replace any paper gaskets with new ones. Air leaks are no good

[Floppy disk]

We can only make educated guesses towards what it could be. Cell phone videos of a rattle don't tell us anything other than that it rattles a bit. There's a lot of things that could rattle like that, and you're not going to know unless you open it up and inspect everything... Feeler gauges are cheap, and they can tell you a lot. Also, remember that noises and shocks can travel through an engine and make it seem like they're coming from places they're not. So... my technical advice is: if you don't want to pay a mechanic, the only thing you can do is observe the noise, get a service manual and the necessary tools, take the time to study it, and then disassemble the engine, starting with the top end. Patience is the key... and don't skimp out and re use gaskets or anything. Copper gaskets can be annealed, but replace any paper gaskets with new ones. Air leaks are no good

Gold! That's how I am actually thinking. Getting a lot of advices and documentations, and as some have suggested I would be putting the questions and the vids around various forums including Kawasaki forums. I am also planning to take advice from friends who are car mechanics. Isn't the engine principles the same anyway? Then, and at my own pace I will start opening things under video recording, labeling them, and then saving them. As per the tools, buying tools is always a good investment, but I can get a lot from friends. And sure enough I will be asking questions on this forum as I open the beast. But first thing will be suspending the registration. My plan is to get this beast sorted in 6 months time. Meanwhile, I will using the car (I hate cars).

[James Deuce]

Fucking hell. It would be easier and cheaper to organise getting it stolen than doing the utter bilge-swilling fuckwit diagnostic system way.

[buggerit]

You have saved yourself a few bucks removing the fairings but it is pretty obvious you have no mechanical knowledge , save yourself a
heap of grief and money by getting a mechanic to look at it and diagnose the fault, then you can decide wether to get it fixed or wait
until fianances allow.
It really pisses mechanics off cleaning up after an unhandy handyman as it makes the job harder and generally adds to the cost of the job.

[SMOKEU]

Gold! That's how I am actually thinking. Getting a lot of advices and documentations, and as some have suggested I would be putting the questions and the vids around various forums including Kawasaki forums. I am also planning to take advice from friends who are car mechanics. Isn't the engine principles the same anyway? Then, and at my own pace I will start opening things under video recording, labeling them, and then saving them. As per the tools, buying tools is always a good investment, but I can get a lot from friends. And sure enough I will be asking questions on this forum as I open the beast. But first thing will be suspending the registration. My plan is to get this beast sorted in 6 months time. Meanwhile, I will using the car (I hate cars).

Bike engines still follow the same principles of car engines, so if you have mates that are car mechanics, then they should be able to help. A good motorbike mechanic is still the best bet, but you should be able to get a much better price if you get mates rates.

[ducatilover]

It really pisses mechanics off cleaning up after an unhandy handyman as it makes the job harder and generally adds to the cost of the job.

This.
You have to go over every job they have done to make sure it's correct. Which means you still get a big bill.
I can't watch the vids on my phone so cannot comment.

You either need a proper service manual and some nice tools, or really give it to a mechanic. I would not advise spannering on it if you have no mechanical knowledge, the majority of numpties out there cannot accurately measure valve clearances, let alone set them correctly.


Fwiw, check for black sooty stains where the exhaust attatches to the engine.