2006 M50-Internal ticking

[ranger04]

OK here is the deal. I have a 2006 Suzuki Boulevard M50, has about 11,250 miles on it and most of them are highway miles. Dont really run the crap outta the bike but now and then the throttle grip turns more than I normally would but it no way is this bike abused. Anyways to the point.
About a week ago I noticed a ticking noise coming from the engine-figured great, valves are loose (odd seens I just checked them before riding season, about 9K or 10K miles). But the more I listen to it the more I dont think its the valves, I have heard the valves loose and dont think thats it. I think its something else internal of the engine. My brother believes it may be the cam chain tensioner going bad.
Its more noticable when first started up, when going down the road you cant hear it, but if you sit next to it and listen at idle you can hear the ticking-its not normal, and the ticking matches the RPM, more RPM the louder/faster the ticking.
I plan on taking it to a dealer to get an opinion-lets hear what all you experts have to say so I may have some idea of what the dealer may say

Thanks for the help guys

[womper]

i've always heard that and i've always thought it was the fuel injection.


hmm... maybe a wyle E. coyote bomb strapped under the tank?

[ranger04]

Nope-not fuel injection-its a new noise that just started couple days ago. Bike used to be quiet and purr like kitten until couple days ago-also add the bike runs great, no hesitation or anything-just sounds funny

[Apertureguy]

And does it seem to smooth out or go away as you give it more gas?

And you're only hearing it in 2nd, 3rd & maybe 4th?

[ranger04]

Only time I can hear it is when its idling and im sitting next to it-can not hear it when riding down the road-pipes and wind noise drown it out

Ticking increases with RPM, more gas you give the faster the ticking- let off the gas and the ticking slows down

Called the dealer today-im gonna run it up to them and get there opinion tomorrow and see what they think

[deertracker57]

My c50 has a noise like that, that started at about 10000 miles,the dealer says no need to worry .Alot of c50's are noisey.I would still let them check it out though,just to be on the safe side.The m50 should be the close to the same engine.By the way mine runs as good as always even with the noise.Good luck.

[ranger04]

Originally Posted by deertracker57

My c50 has a noise like that, that started at about 10000 miles,the dealer says no need to worry .Alot of c50's are noisey.I would still let them check it out though,just to be on the safe side.The m50 should be the close to the same engine.By the way mine runs as good as always even with the noise.Good luck.

I think the M50/C50 have the same engine-just differant dress up I guess you could say.

[ranger04]

Ok update so far
Bike is at dealer-the ticking stops when it warms up so the dealer kept it overnight and will listen to it when cold-they are thinking cam chain but not sure-wanna here it when cold-not gonna charge me to keep over night and listen to it-gonna call me and let me know tomorrow.

Although I called another dealer and told them what its doing and they said its normal, bike sits on side stand and all oil to one side-ticks until oil is through entire system and after few minutes it stops.

They also said that the bike needs to sit for about 15 minutes to warm up before riding it-lol-sounds like BS to me

Wait and see

[womper]

15 mins to warm up? umm... i don't even give it 5...
i wait till rpms drop and i go.
but ya... mine ticks and stops when warmed up i *think*
i dunno... i don't hear much with my music on

[Sandman]

I to am interested in the outcome here. I also have an odd ticking I can hear at start up but not during regular riding. I hear it again only upon hard acceleration in any gear, it sounds like a ball bearing is bouncing all around in the front jug. So hard acceleration is not something I do often. Other than that, the bike runs & sounds perfect. I have 15k and just did my second valve adjustment.

[ranger04]

ok, have the bike back and talked to dealer-they are almost 100% positive the noise is a loose valve, they cant figure it to be anything else, so im gonna check the valves tomorrrow and see what happens-hopefully its all she needs. I almost let them do it but couldnt see spending $200 for something I can do-if it dont fix it then illl let them go to it

[womper]

let us know if it was loose... i'm thinking i have the same problem... i'm probably overdue for the valves... heh.

[Blade]

I have heard that some have piston slap. When you first start it, does it knock when you give it gas, even just a little? Then as it warms up quites down with the exception of some ticking sounds?

Get a mechanics stethascope and listen to your engine. It will amplify the noises so you can pin point where it is coming from.

[ranger04]

OK here is what I got so far
Got the bike home and tore her apart today. The valves were loose-all of them were about .001 sloppy. Put them all back into spec-EX valves are all .008 and IN valves are all .004
I started her up for a listen and still here slight ticking that is louder than normal, but is much quieter than what it was so Ill see how it plays out

Originally Posted by Blade

I have heard that some have piston slap. When you first start it, does it knock when you give it gas, even just a little? Then as it warms up quites down with the exception of some ticking sounds?

Loud ticking on start up, the ticking matched the RPM, more RPM the louder/faster the tick. Once the bike is warmed up it sounds just like it should

Get a mechanics stethascope and listen to your engine. It will amplify the noises so you can pin point where it is coming from.

Buddy at work has one, probably gonna try it

[boooya]

Is it coming from the top end of the motor or bottom end? Front? Back? A friend of mine had a wierd noise come out of his when cold and would get better as the bike warmed up, ended up having to do with the clutch. His noise was coming out of bottom right side.

[ranger04]

Originally Posted by boooya

Is it coming from the top end of the motor or bottom end? Front? Back? A friend of mine had a wierd noise come out of his when cold and would get better as the bike warmed up, ended up having to do with the clutch. His noise was coming out of bottom right side.

ticking is louder on the right side-sounds more from the top. Since adjusting the valves its alot better-ill check tomorrow and see how it does

[ranger04]

OK, after riding it I noticed the valves have not made a differance. Took it to two differant dealers today and they both told me the cam chain is loose and its nothing to worry about. They said that if it stays the way it is it will be fine and not to worry unless the noise doesnt go away or gets really loud, then the chain needs to be replaced, for now they said it will be little noisy but nothing to worry about, so hopefully this mystery is solved. They both told me to keep riding it and told me there is no reason not to take it on my trip next week-Deals gap and surrounding roads-1500-2000 miles round trip. So we will see what happens