Pitted cams? GPZ500

[Mez]

Evening BCF.

Me and the OH did the valve clearances on my GPZ at the weekend. While in there I noticed there was some pitting on one of the cam lobes (didn't get a picture ). I don't know how recent the damage is but - not really knowing anything about anything - what are the consequences of riding on pitted cams? In other words, how soon do I need to fix it? Having done a bit of googling, I can say that the pitting is deep enough to feel under the fingertip.

Thanks in advance folks
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[RhynoCZ]

Well the pitting will get worse and if you loose enough of the surface, the valves won't get fully open due to the missing material. But, no need to get hysterical here, the camshaft can be resurfaced and it's not even expensive.

Google around to get a local shop that would do that for you. My mate just had to do resurfacing on his XR250 camshaft and the rockers, all looks brand new now.
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
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[Pete.]

If you hadn't seen it you wouldn't be worrying.

Inspect the follower. If it's got flats worn on it then you might want to think about sourcing a new cylinder head. If it is still shiny and smooth then I would just check the lobe height of the cam and if it's within wear spec change the oil and keep on trucking.
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a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[pompousporcup...]

my old one had pitting. i didnt worry about it and it ran fine. i havent checked my newer one but i suspect it may be there too as its a fairly common issue with the 500 especially if it has sat for a long while.

run it. when it starts to run like a bag'o'crap then potentially look into finding a decent set of second hand ones (iirc all gpz500 cams are the same, throughout the generations) OR source a new head and swap it over.. you could as stated get them resurfaced although i havent looked into it personally.

if its running fine after doing the clearances. forgeddaboudit. unfortunately it doesnt fix itself but it all depends on how quickly its wearing

[Ariel Badger]

Pitting will be from condensation from short runs and an engine left standing for long periods IMHO. As said if it is only pitting leave it as it will do little more than carry a bit extra oil to the followers.
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[Pol Anorl]

you need to ride it longer if youre getting pitting.
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