Of course everyone is free to form their own conclusions based on the raw data... But that definitely was not where I was going with this poll at all.
What I was attempting to prove was that bike shops were more likely to say that the shims needed adjustment than a conscientious DIY owner. Afterall they do have a conflict of interest to drum up more business for themselves. Somewhat happily, I think that the statistics prove that this is not the case at all. In Myth Buster parlance, that hypothesis has been BUSTED!
It is of interest that so few engines (percentage wise) need an adjustment at each check. But the number that do need adjustment is still significant enough that it is definitely not worth the risk of skipping these checks.
Besides... It's fun!
[edit] I'm sure that I reported this elsewhere already, but my second valve check went much faster and smoother than the first one (which was when I started this thread). I knocked it out in a couple of hours one day. Once you know what you are doing it's a piece of cake. I really think that everyone should do the check (at least), If it needs adjustment you can always chicken out then and send it to the shop. Odds are in your favor that the clearances will be in spec and you'll be ahead a good chunk of money and gained a great deal of personal satisfaction.
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Those dealer guys didn't do work on my bike I suspect. :angry: How could they have??
