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How To replace your Spark Plugs
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RockHop Offline
1st Service Completed

Lubbock, TX
Posts: 223
Joined: Jan 2016
Post: #11
RE: How To replace your Spark Plugs
Ferret -

I love your approach to motorcycle maintenance. Get a friend to do it for you while you take the pictures. Thumbs Up

Seriously, an appreciated tutorial on simple maintenance that gives us less than mechanically inclined the confidence to DIY.

2013 Honda CB1100A
2015 Triumph Tiger 800 XRx
2016 Montesa (Honda) Cota 4RT260
10-19-2016 08:50 PM
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Honda Lover Offline
1st Service Completed

Connecticut
Posts: 104
Joined: Nov 2013
Post: #12
How To replace your Spark Plugs
(10-19-2016 06:13 AM)The ferret Wrote:  Honda Service manual calls for inspection every 4,000 and replacement every 8,000 (Which is just nuts IMO) but that’s what the manual calls for. I inspected and replaced mine at 26,000 miles. The bike was still starting and running good and fuel mileage hadn’t gone down but I have come to replacing plugs and air cleaners every 25,000 miles on my Honda motorcycles out of habit/personal experience. Use your conscious as your guide or be safe and follow the manual’s recommendation.

These are special plugs, very skinny, very long reach and with a special sealing washer, which we have discussed at length here:

http://cb1100forum.com/forum/showthread....park+plugs

Tools needed:
Air hose with spray nozzel
Stock Honda spark plug wrench or Motion Pro equivalent (what we are using here)
14 mm box end wrench
Spark plug gapping tool
4 Honda Spark plugs LMAR8A-9S Honda Part Number 31908-MGC-003

Start by putting the bike on the center stand. We started on the left side of the bike but that really is unimportant.

First thing you need to do is check the gap on the new plugs. Spec calls for .031-.035. Mine all came out of the box from the factory at .033. We re-gapped them to .031 to allow for wear down the road.

İmage

Take an air nozzel and spray the outside plug cavity to remove any debris. We don’t want any of that falling into the spark plug hole once the plug is removed.

İmage

Take off the outside spark plug cap and slide spark plug tool over the plug. Remove using 14 mm box end wrench. We also used a swivel head long handled ¼” drive ratchet since we had one available, but ended up using both tools as was necessary.

İmage

Inspect removed plug. As you can see mine was still in good shape, had a nice tan color on the ceramic, but gap had opened up to .037 (as electode and ceramic wore over time). These could have been wire brushed clean, gap reset to factory spec and reinstalled. However as per my practice after 25,000 miles I went with new plugs.

İmage

With outside plug removed we had good access to the inside plug. Be sure and stuff some wadded up paper towel into the outside spark plug hole so nothing gets down in that cylinder, and again use spray nozzle to blow out any debris from spark plug cavities. Remove spark plug cap from inside plug.

İmage

A note here, if you have large hands there is not a lot of room to work on the inside plug.

İmage

Use your spark plug wrench and 14mm box wrench to loosen and remove inside plug. The Motion Pro tool has a rubber gripper inside which makes plug removal and installation easier than the factory spark plug tool.

İmage

Install the rear spark plug. Torque spec is 12 ft lbs on a spark plug. We couldn’t figure any way to get a measurement on this given the small confines of the space to work in. So we ran the plugs in until they touched then gave them a bit more, snugging them up. You certainly don’t want to over tighten them and risk stripping the threads of the spark plug hole. Reinstall rear spark plug cap.

İmage

Remove the paper towel from the outside spark plug hole, and install a plug there. Install the spark plug cap.

İmage

İmage

İmage

Move to the other side of the bike and repeat the process for that side’s two plugs

İmage


Thank you for another simple yet useful step by step. This went without a hitch. I did notice the original plugs I pulled (only 8k miles) were all gapped significantly lower than what the called for .031-.035 spec:

Right side/outside #4 .027
Right side/inside #3 .028
Left side/outside #1 .029
Left side/inside #2 .029

Given these plugs were directly from the factory from when the bike had 0 miles, I was a bit surprised by this. If anything I would of assumed they would be higher then .035 due to wear.

I use the "coin style" plug gapping tool. I gapped the new plugs all at .033. (Right in the middle of the called for .031-.035 spec.

İmage

All the plugs still looked good and like Ferret's, these also could of been cleaned, gapped, and reinstalled, however, I had new ones in the garage so in they went.

İmage

Thanks again for sharing!



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

'13 CB1100
'08 VTX 1800T (still ride)
'02 Shadow Spirit (sold for VTX)
(This post was last modified: 01-11-2017 01:05 PM by Honda Lover.)
01-11-2017 01:04 PM
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The ferret Offline
Forum Moderator

Ohio
Posts: 31,277
Joined: Apr 2013
Post: #13
RE: How To replace your Spark Plugs
Glad it helped.

For others.... if it were me, unless the bike starts running like junk, i'd check an outside plug at 8,000 miles and if it looked good I'd put it right back in and check them again at 25,000.

I probably won't check mine again until the 50k mark

.
Defender of the Realm
2014 DLX (the pleasure horse)
2021 NC750X DCT (Angry Bird)
01-11-2017 02:07 PM
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jdvalero Offline
1st Service Completed

Raleigh
Posts: 191
Joined: Sep 2016
Post: #14
RE: How To replace your Spark Plugs

(10-19-2016 06:13 AM)The ferret Wrote:  Honda Service manual calls.....

Always good to know there's someone like you in this forum to help us like you do! Kudos!!!

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk
(This post was last modified: 01-17-2017 09:26 AM by jdvalero.)
01-17-2017 08:28 AM
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iamheero Offline
1st Service Completed

Los Angeles
Posts: 100
Joined: Apr 2016
Post: #15
RE: How To replace your Spark Plugs
Hey just wanted to resurrect this post to share my experience with just having checked at around 14k. I know the manual says to replace at 8k (I know! Insane!) but my plugs were basically pristine. The inner plugs were harder to get to and there was corrosion (!?) around the outside nut-thingy for some reason, but non of it spread into the threads at all. Debris was sort of problematic, I only had access to canned air so did what I could but I fear I may have introduced some into the system Sad We'll see.

Either way, I'd say 25k is a fair bet given how good they looked at ~14kmi and just as a heads up, I got the new plugs on Amazon for about 11 bucks each. Look around because I know the dealer's going to try to charge you around 30 each.

'14 CB1100 (RIP)
'17 CB1100EX
04-13-2017 07:17 PM
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aschem Offline
Running Like a Top

S.E. Idaho
Posts: 381
Joined: Nov 2013
Post: #16
RE: How To replace your Spark Plugs
Plugs are still $4.41 at Jegs
http://www.jegs.com/i/NGK-Spark-Plugs/73...S/10002/-1

13 CB1100 (sold)
16 Bandit 1250S
04-13-2017 07:59 PM
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HondaJon Offline
Running Like a Top

Riverview FL
Posts: 376
Joined: Jun 2013
Post: #17
RE: How To replace your Spark Plugs
Don't forget a dab of Permatex Anti-Seize Lubricant.....Cheap insurance....

2013 CB 1100:
Motogear Cat Free Titanium Header
TSR Air Funnel
Staintune Muffler
Power Commander V (running TSR map)
K&N air filter
Argas fork brace
Dart Flyscreen
K&H seat
Honda chrome grab bar
Baren Classic Mirrors

2008 Suzuki B-King:
Factory stock

2016 CRF 450X:
JD Jetting Needle - K&N Filter
04-14-2017 02:51 PM
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The ferret Offline
Forum Moderator

Ohio
Posts: 31,277
Joined: Apr 2013
Post: #18
RE: How To replace your Spark Plugs
There was an article in another thread about spark plugs that said NGK uses an anti-sieze coating on their plugs and that additional anti seize was not necessary. I will see if I can find it.

Edit: Here ya go post #23

http://cb1100forum.com/forum/showthread....anti+seize

.
Defender of the Realm
2014 DLX (the pleasure horse)
2021 NC750X DCT (Angry Bird)
(This post was last modified: 04-14-2017 03:29 PM by The ferret.)
04-14-2017 03:24 PM
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Cormanus Offline
Moderator

Queensland, Australia
Posts: 20,659
Joined: Dec 2013
Post: #19
RE: How To replace your Spark Plugs
Or, even quicker, http://cb1100forum.com/forum/showthread....4#pid94104
04-14-2017 03:48 PM
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HondaJon Offline
Running Like a Top

Riverview FL
Posts: 376
Joined: Jun 2013
Post: #20
RE: How To replace your Spark Plugs
Interesting. I didn't know that. I'll still use a small dab. Seen too many broken ones, even NGK units.

2013 CB 1100:
Motogear Cat Free Titanium Header
TSR Air Funnel
Staintune Muffler
Power Commander V (running TSR map)
K&N air filter
Argas fork brace
Dart Flyscreen
K&H seat
Honda chrome grab bar
Baren Classic Mirrors

2008 Suzuki B-King:
Factory stock

2016 CRF 450X:
JD Jetting Needle - K&N Filter
04-14-2017 04:14 PM
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