Hi,
I have just completed a rebuild of the top end of my 88 XT600. I finally got things back together today and fired the bike up (What a great feeling to hear the motor kick over after you have spent so much time putting it together). I believe that I have the compression release hooked up incorrectly however, because the bike seems to be much harder to kick and has actually kicked back a couple of times (what a ride). Can anyone give me a description of exactly how it should look? Right now the lever is parallel with the ground and facing the front of the bike. The lever travels a total of about .33 inches when I am kicking the bike. The spring is returning the lever to its resting place after I kick. It seems to me that all of this is correct. Is it possible I don't have something hooked up under the rocker cover? I can pull the compression release lever out about 1 inch from its resting spot away from the side of the motor-I didn't mess with it before so I don't know if that is the way it is supposed to work.

Thanks,
Chris

Not correct. The lever is fixed laterally in the head by a bolt with a hexagonal head. Look at the shaft on the lever, there´s a groove there in which the end of this special bolt should fall, enabling the shaft to turn but not to move sideways.
Adjustment: best to start the engine. Now, the play in the cable to be adjusted so that when you push the lever backwards towards to the rear of the bike, you should feel the exhaust valve tappet moving after half a millimeter. The lever should be pointing vertically upwards then.

Auke

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Auke
http://aukemarieke.blogspot.com

Thanks, Got it fixed right away. Sure makes a difference when things are hooked up right.

Chris