Hey Hubmeister, we all know the familiar tick from a loose valve at idle but what about a tight valve? Are there any noticeable symptoms?

Kruz, as many valves I've adjusted, and tested with max/min clearances, a ticking that is random, and/or comes a goes is usually a tight valve lash. A constant tick is more a too lose a valve lash. The 3rd variable is a burnt piston skirt past it's max clearance. This slaps where the offset of the piston coming around both at the bottom and then the top, the skirt direction slaps the cylinder wall. Obviously this is a constant also.

What sound is it? Random when hot?

Thanks Hub,I don't have any symptoms, it was an inquisitive,theoretical question only. If you have too tight a valve clearance, my thoughts are the bike might be hard to start, especially when hot or have an inconsistent idle due to leakage past the valve seat. I guess if it went on too long, you'd either burn a valve or a valve seat and the engine would lose compression, power and possibly fail to start. I was wondering with all of the bikes you've worked on if you'd ever run into one where the valve lash had been neglected to the point it became a problem?

A tight valve would would have the valve semi off the seat, but say the leak-down would show 10%. That still means it would run, sill idle. What happens next is heat transfer time of the valve slightly off its seat. This would overheat the valve tulip and form pie cut cracks around the valve's face, break off and now the leak rises with a good portion of a broken chunk off the valve to being the hard start/no start scenario.

Whereas, a loose lash has the valve sitting on the seat longer, transferring heat off the valve with more time.
Whereas, a longer sit at the valve closed, brings on a longer deminihing return of the stroke = bottom end grunt.
Whereas, a shorter seat time cycles the strokes faster, and extends the HP for a 2mph increase at the race traps.
Whereas, a valve lash callout says; .0015" between rocker and cam, where this would be a running engine, having a torsion bar held from moving with a nut. The nut is loosened up, turn the torsion bar till you hear noise, turn the bar opposite until the noise subsides, lock the nut down.

Problem was on these tight gapped CB450 Honda torsion bar designs, would be turned too far closed, no lash [having that needed physical measured gap] for oil to lube between the cam lobe and rocker, thus burning up the cam and rocker followers. Notice the sound being loose as it ticks, but could not hear the so called tight tick of a tight valve lash. Kind of makes sense sound wise?

I can only conclude that a spring bounce causes a tight tick on the close. If the gap was wider, it would be farther away from the spring bouncing back. So after all these years pulling out the feeler blades, I'll say the better mechanic is the one with a feeler pack that you slide out of the sleeve, shows all blades flat as wall, minus any curve up of each feeler blade.

Excellent analysis Hub.....