valve adjustment. hot or cold?

[Guest myth66]

Sorry another question for you guys. I'm a real newb to Z's. I'm trying to do a valve clearance adjustment and everywhere I look says to do it while the engines hot. but I really doubt I can do it fast enough and the engines not really in a state where I want to leave it running for 10 minutes. Is it really going to make that big a difference if I adjust it cold? (going by the manuals recomended settings for a cold adjustment of course)

[technicalninja]

Cold adjustment works fine, will get it within .001 of hot setting. I normally adjust valves first time cold then after running engine for a few days recheck it hot. Sometimes its perfect hot,it is never far off. valve adjustment is more critical for radical cams and should be done to cam makers specs.

[Tony D]

I have done it that way forever. Comes from learning on VW's I guess. They are set stone cold, and left that way!

 

Anyway, I set them melticulously cold, then run the engine up to full hot soak, and recheck hot.

 

It is far easier for a noob to do it this way, as at most you may have to reset one or two valves hot---which is far easier to do while full hot than it is to try and do all 12.