I was riding around today and at a light, and something wierd happened. The idle was jumping a bit like normail, between 1100-1300. But at one point it started to dip below 1000, like 600. It kept jumping up and down for a bit. I didnt touch the controls just to see what happned. Well, i was able to ride on and has not done it anymore. But im wondering what might have caused it. I have been meaning to do plugs, but do you think that could help some or mybe anything else that could help. Thanks

Rock

PS: Has anyone done a DIY valve adjustment. If so, how hard, special tools, time or should i just take it to a shop. Im fairly mechnicaly compident so i would just like to know.

Could just be the plugs. Since you've been meaning to to replace them, do it. And make sure the wires are in decent condition too. While you're at it, check your valve clearances. Checking them is a lot easier than adjusting them. SRADs are known to go way past the inspection mileage before they actually need to be adjusted, so just check them first, and there's a good chance they're still in spec. My last check was around 28k miles and they were all still good. So do those 2 things and see what happens.

Im not entirely sure how to check nor adjust the valves, so if you could either explain or lead me to something that can help me do it, that would appreciate that.

Got a service manual? It's all in there and it's a bit long to explain. I'll write the basic idea, and when I get home from work I can put up some pics that I took which should help. I can also look up the specs for you.

I'm not sure if you need to move the throttle bodies out of the way, but my carbs are in the way so I just move them aside. Pull out the spark plug wires and remove the valve cover. The gasket can be reused if you're careful with it. (There's 6 bolts holding it on. Be careful with the washers on them because they keep oil from leaking out. They should also be re-installed carefully and torqued evenly to not damage the magnesium valve cover.) Remove the lower right fairing and the starter clutch cover (you'll see in the pics). Put a socket on the crankshaft bolt and rotate it clockwise to line up the notch (see pics) as well as orient the cams. Once lined up, stick a feeler gauge between the cam and tappet to measure the clearance on some of the valves. Rotate the crank 360 deg and then you can check the rest.

It's pretty simple and will make more sense when you see my pics. Adjusting them is more involved because you need to remove the cams, pull out the tappets and change the shims under them.

Ok, here's some details...
The engine must be cold. (The manual says less than 95 degrees) Remove the spark plugs so you don't have to fight the compression when turning the motor. Remove the 2 starter clutch covers to expose the parts circled in the following pic. The 14mm bolt is what you'll use to turn the engine. Only turn it clockwise. If you look at the pic closely, you can see a notch in the little window. You want it in this position.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y131/mlongo99/Bike%20Parts/starter-notch.jpg

In the next pic, I circled the notch on the end of the intake camshaft. You want it facing straight up, like in the pic. The notch on the exhaust cam should be in about the 2:00 position, if you look at it from the left side of the bike. If they aren't, spin the engine 360 degrees so the starter clutch notch is in the window again. The cams should now be correctly aligned.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y131/mlongo99/Bike%20Parts/cam-notch.jpg

Now you slide your feeler guage between the cam lobe and tappet to measure the gap. In this position you can measure the intake valve clearances on cylinders #2 and #4, and exhaust valves on cylinders #3 and #4. (#1 is on the left side of the bike, #4 on the right)

Now turn the engine 360 degrees. Line up the notch again. The intake cam notch should be facing down, and the exhaust cam at about 8:00. Now measure the intake valve clearances on #1 and #3, and exhaust on #1 and #2.

Specs are:
Intake: 0.10-0.20mm (.004-.008in)
Exhaust: 0.20-0.30mm (.008-.012in)