Got a ticking noise coming from my bike, thought it might be the cams but ive had those adjusted ( needed 10 shims, mechanic said he'd never seen them need that much adjustment before) . Still ticking , unplugged fuel pump, still ticking!!
Aaaaagh! So the qusetion is before the starter clutch gets real noisy does it start ticking? Best i can tell its coming from that region. If i take the starter clutch out , what signs should i be looking for if its bad ??
Cheers for any pointers.

Does it speed up with revs or disappear?
Could be an exhaust gasket?
Cracked ht lead or plug cap arching out. Even had a cracked plug in the past.

My starter clutch was awful when it went and it still went quiet with some revs. So if If goes away then it could we be that. If you whip the cover off and have a look any play around the 3 large rivets will cause noise.

Cheers, i'll give it a wiggle

i'm pretty sure I have the same noise. But forgive me, wtf is a starter clutch? (I'm ignorant with bike mechanicals, sorry )

Have you checked yours/what did you discover?

How would I check mine?

cheers chaps

(sorry to hijack your thread)

Under the pick up cover on the left side of the engine. It's what stops the starter motor turning once the engine is running. Some People call them sprag clutches if that helps. I can post pics if you really need

mate, yeah pics would be great if you have them & don't mind? nice one

ever get it sorted?

Not yet !

Hi
Had the same problem with my nc23 a while back. Traced it to a small hole in the exhaust header pipe, right under the clamp. I thought it was something to do with the valve train until I dropped the header pipes. Got the hole welded up and the ticking was gone.
Definitely worth a look.