First Bike 84 gs 550 es help?

[84gs550es]

Ok I ordered the o ring set... Ill rebuild using bassclifs website instructions and using the repair manual I have... the guy at the motorsports store said if I don't take of the connecter to the carbs then I wont need them synced does that sound right or do I need to take that off to change the o rings

 

[BassCliff]

Hi,

The guy at the motorsports store is "less than informed".

Any changes made to the carbs, exhaust, valve adjustment, etc, are best followed up by a carb sync, just to be sure everything is as it should be.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

 

[84gs550es]

ok so i got the o ring kit... I'm gonna do it Thursday put them in the bucket you guys were talking about then put them back together then hopefully it runs smooth enough to go to a biker picnic with my dad on Saturday... I just might have to use my arms for signals because i still haven't figured out the turn signal thing... so far i have traced them to the switch (no power) to the gauges (no power) there's only one more place it can go but it started to rain so i didn't get to finish. wish me luck! thanks again for all the help... when i get it back together i will post some pics of it... I think my next project after i get it running good and the turn signals fixed is to paint it myself any suggestions? i have a friend with a paint gun

 

[84gs550es]

ok so heres an update...

i put everything together and now it runs with a bad idle... had a local service shop look at it and was going to do the carb sync but said that it is not firing on all four cylinders... i don't know what to do now... he is going to do a compression test on it tomorrow... it does have new spark plugs and the spark on the wires are good.....service shop said that it could be a broken valve or bad piston rings

 

[cowboyup3371]

Did you do a bench synch when you first put the carbs back together? Is the air box back on correctly?

Either way, do the carb synch on your own first don't let that shop touch it. Then see how it runs. You'll probably have to make some adjustments from it anyway.

 

[84gs550es]

i didn't do a carb sync idk how and i don't have the tools but they did the compression test and one of the cylinders is at 80psi... so i either need to rebuild the engine or buy a new one

 

[mike_of_bbg]

Did you check your valve clearances? They wear tight and can hang open if they get bad enough, causing loss of compression.

 

[cowboyup3371]

Was the compression check done with the bike warm and WOT?

These shops aren't really interested in doing the work on these bikes since they'd rather sell you a new one. So you'll be better off reading up on Basscliff's site and doing the work yourself.

+1 on what Mike_of_BBG said

BTW, put your location in your profile. Maybe one of us is close by to come help.

 

[84gs550es]

im not sure if he did it when it was warm but he said that it was firing better when it was warm.... could that be just valve clearance? or could it be more?

 

[84gs550es]

i put my location on my profile too its zanesville ohio

 

[cowboyup3371]

It could very well be and the valves are an important job. Once you do adjust them, you'll need to resynch the carbs anyway.

Look up TheCafeKid, Steve, Kparkfan, or any of those folks in Dayton or probably even closer and see if they are willing to help you out. Most guys will do it for free or even pizza and beer so send a PM to them.

One note, Steve is in NY right now but I don't know what his plans are as far as getting back home that way.

 

[84gs550es]

ok ill PM them and see what they have to say

 

[spyug]

Sorry to hear of the problems but if its any consolation ( I know its not) we have all been there. With old bikes its one step forward and two back. Eventually you'll have it running sweet as a nut so don't despair.

If its not running on one cylinder it could be spark or gas related as 80psi is still lots of compression. You should still do the valve adjustment to see if that improves things before you go talking about rebuilds or new engines.


Do you know that you have spark to that cylinder? Pull the plug out and ground it to the block and look for spark. If you have spark it then comes down to fuel and the carb on that cylinder may not be working properly and I suspect that is the case. You may think you have done a great job cleaning the carbs but how about the tank and petcock. Its very likely crappola is flowing back into the carbs and something has bunged up the one on that cylinder. It has happened to me.....more than once.


I'd pull the carbs and reclean them. With the petcock still in the tank, stick the hose in a clean glass jar and let the fuel flow to half fill it. Check for "floaters". If the gas has anything in it, you will have to clean and possibly reseal the tank as gunk will continue to jam your carbs.

Turn the bike over a few times and then pull the plug from that cylinder. If its wet and smells of gas then its not a carb problem so then you're looking at spark.

If you find you have very weak or no spark on that cylinder, I would first replace the plug cap ( about $6) and check again. I found this to be the case with my project. The cap had too much resistance and nothing was getting through.

Check these and let us know what you find.

Good luck,
spyug

 

[Steve]

One note, Steve is in NY right now but I don't know what his plans are as far as getting back home that way.

Unfortunately, I am not the one making the plans.

Heard in a meeting today that we can plan on being here probably until the end of September.

That's a nice long time to enjoy the roads around here.

.

 

[84gs550es]

Sorry to hear of the problems but if its any consolation ( I know its not) we have all been there. With old bikes its one step forward and two back. Eventually you'll have it running sweet as a nut so don't despair.

If its not running on one cylinder it could be spark or gas related as 80psi is still lots of compression. You should still do the valve adjustment to see if that improves things before you go talking about rebuilds or new engines.


Do you know that you have spark to that cylinder? Pull the plug out and ground it to the block and look for spark. If you have spark it then comes down to fuel and the carb on that cylinder may not be working properly and I suspect that is the case. You may think you have done a great job cleaning the carbs but how about the tank and petcock. Its very likely crappola is flowing back into the carbs and something has bunged up the one on that cylinder. It has happened to me.....more than once.


I'd pull the carbs and reclean them. With the petcock still in the tank, stick the hose in a clean glass jar and let the fuel flow to half fill it. Check for "floaters". If the gas has anything in it, you will have to clean and possibly reseal the tank as gunk will continue to jam your carbs.

Turn the bike over a few times and then pull the plug from that cylinder. If its wet and smells of gas then its not a carb problem so then you're looking at spark.

If you find you have very weak or no spark on that cylinder, I would first replace the plug cap ( about $6) and check again. I found this to be the case with my project. The cap had too much resistance and nothing was getting through.

Check these and let us know what you find.

Good luck,
spyug

i have done a spark check and it looks like there is spark im not sure how much spark it needs so im not sure if its weak. but i haven't checked it in awhile but the caps look pretty bad and the plugs are new... how can i get the caps off and where can i buy some?

 

[84gs550es]

 

[davidduarte]

download this manual from Basscliff's site (http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/):

http://www.mtsac.edu/~cliff/storage/gs/GS550E-ES-L_1983.PDF

I'm not sure how different the 83 is from the 84 but probably not all that much. Your oil filter cover, does it have 3 machine screws, or 3 studs with nuts? If it has bolts, you want to get rid of them and put in studs (a good hardware store will have them) with red Loctite, then use nyloc nuts. The screws have a bad habit of coming loose (don't ask how I know).

 

[spyug]

The spark should be quite noticeable even in daylight and should look healthy enough to jump 4or 6 mm. If its rather anemic you'll likely need to look at it in shade for it to register. Plug caps are available in any decent bike store that handles Japanese or European bikes. Take one of yours in to compare. The NGK type are around $6 to 8 apiece. I believe they are 3 ohm resistance.

At the end that joins the wire there is a "cork screw" inside that screws into the core of the wire. When you get the new caps you may need to lop off a 1/2" or so of the wire to get a good contact with the core. Its an easy fix.

Good luck with it and I hope this helps.

Cheers,
Spyug

 

[JEEPRUSTY]

i have done a spark check and it looks like there is spark im not sure how much spark it needs so im not sure if its weak. but i haven't checked it in awhile but the caps look pretty bad and the plugs are new... how can i get the caps off and where can i buy some?

Plug caps screw into the wires.
http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/album.php?albumid=1461&pictureid=8449


http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/album.php?albumid=1461&pictureid=8448
Shows some innerds.

http://www.ngk.com/results_appOther.asp?otherMotiveID=226581&mfid=1

Is the NGK link and shows what you should order as replacements.

 

[84gs550es]

so finally back to the bike sorry for the delay.... i took a calculus 3 final today ( brutal, took me 3 1/2 hours) i have a week break from class so i have some time to work on it.... im about to order the gasket for when i do the valve adjustment i have a link to see if this looks like the right one

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NOS-...0021245QQptZMotorcyclesQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

should of ordered it earlier. so i screwed up the first time doing the carbs (did not clean them right) so round 2.... also one of the piolet jets are stripped (can i clean that real good without taking it out? or do i need to order another one and put it in there?)

also i checked the spark plugs today and the ones on cylinder 1 and 4 had oil clear up the threads that go into the spark plug holes and they are brand new... What could cause that? 2 and 3 were clean