• Required reading for all forum users!!!

    Welcome!
    Register to access the full functionality of the GSResources forum. Until you register and activate your account you will not have full forum access, nor will you be able to post or reply to messages.

    A note to new registrants...
    All new forum registrations must be activated via email before you have full access to the forum.

    A Special Note about Email accounts!
    DO NOT SIGN UP USING hotmail, outlook, gmx, sbcglobal, att, bellsouth or email.com. They delete our forum signup emails.

    A note to old forum members...
    I receive numerous requests from people who can no longer log in because their accounts were deleted. As mentioned in the forum FAQ, user accounts are deleted if you haven't logged in for the past 6 months. If you can't log in, then create a new forum account. If you don't get an error message, then check your email account for an activation message. If you get a message stating that the email address is already in use, then your account still exists so follow the instructions in the forum FAQ for resetting your password.

    Have you forgotten your password or have a new email address? Then read the forum FAQ for details on how to reset it.

    Any email requests for "can't log in anymore" problems or "lost my password" problems will be deleted. Read the forum FAQ and follow the instructions there - that's what we have one for...

  • Returning Visitors

    If you are a returning visitor who never received your confirmation email, then odds are your email provider is blockinig emails from our server. The only thing that can be done to get around this is you will have to try creating another forum account using an email address from another domain.

    If you are a returning visitor to the forum and can't log in using your old forum name and password but used to be able to then chances are your account is deleted. Purges of the databases are done regularly. You will have to create a new forum account and you should be all set.

No Spark

  • Thread starter Thread starter Chris P
  • Start date Start date
C

Chris P

Guest
New to bike owning and fixing
GS650E
Bike was riding fine for a couple of months, she stalled out one day after a ride around the block, and hasn't started since. She sat for three weeks, put her on a battery charger, tried to start, got a small rumble, then nothing. Just discovered I have no spark to all 4 plugs.
Any thoughts? or past experience would help
 
Greetings and Salutations!!

Greetings and Salutations!!

Hi Mr. Chris P,

Start here: New Members, CLICK HERE!!

You have a 30 year old bike that probably needs 20 years worth of maintenance. In the "mega-welcome" you will find a couple of maintenance lists. You must properly address each item on those lists in order to have a safe and reliable motorcycle.

See the electrical section of my little website for ignition troubleshooting tips. Have you done the simple stuff like check all the fuses? What is the battery voltage at rest? What is the battery voltage when you push the start button? What is the voltage at the coils?

Start with these:
Testing The Ignition System
Igniter/Signal Generator/Coil Test
Igniter Repair/Testing (2MB PDF)

Welcome to the forum. Keep us informed.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
 
Since it ran for a few months and suddenly quit, I'd suspect an electrical problem. As Basscliff said, this bike is likely long overdue for maintenance , so head his way to get this bike going again. If this heat keeps up, we'll be riding till new year in Northeast.
 
Chris P said:
New to bike owning and fixing
GS650E
Bike was riding fine for a couple of months, she stalled out one day after a ride around the block, and hasn't started since. She sat for three weeks, put her on a battery charger, tried to start, got a small rumble, then nothing. Just discovered I have no spark to all 4 plugs.
Any thoughts? or past experience would help
Click to expand...

Assuming it was running on all 4 plugs sparking, and now you have none, I would suspect some one thing that would effect all four. And that would be the ignition pickup (the electric thing in place of the breaker points on end of crank shaft). FInd a manaul, it will show a test to check it with a meter, and maybe a way to simulate it and see if rest of system works. Will need a multi-meter.
Other one thing is the entire ignitor (expensive) or power to it, or its ground.

Tell us more what you find.

>>
Other thought.
Maybe battery is weak, and so low that when running the starter the voltage is so low that cant operate the ignition.
Check fluid level in battery (if is kind that you can).
Leave battery on charger long time.
Try again.
.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for all the help. I'm embarrassed to say this but it turned out to be a fuel issue not a spark/electric issue. After consulting with a couple of people about spark plugs I was informed that you cant always see the spark. So after spraying some ether into the air intake she started briefly (confirming that I had spark). So I removed the fuel line before the filter and tried to start with the fuelcock in the fuel position, It spit out fuel. It also poured fuel out in the reserve position, but did nothing in the prime position. After about 1/2 hour of trying to get her turn over, she finally did. I really had to spend some time playing with the clutch and throttle.
Thank you all again for your input, unfortunately Im new at all this and its going to take me some getting familiar with the inner workings of this bike. But when she got going it made it all worth it.
 
Good to hear the progress.
There now you know some more about it.

Chris P said:
......
...........So I removed the fuel line before the filter and tried to start with the fuelcock in the fuel position, It spit out fuel. It also poured fuel out in the reserve position, but did nothing in the prime position. ......
Click to expand...

Stock filter is in the tank as part of the petcock assembly. So not certain that is what you are refereing to. Maybe a fuel filter has been added by someone.


Chris P said:
......
...........So I removed the fuel line before the filter and tried to start with the fuelcock in the fuel position, It spit out fuel. It also poured fuel out in the reserve position, but did nothing in the prime position. ......
Click to expand...

PRIme position is what should let fuel flow even if engine not running. The ON and the REServe position should let fuel flow when engine is running and making vacuum, and shut off when engine not running. The position is determined by which way the little arrow on the lever is pointed. (if it is the type that has a lever. Some model petocks dont have a lever.)


23.gif




.
 
Last edited:
images



650E 1982
25.gif





You said 650E in original posting.
Put the Model AND year in Signature Line (goto UserCP) then that shows up in every posting, and we know more specifiaclly what bike you have.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top