81' GS 450t starting and idling issues.

[Mr Rogers]

How do you use a multimeter to test electrical continuity?

So i got a multimeter from a friend so i could check and see if my spark plugs are getting the proper amount of power, the only problem is that i don't know how to use a multimeter..

Electricity is a technical skill i've never mastered and i really have little knowledge of what the interface on this thing even means!

Help?

John

[pete]

For what you want it should be fairly simple.

There'll be a setting on there for measuring DC voltage, usually there's a 20 volt range which is good for 12 volt systems.

With the ignition and kill switches on (and clutch pulled in if you have the safety switch), you put the black negative probe to ground and the red positive probe to the orange/white wire on one of the coils. Repeat for the other.

Then check the voltage at your battery directly, again black to negative and red to positive.

[Mr Rogers]

Thanks pete,
I know it sounds stupid, but this simple direction helps a lot!
I'm going to go check right now!

[pete]

Mate it's all good, the first time I used a multimeter I had no idea either...

[Mr Rogers]

ok so here is what i found.

The battery has 11.5v seems a little lower than i would like but it has been sitting for a couple days.

When i ground the black pointer and prod around with the red i found:

The orange and white striped wire that goes to the ignition coil on the both sides has about 10.5 volts.

i tested the inside of the spark plug cover and the right side had 5-6v and the left had 1-1.5v. There shouldn't be any power going through these until the ignition button is pushed right? i tested other wires around the bike and it seems like they are all responding with 10-10.5v

could it be the starter solenoid?

John

[pete]

Ok they're all a bit lower than they should be and you have a 1 volt voltage loss through your wiring somewhere.

While it's not ideal, it's not the end of the world either.

If it's the solenoid, it wouldn't crank at all, and the same should be said for the clutch safety switch and kill and ignition switches.

I've never tested for voltage in the spark plug cover so not sure on that one.

The next thing would be to use a 1.5v penlight battery to test the ignitor as described in the Clymer manual, and also testing to ensure the spark plug caps and spark plugs are good.

One test for the spark plugs is to disconnector the ignitor and get a piece of wire to flick the negative side of the coil to ground momentarily to see if a spark fires. You must disconnect the ignitor for this!

Left coil I think is the white wire, right is the black/yellow... same connector as the orange/white wires, but don't ground them of course

[cowboyup3371]

If the battery is that low I'd get it recharged and then load tested first. You can't get good answers to your questions with a bad battery.

[Mr Rogers]

Ok i've got the bike started, the battery is running fine and i can get the bike started about every time. but here is a list of new problems that i'm noticing.
Let me know if anything rings a bell:

first: there is popping when i decelerate. (misfires?)
second: the idle continues to stay high around( 3000 RPM) even when the throttle is completely forward and the throttle rocker below is all the way down as well.
third: spark plugs look clean and like their working well.(coil issues? spark plug covers?)

[cowboyup3371]

Have you adjusted the idle screw? If you have, then it sounds like a hanging idle = change your intake boot orings or even the boots themselves.

[Mr Rogers]

I did try the idle screw. it actually seemed to have little effect on the idle for some reason... I just bought the o ring set from cycle o rings so i'll try to get those on asap and see how it changes things.

if you've got any other idea's i'll try those too!

Thanks a lot!

[Cdnpt1]

Welcome! BassCliff's site is amazing, you can't go wrong following the advice about the top issues to address and the top ten rookie mistakes.

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/images/GSR_Greeting.html

Take the advice and start at number one on the issues list and work your way through and don't kill yourself trying to chase down symptoms til you have a good base to work from.

I am sure if he hasn't yet BassCliff will be around to give you the official big welcome. Did you post in the new members forum and intro yourself yet?

[Cdnpt1]

Reading back through it looks like all the active 450 guys and gals have already made contact, we are all in the same mode too, that is actively getting our bikes redone, rehab'd, or just cleaned up.

[Mr Rogers]

Yeah i really appreciate everyone who has jumped in to help me out!
I got really excited that i had the bike running last night and now i can't wait to work on it more!

I've been working my way through that check list that bass has.

does anyone know where i can get the carb/airbox boots? i haven't pulled mine off but if they're hard or cracked i'm going to get new ones.

also while i was starting the bike lastnight the battery started dying again so i'm wondering what your recommendations are for trickle chargers on these 12v batteries?

Thanks

[Cdnpt1]

Yeah i really appreciate everyone who has jumped in to help me out!
I got really excited that i had the bike running last night and now i can't wait to work on it more!

I've been working my way through that check list that bass has.

does anyone know where i can get the carb/airbox boots? i haven't pulled mine off but if they're hard or cracked i'm going to get new ones.

Thanks

You can get both the intake manifolds and the carb/airbox boots at Boulevard: number 5 in the airbox fiche picture. The intake boots are under cylinder head in the fiche lookup, part 27.

http://www.boulevardsuzuki.com/fiche_section_detail.asp?section=92174&category=Motorcycles&make=SUZUKI&year=1980&fveh=2093

They don't have a fiche for the 450t so I am assuming the mechanicals are the same as the e/s in those years. Anyone have any insight on possible differences with the 450t?

[Mr Rogers]

They don't have a fiche for the 450t so I am assuming the mechanicals are the same as the e/s in those years. Anyone have any insight on possible differences with the 450t?

I just cross reverenced the boots with another website that had the 450T distinction and it had the same part numbers.

I'll keep you updated on the progress!