No Mid Range Throttle

[ssanderson1]

I've got a good looking spark on all 4 plugs.

I pulled the carbs again. The choke circuit in float bowl #1 was 100% plugged. I cleaned that out and decided to keep going. The fuel inlet needle valve or what ever you call it was jammed/immobile. The #1 jet needle had hardened green junk on it...possibly making it immobile. Needless to say, a whole bunch of parts are now soaking in carb dip.

I don't need to re-sync the carbs after doing all of this, right? I haven't touched the air/fuel screw or the tuning screws(for fear of having to re-sync the carbs...I don't have a carbtune).

[Steve]

... Needless to say, a whole bunch of parts are now soaking in carb dip.

You have seen the "green gunk" that got caught on the jets.

Imagine what might still be stuck inside the passages in the carbs.

I would rather re-live my escapades over this past weekend than pull a set of carbs on a 650.

Why don't you soak the carb bodies, too?

Remember: every shortcut you take now is just one more time you will have to pull the carbs.

I don't need to re-sync the carbs after doing all of this, right?

In their present condition, probably not, but you will be pulling the rack AGAIN to soak the bodies, and you will need to re-sync them then.

I haven't touched the air/fuel screw or the tuning screws(for fear of having to re-sync the carbs.

That's OK, the mixture screws don't have anything to do with carb sync, they only control the mixture at idle and low-throttle settings.

I don't have a carbtune).

Somebody close to you probably does. You say you are in Oklahoma. What part?


.

[ssanderson1]

You have seen the "green gunk" that got caught on the jets.

Imagine what might still be stuck inside the passages in the carbs.

I would rather re-live my escapades over this past weekend than pull a set of carbs on a 650.

Why don't you soak the carb bodies, too?

Remember: every shortcut you take now is just one more time you will have to pull the carbs.



In their present condition, probably not, but you will be pulling the rack AGAIN to soak the bodies, and you will need to re-sync them then.



That's OK, the mixture screws don't have anything to do with carb sync, they only control the mixture at idle and low-throttle settings.



Somebody close to you probably does. You say you are in Oklahoma. What part?


.

I'm 90 miles SW of Oklahoma City in a city called Lawton.

I'd LOVE to dip the carb bodies as well. I thought for some reason that I'd throw the sync and everything off if I completely disassembled them...? I've never synced them by myself. The last time was 4 years ago in Southern California with BassCliff's help!

[cowboyup3371]

You'll have to re-sync them after every valve adjustment you'll do so don't think they'll stay the same from here on. I think Chuck Hahn has a sync tool and is up near OKC so look him up.

[ssanderson1]

You'll have to re-sync them after every valve adjustment you'll do so don't think they'll stay the same from here on. I think Chuck Hahn has a sync tool and is up near OKC so look him up.

I don't plan on riding the bike very often...so adjusting the valves will likely be a rarity at this point.

I ended up hurting the needle valve seat trying to get it out (the green goo had it glued in there pretty good). A new seat and needle valve are on their way. Hopefully my problem will be solved once I get everything back together.

[ssanderson1]

Got everything cleaned and put back in the bike (in the dark...not fun). I was so excited to hear it fire up and run like a dream. Put her in neutral, pulled in the clutch, pushed the start button.....click. Dead battery. Not sure why the battery would have died in such a short period of time (I charged it with a trickle charger 8 days ago).

Since I'm impatient and couldn't wait for the battery to charge, I pushed her to the top of a hill and gave her a pop-start. Fired right up. Seems to be running as good as ever. I rode her around the parking lot for 5 minutes or so and stopped. The battery was still dead (as I thought it would be) afterward.

I'm recharging the battery now. Hopefully I can get it to take a charge and get back on the road soon!

[tkent02]

I'm recharging the battery now. Hopefully I can get it to take a charge and get back on the road soon!

By now you should be the poster boy for neglected maintenance. Instead of guessing about your electrical woes, do a proper charging system check, fix everything and ride away reliable as a brand new moto. You have done the hard part already.

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/storagecliff/images/stator_check.pdf

[ssanderson1]

By now you should be the poster boy for neglected maintenance. Instead of guessing about your electrical woes, do a proper charging system check, fix everything and ride away reliable as a brand new moto. You have done the hard part already.

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/...ator_check.pdf

I'll just use all my spare time and money to "do a proper charging system check" and "fix everything". Thanks for the advice.

On a lighter note, the battery is charged and she's running as good as ever.

[tom203]

...
On a lighter note, the battery is charged and she's running as good as ever.

If you'd like to keep her running, check out your charging system- these things won't stay running 1 hour without it.

[tkent02]

If an hour or two and a can of deoxit is going to break you just ride off into the sunset and wait to get stranded again. It won't be long. No skin off my ass either way.

[ssanderson1]

If you'd like to keep her running, check out your charging system- these things won't stay running 1 hour without it.

I appreciate you not being an ass, Tom. I'll take a look at the charging system. I've never had a problem before. I think the battery went dead from me trying to get the bike started so many times in the last week or so, but not actually riding it or letting the motor run. Regardless, I'll check things out.

Tkent02, being a jerk never really got anyone anywhere. Consider reading "How To Win Friends and Influence People", by Dale Carnegie. Great book.

[OldVet66]

If you are going to be thin skinned about the truth you won't get real far on this site. tkent02 can come off as being a crusty old fart at times but he is not a jerk and gives good advice. Ignore it at the peril of the crusty old fart. Seriously, most of the members here have already been there and done that, so follow the good advise before going on and on about a problem. Catching up on neglected maintenance is the only way to get a base line for accurate diagnosis instead of chasing your tail over accumulated lack of maintenance.

[tom203]

This thread reminds me to update my signature before I forget.

[ssanderson1]

If you are going to be thin skinned about the truth you won't get real far on this site. tkent02 can come off as being a crusty old fart at times but he is not a jerk and gives good advice. Ignore it at the peril of the crusty old fart. Seriously, most of the members here have already been there and done that, so follow the good advise before going on and on about a problem. Catching up on neglected maintenance is the only way to get a base line for accurate diagnosis instead of chasing your tail over accumulated lack of maintenance.

I'm a member of several forums (unrelated to GS) and it seems that there is always a senior member of the forum who spends hours on the forum every day answering questions. That person always seems a little negative and fed-up because they've seen it all a million times and get instantly disgusted with common topics and feel it's their place to let everyone know about it.

Being on a forum all day just isn't real life for most people. The average Joe visits forums occasionally to find answers and become educated...not to receive negative and belittling comments from the "senior member". However, I sincerely appreciate the advice I've received from this site. For a time, while I was living in California, BassCliff and I became friends. He came to my home and we worked on my bike. The advice/help he gave me was invaluable. Never once did he treat me the way I've seen tkent berate others on this forum.

I'm relatively young and still learning. I'm in medical school doing rotations (3 months here, 3 months in another state, etc). I have a wife and two very small children. What little time I have at home is usually spent being a dad/husband and sleeping/studying. As you can imagine, I've accumulated quite a chunk of student debt. My family and I are living in a 700 sq ft apt in Lawton Oklahoma right now. I have a limited number of tools with me, and no where but the parking lot to work on my bike. In addition, the bike was out of my possession for the past 6 months. It was running perfectly (receiving routine maintenance) before that. When I dropped it off I literally had no time for anything except draining the gas tank/fuel out of the carbs and leaving the keys.

I'm just trying to survive, man. Life is hard (for everyone, I understand). I'm sorry if my lack of knowledge, time, or resources has pinned me as "the poster boy for neglected maintenance"...which I personally feel was a stupid assumption and wildly untrue (as I mentioned above, the bike was cared for prior to sitting for the last 6 months).

Anyhow, thanks to everyone who's been, and I'm sure will continue to be, kind and helpful. Young bucks like myself seriously appreciate it!

[OldVet66]

That is all true to a point. Face to face with tkent02 you would have probably come away with an entirely different perspective as to what was said and how he meant it. Without face to face interaction you are missing a good part of the picture and letting it get under your skin is just silly. However, if you had listened to exactly what he said and no one else, done all the required maintenance (100% required on a 30+ year old bike) you would have inadvertently fixed 99% of all your problems and been able to pinpoint any issues that were left. I started out much like you and was dragged kicking and screaming to the realization that I really new very little about motorcycles despite a lifetime of successfully repairing various types of machinery. After that I began to learn and now have a very reliable 36 year old motorcycle that is a everyday rider that I can maintain and repair. I can sympathize with your situation, I did all my work in a dirt floor garage and gravel driveway. I did have to accumulate some necessary tools. It might require a bit of investment on your part but in my case I appreciate a bike that gets 44MPG and turned out to be a lot more affordable than any new vehicle I could have purchased.