I'm at my wits end and about to break...Oil pan hell.

[cloudbreakmd]

Describing how you managed to strip threads, destroy an oil pan with a crowbar, "layer" on gasket maker and end up with oil dripping everywhere might not be the best way to market the bike for sale. Forgive me, but folks might assume this represents the general standard of maintenance.

In his defense, the man is absolutely crazy about maintenance. A bolt was covered with road grime and he didn't see it, thinking all the bolts were off... time lapse forward this cluster of a mess he's in, and here we are. Oh and a motorcycle shop recommended the gasket maker.

[bobasoozoo]

i'm new to gs world but have been fixing stuff since i could walk.
divide and conquer.

spark?, grab an old plug, transfer a plug wire to it, vise grip it to something clean and paint free on frame or engine, look for spark

fuel? loosen one of the float drains.

air? check for old socks in carb throats

if you have all three and it was running before, it should run again.

if anything is missing, split the defference between source and sink and see if it's there in the middle. for example, if you have fuel in bowls and spark and air but no start, you might squirt a shot of ether in each carb. If she fires and runs a few seconds, you know your spark is not only there but there at the right time and that you've something amiss with carbs. if you had spark and she doesn't run on ether, your spark is not there at the right time.

ether is about a buck at the auto parts store. AKA starting fluid because they put a little oil in with the ether. not recommended for diesel bikes.

speaking of diesel bikes, does anyone near atlanta have one they want to get rid of?

-bob

[flyingace]

He said the engine cranks fine but plugs are dry. A new battery won't change that. Remove the plugs and crank the starter. You should be able to smell for the presence of gas vapor coming out of the plug holes. Don't smoke when you do this If you smell nothing out of any spark plug holes, try removing the air box (maybe the filter is totally plugged) and try the sniff test again. Replace air box when done.

Are you using the choke as already asked? - it won't start without it. And is the choke actuating the choke levers on the carbs? The cable can become disconnected or broken off.

Next stop is the float levels in the bowls - are they adequate for the jets
to work?

I read in a thread here that the main difference between a good mechanic and a bad one is patience. No offense, but using a crow bar on an oil pan is not patience.

[BigMattyD]

In Detman's defense, the only way you really learn is from experience. After this experience, I am sure that the crowbar will not come out again unless he knows all the fasteners are taken care of.

Maybe he was hot,sweaty, and tired, and lost his nerve a little bit. I think we have all done that before.

Maybe he's the type of person that acts quickly, then says "oops." I don't know.

In any case, he needs some help, and I see a lot of good comments re: the starting problem.

Matt

[flyingace]

Not trying to lecture, but it helps for the future to remember about being patient - and stopping to cool down a little before using brute force.

I once got in a hurry trying to time my old BMW 2002, and started the car while it was in gear - ran it right into a wall! I think I learned my lession that time.

Ace.

[rphillips]

Like they said, Try jumper cables first. If it won't start with them, a new battery won't help either. A shot of starting fluid can work wonders. If I don't start my old KZ 1300 for a couple of weeks, it will crank "n" crank "n" crank, but won't hit a lick. A shot of starting fluid and it fires right up. It will start fine from then on, till I let it sit for a couple of weeks again. Then starting fluid again. I'm gonna fix that thing one of these days.

[BigMattyD]

One time I forgot to pump up the brakes after changing the brake pads on my car.

Luckily, there was no car coming the next day as my wife and I zoomed down our sloping driveway and out into the road. (I was screaming, "I CAANNNT STOP!)

I will never forget that.

The funny thing is that I have probably worked on brakes about 10 times before, and never forgot to check them afterward. I must have been in a hurry.

Matt

[BriTXbike]

You might look at another simple thing: firing order.

It is a common error, and usually causes backfiring or other noises, but you could just get a no-start condition.

One coil fires cylinders 1 and 4 the other coil fires 2 and 3.

I guess this would be related but maybe not. When I pulled the orginal coils off my 850 it was set up to 1,3 & 2,4. That the right order cuz that's how I put the replacements on?

[Carter Turk]

I always try to bump start my bike before doing any wrenching. If the starter button isn't turning over the engine, I start pushing, full choke, no throttle, neutral, to 2nd.

It took me 8 pushes on flat ground to get my Kat fired up in February after having the cases split.

My starter clutch was toast so I assembled without the clutch and just the rotor. It fired up.

Worth a try.

[Pete Logan]

And is the choke actuating the choke levers on the carbs? The cable can become disconnected or broken off.

Also check it's operating fully. My 750 actually has this problem. The choke cable housing on the bars is slightly nurfed, and the choke lever doesn't pull the choke rack quite all the way out. So with choke apparently full on, the bike doesn't start at all.

I have to lean down and manually pull the choke rack out the rest of the way, and then it goes fine.

Strange about the plugs being dry, though. I still think it unlikely that all four carbs have an identical problem. If it's not the supply from the tank, then what else is common to the fuel supply to all four ?

I think eliminating the air filtering as a possible cause is a good idea. It'll do no harm to just take it off until you find the problem.

As for the crowbar and the unseen bolt, a lot of us can plead guilty to that kind of 'moment of inattention'. Please don't ask me why I've got a 'spare' Villiers engine in the barn

Pete

[Guy]

In his defense, the man is absolutely crazy. Oh and a motorcycle shop recommended the gasket maker.

I'm sure he's not really crazy. It's important to use a proper gasket for the sump, though. It acts as a baffle for the oil.

[gspaul]

('8O') Hmm! Another missquote?

[cloudbreakmd]

In his defense, the man is absolutely crazy about maintenance. A bolt was covered with road grime and he didn't see it, thinking all the bolts were off... time lapse forward this cluster of a mess he's in, and here we are. Oh and a motorcycle shop recommended the gasket maker.

Yeah... that would be a misqoute...

[Pete Logan]

Or a sense of humor.

Pete

[cloudbreakmd]