81 GS1100 E Starting Problems

[steves]

This may be out in left field, but it happened to a friend of mine...could the choke cable be broken or need adjustment? Can you verify that the choke is fully engaging when you pull the knob? My friend's bike wouldn't start in the cold and we worked on it for a while before I noticed that when he pulled the choke the slide barely moved. A $15 cable and he was back on the road.

It's the small things that give us the most trouble.....

Hmm.... hadn't thought of that.... and it's supposed to warm up at the end of this week here... I'll give that a look before I go tearing into anything else...

[KEITH KRAUSE]

or could there be a gremlin in there somewhere?

Ah jeez! You had to go and say the "G" word.#-o
Steves, just wondering. Any other symptoms beside the cold starting problem? What is the idle rpm when still cold/warming up compared to when it's fully hot?
If the carbs are clean as you say, then something else is stopping the jets from drawing a rich enough mixture for cold starting. Lack of vacuum possibly.
As for the choke cable having so much slack that it's basically not working, that's always possible and sure would be an easy fix. Hope it is.

[bwringer]

Too-tight valve clearances and/or low compression are the only other things that come to mind besides some sort of problem with the choke cable or linkage.

Don't rule out a problem with the valve clearances, the chokes, etc. just because someone else seems to know what they're doing. The only way to know is to check for yourself. Not casting any aspersions on your friends and family, of course.

An engine with good compression and valve clearances should light up almost instantly as long as the mixture is anywhere in the ballpark -- the carbs can be off somewhat, but it should still try to start and run.

[49er]

Keith, sorry for slipping in that "G" word.
Guess I'll just banish myself to the garage and continue the rebuild.
Cheers ,I mean beers.

[steves]

Ah jeez! You had to go and say the "G" word.#-o
Steves, just wondering. Any other symptoms beside the cold starting problem? What is the idle rpm when still cold/warming up compared to when it's fully hot?
If the carbs are clean as you say, then something else is stopping the jets from drawing a rich enough mixture for cold starting. Lack of vacuum possibly.
As for the choke cable having so much slack that it's basically not working, that's always possible and sure would be an easy fix. Hope it is.

Besides the cold start, it's running well as far as I know. I havn't been on the bike in over 6 weeks, but no other reported issue.

Don't rule out a problem with the valve clearances, the chokes, etc. just because someone else seems to know what they're doing. The only way to know is to check for yourself. Not casting any aspersions on your friends and family, of course.

I don't know that taking it to a shop would have had any different of an outcome.

I'm going to double check on the choke cable before I give up on it until spring. I've got other bikes that run well and are in need of some attention in case a nice riding day shows up before spring....

[steves]

I finally got a chance to yank out the carbs today in this blustery 70* northeast December weather.

The bottoms of the bowls for #1 and #2 were wet with fuel, so I'm guessing bad bowl gasket? Could the drain screws be bad?


Here's a pic....

[txironhead]

Your drain screw gaskets could be bad, or the screws holding the bowls on could have been a little loose. Replacing the bowl gaskets wouldn't hurt, though.

[chef1366]

That makes sense. If the float bowl is leaking the choke rod wouldn't be submerged in gas to suck up gas for the choke citcuit.
Hope that fixes it for you.

[steves]

Have not yet opened the carbs. On my list for this weekend. Someone also mentioned that I may need a set of rubber plugs?? Where would they go?

[chef1366]

The rubber plug blocks the port to the pilot jet. When you put the bowl back on it doesn't seat all the way because it's being held up by the plug. Just tighten the bowl screws and the plug will seal into the port.

[Steve]

If you don't find a problem in the carbs, my money would be on valve adjustment. I had a Kawasaki Voyager 1300 that had a very hard time starting when cold. When warm, it started so quick I could not get my thumb off the button fast enough. Clearances on the Kaw were .004 and .008 on intakes and exhausts. My Clymer manual for my (wife's) 850 calls for .0012" to .0031", which is very small. After all, .003 is the thickness of the average sheet of notebook paper. Since the valves tend to tighten up over time, it would not take long to use up these miniscule clearances. When the clearance is gone, the valve will not close fully and compression suffers, along with other problems. Left too long like this, you could burn some valves or worse. On my Kaw, deposits built up on the tops of the pistons, bending 4 of the 6 intake valves. Not a very cheap proposition.

[steves]

Just an update... the issue was carb related. Over the winter I got another set from flebay and had them rebuilt. Just installed them this afternoon, and the bike fired right up. I'm gonna wheel it out tomorrow and take it around the block.

[Suzuki mad]

If you have the money I would send your old carbs away and have them professionally cleaned.
You could reift them back to the bike or hold them for spares if this happens again.

Glad you got it sorted.

Suzuki mad

1981 GS1000ET
1983 GS(X)1100ESD
2002 GSF1200 K1

[steves]

If you have the money I would send your old carbs away and have them professionally cleaned.
You could reift them back to the bike or hold them for spares if this happens again.

Glad you got it sorted.

Suzuki mad

1981 GS1000ET
1983 GS(X)1100ESD
2002 GSF1200 K1

I'm not sure what a "professional" cleaner would do that the guy I used already didn't try. He dipped the old set twice.

[Steve]

"Dipping" is just the start of the process. How long were they in the "dip"? My can of Berryman's says to soak for 15 to 30 minutes, then rinse. I have much better results soaking for 15 to 30 hours, then rinsing. Yep, I disassemble one carb, drop it in the can and move on to something else. The next day I will raise the basket, rescue the drowned (and clean) parts, rinse them off with warm water and re-assemble the carb. Then I take the next carb apart, dunk it overnight and continue the process.

It ends up taking most of the week to do a set of carbs, but I KNOW they are clean. \\/


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