No Spark at all???

[jeffg847]

Hi everyone,
I'm new here - and trying to fix my 1986 GS550L. It's been sitting for a couple of years in my garage, but now I have time to fix it and I'm dying to get it running again.

Last time it ran, it would intermittantly stumble and also sometimes it was difficult to start. Now, it won't start at all. Zero spark. The bike will crank, but I can pull all 4 plugs out and none of them spark. I have full electricity working, lights, turn signals brake lights, etc...

I thought it might be the Igniter so I replaced that and it still does not work. Any thoughts??? Signal generator maybe??? I'm just shooting in the dark here. I'm not very good with electrical issues. Help...

[tkent02]

I'm not very good with electrical issues. Help...

Spend a little time reading, and get good at electrical issues... there's really not a lot to it.
Electricity is older than Harley Davidson and is here to stay...Should be taught in kindergarten by now.

Got power to the coils?
Did you blow a fuse?
Did some hack PO or other vermin get into the wiring?

[BassCliff]

Hee Haw Howdy!

Hi Mr. jeffg847,

Here's some general background: http://www.dansmc.com/mc_repaircourse.htm

And now onto your mega-welcome! \\/

Dear fellow GS rider,

Let it be known that on this day you are cordially and formally welcomed to the GSR Forum as a Junior Member in good standing with all the rights and privileges thereof. Further let it be known that your good standing can be improved with pictures (not you, your bike)!

Perhaps you've already seen these, but I like to remind all the new members. In addition to the carb rebuild series, I recommend visiting the In The Garage section via the GSR Homepage and check out the Stator Papers. There's also a lot of great information in the Old Q&A section. I have some documentation on my little BikeCliff website to help get you familiar with doing routine maintenance tasks (note that it is 850G-specific but many tasks are common to all GS bikes). Other "user contributed" informational sites include those of Mr. bwringer, Mr. tfb and Mr. robertbarr. And if your bike uses shims for valve adjustments, send an email to Mr. Steve requesting a copy of his Excel spreadsheet that helps you keep track of clearances, shim sizes and other service work.

These are some edited quotes from one of our dear beloved gurus, Mr. bwringer, with ideas on basic needs (depending on initial condition), parts, and accessories.
***********Quoted from Mr. bwringer************
Carburetor maintenance:

Replace the intake boot o-rings, and possibly the intake boots. Here's the procedure:

http://bwringer.com/gs/intakeorings.html

Here's an overview of what happens with this particular problem:

http://cycleorings.com/intake.html

You'll also want to examine the boots between the carbs and the airbox. There's a good chance these are OK, but check them over.
And finally, if things still aren't exactly right, you'll want to order a set of o-rings for BS carbs from the GS owner's best friend, Robert Barr:
http://cycleorings.com
Once you receive these rare rings of delight, then you'll want to thoroughly clean and rebuild your carburetors. Here are step-by-step instructions that make this simple:

http://thegsresources.com/gs_carbrebuild.htm

***********************************
Every GS850 has (or had) a set of well-known issues that MUST be addressed before you have a solid baseline for further troubleshooting. It's a vintage bike, and it's quite common (as in, every single GS850 I have had contact with) that there are multiple problems that have crept up and slowly gotten worse over the years. It's not like a newer vehicle, where there's generally one problem at a time.

These common issues are:

1. Intake O-rings (install NEW OEM or Viton only - common nitrile O-rings will quickly deteriorate from heat)
2. Intake Boots (install NEW -- these cannot be repaired)
3. Valve clearances (more important than most people think)
4. Carb/airbox boots
5. Airbox sealing
6. Air filter sealing
7. Petcock (install a NEW one)
8. On '79 models, install new points or Dyna electronic ignition (or at least verify that the old points are working correctly)
9. On all models, it's fairly common to have problems with the spark plug caps. These are $3 or $4 each, and often worth replacing if you're keeping the stock coils/wires.
10. Stock exhaust with NO leaks or holes -- good seals at the head and at the junctions underneath.
***************************************
OEM Parts/Online Fiches:

I would definitely double and triple the recommendations to use Cycle Recycle II and Z1 Enterprises as much as possible. These guys are priceless resources. Z1 tends to have slightly better prices, CRC2 has a wider range of goodies available. If you're near Indy and can bring in an old part to match, CRC2 has a vast inventory of used parts.
http://denniskirk.com - Put in your bike model and see what they have.
http://oldbikebarn.com - seems to be slowly regaining a decent reputation, but it's still caveat emptor. They don't have anything you can't get elsewhere at a better price anyway.
http://www.babbittsonline.com/ - Decent parts prices. Spendy shipping. Don't give you part numbers at all. Useful cross-reference if you obtain a part number elsewhere. Efficient service.
http://bikebandit.com - Fastest. Middlin' prices. Uses their own parts numbering system to obfuscate price comparisons -- can be very confusing for large orders. Cheapest shipping, so total cost usually isn't too bad.
http://flatoutmotorcycles.com - Slow. Cheapest parts prices, crazy shipping costs. Don't expect progress updates or much communication. Real Suzuki part numbers.
http://alpha-sports.com - Exorbitant parts prices. Different type of fiche interface that's quite useful at times, especially with superceded part numbers. Real parts numbers. Shipping cost and speed unknown due to insane, unholy pricing.

Stainless Bolts, Viton o-rings, metric taps, dies, assorted hard-to-find supplies and materials, etc:

http://mcmaster.com - Fast, cheap shipping, good prices. No order minimum, but many items like bolts come in packs of 25 or 50. Excellent resource.
http://motorcycleseatcovers.com - Great quality, perfect fit (on original seat foam), and available for pretty much every bike ever made. Avoid the textured vinyl -- it's perforated.
http://newenough.com - You DO have riding gear, don't you? Great clearances, always outstanding prices and impeccable service.
***************End Quote**********************
Additional parts/info links:

GSR Forum member Mr. duaneage has great used upgraded Honda regulator/rectifiers for our bikes. Send him a PM.
New electrical parts:
http://stores.ebay.com/RMSTATOR or http://www.rmstator.com/

http://www.ricksmotorsportelectrics.com/index.php

http://www.electrosport.com/

For valve cover and breather cover gaskets, I recommend Real Gaskets (reusable silicon):
http://www.realgaskets.com
The Rice Paddy (salvage/used)
http://www.ricepaddymotorcycles.com
Carolina Cycle
http://www.carolinacycle.com
Ron Ayers Motorsports
http://www.ronayers.com
MR Cycles
http://www.mrcycles.com
Moto Grid
http://www.motogrid.com
If all else fails, try this:
http://www.used-motorcycle-parts.org/
Used bike buying checklists:

http://www.amadirectlink.com/roadride/Riderresc/checklist.asp

http://www.clarity.net/~adam/buying-bike.html
Lots of good info/pictures here:
http://www.suzukicycles.org

http://www.cyclechaos.com/wiki/Motorcycle_Wiki

Thanks for joining us. Keep us informed of your progress. There's lots of good folk with good experience here.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
(The unofficial GSR greeter)

[TheCafeKid]

Spend a little time reading, and get good at electrical issues... there's really not a lot to it.
Electricity is older than Harley Davidson and is here to stay...Should be taught in kindergarten by now.

Got power to the coils?
Did you blow a fuse?
Did some hack PO or other vermin get into the wiring?

There you guys go talkin bout this 'lectricsal stuffs again. No one has even mentioned that his "magic distributor" box may be faulty...not once..

[tkent02]

There you guys go talkin bout this 'lectricsal stuffs again. No one has even mentioned that his "magic distributor" box may be faulty...not once..

How are you to tell, if you don't know what's inside?

Chase the smoke around, until it goes back in?

Buy new parts until the whole damn thing is new again?

Just say, "Fvck it" and buy a new bike?
A Harely perhaps?

Just go buy a Hyundai. Or even worse, a chevy.
I heard they run a year or two before they fall apart.

[psyguy]

mr jeff,
welcome to gsr

i'd start by confirming the voltage at the coils
if none, may be a blown fuse OR poor connections at the fuse box etc
make sure that there's voltage on both sides of the fuse even if the fuse LOOKS ok
also, make sure the coils' ground connections are clean

let us know how you go

[chef1366]

Did you try new plugs?

[SqDancerLynn1]

Best thing I did to my bike was to power the ign/fuse block from a relay

[Steve]

i'd start by confirming the voltage at the coils
if none, may be a blown fuse OR poor connections at the fuse box etc
make sure that there's voltage on both sides of the fuse even if the fuse LOOKS ok
also, make sure the coils' ground connections are clean

Just to help you a bit here, if your fuse block is like most of the others,
the top fuse handles the headlight and tail light,
the second fuse handles all the signalling stuff, this includes turn signals, brake lights and horn,
the THIRD fuse handles ignition,
the fourth fuse is the main fuse,
the fifth fuse is for the accessory terminals.

As mentioned by previous posters, check for power at the fuse first (it's easier to check), then at the coils (you have to pull the tank for this).

Let us know what you find.

.

[Killer2600]

Electricity is older than Harley Davidson and is here to stay...Should be taught in kindergarten by now.

Do you realize the repercussions of what would happen if they did that. Think a whole lotta butter knife is sockets with a few thomas edison and ben franklin experiments, all done by kindergarteners.

[Calvin Blackmore]

hey there welcome

the OEM manual is replete with systemaitc checks of all systems
yah can download it from http://www.repairmanualclub.com/
its a quirly site but the repair manual is legit

I had spark probs once upon time that were related directly tot he spark plug caps being internall corroded.

The manual has all you need to know including tests of all electrical componnets.

I would get the manual first.

[jeffg847]

Thank you all for the warm welcome and the detailed responses. :-D
I can tell you that I already replaced all 4 spark plugs, replaced the ignitor, and checked all of the fuses and they are all good. I am going to follow some of the advice and I will post back in a couple of days my results.

Did I mention that I hate electrical problems?