new member, will not develop power. carbs? ignition?

[79gs550]

Hi everybody, this is my first post, but i have been searching through the forums for a few weeks.
ok, here is the story. my cousin and i had an itch to pick up a cheap project bike, so i found a 77 gs550 and a 79 gs550e for sale on the same day. we each bought one. i took the 79 because i wanted the rear disc and it also had a 4 into 1. the 77 ran fine, but my bike would only idle for a while, then dump gas out of the float bowl.
i figured i could clean the carbs and have a decent bike...
it sat for a while until i finished my school semester. i cleaned the carbs and put on pods. (had no filter when i got it) then i tried to get it going and found the clutch was siezed. i took into a local shop and they replaced the clutch, chain, adjusted the valves, set ignition, and "adjusted the carbs" thet said i would have to jet it myself.
it had 85 main jets with just thew exhaust, and i put in 107.5 now here is the problem. i should be pretty closewith the jetting. #2 and #3 cyls look a little bit lean, but #1 and #4 look wet. i checked the spark and i have spark to all cylenders, but 1 and 4 seemed a little bit weak.
I'm going to check/swap the coil and see if that helps.

after changing the jets and going for a test ride, it was working better but not great, then when i was almost back it started sputtering and lost power. adjusting the choke/blocking off filters has no effect, which makes me think that carbs are not the main problem,

any suggestion would be greatly appreciated.

kerker exhaust, uni filters, new plugs, good battery, good charging(last i checked) valves should be good, timing should be good.

i'm going to poke it with a multimeter for an hour, then stare at the carbs for 45 minutes.

[hampshirehog]

Hi and welcome to the forum. I think if I were you I'd try swapping over the coils as 1/4 and 2/3 run off the same coil respectively. I'd also be a bit nervous about what the shop had done as setting your carbs and then saying 'sort the jetting out yourself' doesn't ring true. I'd definitely never trust anyone to check the valve clearances unless we were blood brothers.

You'll need to play with the carb idle and needle circuit as well as swapping the mains if you're running pods.

[SqDancerLynn1]

I would bet you are way too rich going from a 85 to 107 jet is major change!! probably be happy with 95/97

[79gs550]

after fiddling with the points/timing all morning i would say that is the problem. i am now getting a fairly even read across all the cylinders. (sooty black) it is back firing a bit, and still not accelerating very well. (except once it cleared out and took off)
is there a reference for setting the points/timing? it seems that 2/3 and 1/4 can be adjusted separately.

one thing i know for sure is that you can never trust anybody else to do a good job.

before i messed with the timing 2/3 looked lean and 1/4 looked really rich. now they look a bit more even.

[79gs550]

im going to try and use another coil from my cousins 77 when he gets it back. 1 and 4 seem to not be doing much... maybe a compression test too.

[79gs550]

by the way, it starts right up, and idles perfectly. it also revs up perfectly while in neutral.

[BassCliff]

Hee Haw Howdy!

Hi Mr. 79gs550,

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************
Every GS850 (and most other models) 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.
***********************************
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

***************************************
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

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

Salvage/Used

http://www.ricepaddymotorcycles.com

http://www.ozpowersports.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

http://www.bikepics.com
Basic motorcycle maintenance/repair:
http://www.dansmc.com/mc_repaircourse.htm
Online Clymer manuals:
http://search.ebscohost.com/ Click on "Small Engine Repair" then "Motorcycles". User=library, password=library. Note: This link may not work if you are on a school campus.

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)