I got it running!!!!

[jhelbig]

I was so happy this morning I wanted to tell the world! After months of electrical work and troubleshooting, I gave it some gas, couple sprays of engine start, and she coughed and roared to life!! I was beside myself that it actually worked!!
So here's what I've learned from starting it and where I think I need to go now.
1. Oil was FLOWING from the cylinder head gasket!! So gotta replace that first. So, what else should I replace or look for when I do that?
2. In my infinite wisdom I started shift through gears, only to find out I couldn't get back into neutral! Where do I go to fix that?
3. I could only start by jumping it from a car battery. Obviously I need a new battery, so is the OEM type fine or is there one that GS'ers have come to love? This is the one bikebandit has... YB14L-A2 BATTERY for $118. I think the one that's in it now is an Interstate. I have no knowledge of the age.
Along with that, the ignition switch doesn't seem to work. I took it apart and didn't see anything wrong with it. We can only get anything if we jumper across the fuse block. My buddy checked resistence on the switch and wires, seemed good, but then when we hook it up, nothing. Kill switch and starter button work, they are brand new. So comments on that would be helpful. I'm leaning on just getting a new one, but they're over $100 and I can't swing it right now.
4. Tires...or Tyres for you across the pond! I've read that most people like Avon's. Any suggestions? Right now front is 100/90-19 57H and rear is 4.5/85 H17. Forget what make they are, no memorable name, I think korean or japanesesese. Spec is 3.50-19 front and 4.5-17 on back. I believe these are the oe wheels, so can I put Avon Roadrider AM26's on it?
120/90-17 rear and 3.25-19 front. I looked at the conversion chart on BikeCliff's site, and they seem to match up.

That's prolly more than enough for most people, so I'll stop now. Thanks again, I couldn't have gone as far as I have without this site!

PS, and I'll post more pics in my album here.

[79FiveFifty]

couldn't get back into neutral! Where do I go to fix that?
3. I could only start by jumping it from a car battery. Obviously I need a new battery, so is the OEM type fine or is there one that GS'ers have come to love? This is the one bikebandit has... YB14L-A2 BATTERY for $118. I think the one that's in it now is an Interstate. I have no knowledge of the age.

#2) Neutral is tricky on all bikes, it just takes some real practice to feel for it. Make sure your bulb is not burned out first of all, mine was and I thought I had no neutral.. I just had no bulb. Second thing is, once you make sure the bulb is good.. I find it easiest to reach neutral from 2'nd gear. 1'st I always click it up too hard into second, second I can gently press down until I feel it disengage and watch the green light on the dash illuminate.

#3) I went to my local advance auto-parts store and purchased a dry charged battery. This is a battery you must fill yourself - no big deal it takes 2 minutes and its extremely easy to do. 10LA2 Autocraft.. 1 year warranty / swap. Total price was about $40.00. I recommend dry batteries (fill yourself) to anybody because you know they haven't been sitting on a shelf dying for who knows how long. The moment you fill them and charge them - they are brand new.

[Steve]

Let's just answer these as you ask them:

So here's what I've learned from starting it and where I think I need to go now.
1. Oil was FLOWING from the cylinder head gasket!! So gotta replace that first. So, what else should I replace or look for when I do that?
Are you sure it was the cylinder head gasket? Might it have been the valve cover gasket? One is much easier to change than the other.

2. In my infinite wisdom I started shift through gears, only to find out I couldn't get back into neutral! Where do I go to fix that?
Just a half a notch betwen first and second, if the clutch is dragging, it might be difficult.

3. I could only start by jumping it from a car battery. Obviously I need a new battery, so is the OEM type fine or is there one that GS'ers have come to love? This is the one bikebandit has... YB14L-A2 BATTERY for $118. I think the one that's in it now is an Interstate. I have no knowledge of the age.
That is TERRIBLY EXPENSIVE. I cringe at the thought of paying $75 for an AGM battery at Batteries Plus. Available for less elsewhere, but Batteries Plus is just down the street and I can get it NOW.

Along with that, the ignition switch doesn't seem to work. I took it apart and didn't see anything wrong with it. We can only get anything if we jumper across the fuse block. My buddy checked resistence on the switch and wires, seemed good, but then when we hook it up, nothing. Kill switch and starter button work, they are brand new. So comments on that would be helpful. I'm leaning on just getting a new one, but they're over $100 and I can't swing it right now.
Do you get anything when you turn the key? The instrument lights and warning lights should come on. What are you jumping across in the fuse box? If you are getting lights, but the starter does not work, try pulling the clutch lever first.

4. Tires...or Tyres for you across the pond! I've read that most people like Avon's. Any suggestions? Right now front is 100/90-19 57H and rear is 4.5/85 H17. Forget what make they are, no memorable name, I think korean or japanesesese. Spec is 3.50-19 front and 4.5-17 on back. I believe these are the oe wheels, so can I put Avon Roadrider AM26's on it?
120/90-17 rear and 3.25-19 front. I looked at the conversion chart on BikeCliff's site, and they seem to match up.
Avons are good tires, but a bit on the pricey side. If you can't afford $100 for a new ignition switch, you likely won't be able to afford new Avons.
What many are trying with varying levels of success is Shinko. The 230 Tour Master is a V-rated tire that is quite a bit of overkill for our bikes. The 712 Bias Performance is an H-rated tire that is still overkill, but not as much, and it costs a bit less. A 130/90-17 rear and a 100/90-19 front will work very nicely.

That's prolly more than enough for most people, so I'll stop now. Thanks again, I couldn't have gone as far as I have without this site!

PS, and I'll post more pics in my album here.

[jhelbig]

I had a buddy over this evening and we messed with it a little. It is still incredibly hard to start. Maybe attribute it to not running for years and the carbs need a good once-over. (And the valves haven't been adjusted yet, or the timing, or the.......)

Nothing comes on when I turn the key. I'm jumpering from the hot red wire (back of fuse block) to the ignition fuse on the other side of fuse (again on the back of fuse block). I get that oil pressure light, headlight, and taillight when I jumper it. And I always pull the clutch when starting it, but it seems that it'll try to start even if clutch isn't pulled. I just do it from habit.

I'll check the bulb on the neutral light, that sure would be helplful if that worked!

So I need an AGM battery? I'm not familiar with that term.

It takes quite a bit of sprays of engine start to the carbs for it to come to life, then after a bit of hesitation and backfiring, it steadies out to a nice idle! Got to fix the leak (definitely coming from the valve cover), because that oil is just flowing out. Makes me wonder what's gettin' starved if the oil is coming out at that pressure....

Thanks for the responses, I'll follow up on them and get back to you all!

[sschering]

I went with Avons 100-90-19 front and 130-90-17 out back..
Yes they are a few $$ and don't forget to add in an extra $30 for tubes to the damage. My Avons ended up a touch over $300 after mounting, balance, tubes and tax. $205 of that was the tires.

Nothing wrong with the Shinkos on the same sizes.. Only about $120 for the pair plus the extras

Hard to say what is up with the ignition.. If the switch tests OK I'd start testing/tracing the wires. I've found all kinds of oddball splices on my bike or pinched wires..

[KitKat]

a bike being hard to start might be a sign of tight valves.

i would add a valve adjustment to the list

[BassCliff]

Hi,

Adjust the valves, clean the carbs, fix the charging system, etc. Piece of cake. There's a "Top 10" checklist in your "mega-welcome" (or see the READ ME file on my website). Most of these points are non-negotiable.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[Kcwiro]

there was a thread for maintaince free batteries.. I just ordered a AGM from batterystuff.com $54 (for friends 550 - my 750 one is still good)... the price is right and no more adding water =)

honestly I hav not had any issues with the maintainence free ones but I could be the exception an dnot the rule but expect 4-5 years from a battery for mean time failure - it is a wear item so do not expect them to last forever but always...always....always tender it in the winter best to leave it out of the bike and bring indoors 'but that is just me' ..unless you ar eliek some who live ina no snow zone =P

[jhelbig]

I like the sound of $54 for a maintenance free battery! I do have a charger that also has a storage feature on it. I've had it on the PO's Interstate battery for months, hoping it might breath some life into the thing. Volts are never the issue, they are always good, but I guess the charger doesn't do anything for the amps?

BassCliff, I go to your site frequently to search for tips and your "must do" is definitely on my list!
I didn't do alot of things yet because I was unsure of the condition of the engine. I wanted to make sure it at least started and didn't sound terrible.

So my game plan is
1) order a new valve(cam) cover gasket
2) fix the neutral light
3) take off the carbs and clean'em up
4) adjust the valves
5) get a new battery

Then start it back up and see where I'm at. I have to throw fixing the brakes in there somewhere too! I rebuilt the rear calipers, but the piston is froze up or something. Anyway, thanks again to everyone and I'll keep ya posted. Here's hoping for a spring ride!

[alocker]

FYI. A separate search shows the same batt at $55.00. Yuasa makes a good battery.

http://www.bikebandit.com/yuasa-yumicron-battery-yb14l-a2

[Kcwiro]

sounds like a good winter project

.... Volts are never the issue, they are always good, but I guess the charger doesn't do anything for the amps?....

Tenders do 1.25 amps though that depends on the one you have some are .75 amps but a tender is a tender and you need one for anytime your bike is not being ridden for long periods. On your interstate battery make sure you keep grounds good because the terminals seem to melt if they are real bad 'don't ask'....I obviously fixed my grounds and added some as well *thank you grounding mod*

[Steve]

... but a tender is a tender and you need one for anytime your bike is not being ridden for long periods. ...

Not quite true. Yeah, a "tender" is a "tender", but for long-term storage, you really want a "maintainer".

Tenders are usually "automatic" chargers that reduce the charge rate when a set voltage is reached after charging at their maximum rate. Even the reduced rate will eventually destroy the battery with the constant charge. A maintainer will taper the charge rate to the set-point, then shut off entirely, but still monitor the voltage. When the voltage drops below a certain point, the charger kicks in again, bringing the battery back to peak voltage. This is much better for the health of the battery.

By the way, there is a unit with the brand name "Battery Tender". A couple of different models, but a bit pricey at $40-60.
You can get a decent maintainer at Wal-Mart, too. Schumacher Battery Companion, about $20.
The same unit is available at Sears with the Die Hard name on it for $30.

.

[jhelbig]

I got the Yuasa Automatic Battery Charger from bikebandit for about $39. It says something in the instructions about

"The ‘Float Mode’ also contains a special charging waveform, that pulses power into your batteries, and helps to peak the power into your battery. Also, while in this mode, if the charger senses a load that has activated, the charger recycles to the ‘Charging Mode’ to start charging again, up to the 14.4Vdc level."

So this is a good one then isn't it? Even though it's called a charger it sounds like it has the maintainer feature that Steve was talking about.
Also, it has a 3A fuse on it, good feature for when you forget to unplug it when you jump the bike from a car! Yep, I went to advanced for some fuses that evening. Justin, here's your sign!

[Steve]

Yes, that's a good charger/maintainer. You paid more than you needed to for a charger maintainer, but at least you got a good unit.
It's that "float mode" that makes the difference.

Jump starting a bike from a car is no problem as long as you remember to turn the car OFF before connecting the cables. Your bike uses a 12 volt battery, your car uses a 12 volt battery, it's just bigger and will last longer, there is no need to have the additional voltage of the running car. It is that additional voltage that causes the problems. If the regulated voltage of the car is just above the regulator's setpoint on the bike, the bike will try to regulate the output of the car, usually with disasterous results.

.

[Kcwiro]

Not quite true. Yeah, a "tender" is a "tender", but for long-term storage, you really want a "maintainer".

Tenders are usually "automatic" chargers that reduce the charge rate when a set voltage is reached after charging at their maximum rate. Even the reduced rate will eventually destroy the battery with the constant charge....
By the way, there is a unit with the brand name "Battery Tender". A couple of different models, but a bit pricey at $40-60.
You can get a decent maintainer at Wal-Mart, too. Schumacher Battery Companion, about $20.
The same unit is available at Sears with the Die Hard name on it for $30.

.

I stand corrected I just use a 'barrtery tender' Green box do not think it is a maintainer. Ofcourse I only park the bike for at most 4 months, oil change at the end and fire er up. I do cycle some fuel through carbs myself as I want to keep my t-fitting sealed...otherwise I waiting for a few days for it to swell backup when I should be ridding. I know it might leave a mess in the carb bowls but I clean it up once a year, has not let me down yet. Minus the throttle cable which snapped when I was coming back from teh GS Rally this year... lucky me I had a fellow GSr with me with the tools to get it off and ride to town to get a new end soddered on it...just cost me a hotel stay as I was planning to go the entire way home from california but I got stuck in bend...