help, broken down :(

[richk]

i was riding to work today, and just as i pulled into the car park the bike died! the journey across was fine, did notice that the idle rpm was a bit lumpy. the bike doesnt run that well when it starts. with no choke, it doesnt start, adding about half choke, the bike does start, but applying any throttle it quickly dies. i thought it might be a lack of fuel, , so i turned on the tank to the reserve, and still the same results.

any clues on what it could be?

cheers

[serlant]

which bike might be helpful? changed anything recently?
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04 CBR1000RR, 1995 Husqvarna TE410, 1998 VTR1000(Sold), 1990 XJ600(sold), 1996 KH125(dead and sold)

[richk]

ah sorry, its a Kinlon 125GY (wee chinese carb bike). nope i havent done anything to it. its been fine the last few weeks!

[Nope.]

Its awkward if your at work and it depends on if you have a garage/workshop available to you but this is what I would try:

1) Check the plug. It could just be oiled up. If it is, change it, or if you dont have a spare plug try and clean up the one thats there.

2) Strip and clean the Carb. It could be that the main jet has gotten blocked up, strip the carb and clean the jet.

3) Drain the tank and put fresh petrol in. If the petrol has gotten contaminated with water it would obviously cause running issues.

The other thing I would try is bump starting it, it may fire and and you might be able to coax it home.

EDIT: Because of the thing with the choke, check the air filter hasn't fallen out or become dislodged.
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Former: Derbi GP1 50, Sachs XTC 125, Suzuki GSXR 400 GK73A, Kawasaki ZX7R, Suzuki DR250, Yamaha RD350
Current: 2011 Yamaha XT660Z Ténéré, 2003 Yamaha YZR-R1 5PW (In Build), 2009 Kawasaki ZZR1400

[whitedevil]

Do you have any power, lights etc? check loose battery connections, fuses.
Does it turn over?
Will it bump start?
Check plug post results.
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GPZ500 sold ~ CBR600FS-2 sold ~ ZX6R sold ~ Street Triple R

[richk]

hi there, thanks for the info. all my lights (and stuff) work, and the engine turns over fine. it must be a fuelling issue, for if the bike starts (using a bit of choke) then that suggests that there is a spark!

its awkward to fix at work, as i dont have any tools. i think i will drain the carb, and then perhaps get some fresh petrol in (hmmm nearest petrol station is about 4 miles away...)

[Lipsmoker]

[ace-card]

I had a Chinese 125cc bike that used to do this in the most inconvenient places (like at roundabouts!!). Found it used to happen more so when I broke heavily (if this is the right phrase to use for a 125!!) and dipped the clutch suddenly. This suggested to me that it had to be something to do with fueling when dropping suddenly in the rev range. So my first thing would be to STRIP and clean the carbs.....I doubt that simply draining them will do the job. Then try setting them up properly (trail and error here I'm afraid ). Also, there may be a spark initially, but if there is any fueling issue, as you run the engine, the plug may get too wet, or oiled up, as computid said, and this will inhibit the spark.
____________________
2007 Skyjet SJ-125, 2001 Aprillia RS125, 1988 Honda CG125, 1997 Yamaha YZF600R
Mama said "life is like a box o' chocolates....have what's nice, then offload the crap to everyone else!"

[richk]

hey all, had a wee look during my lunch break. the air filter looks clean, and its firmly attached to the carb. checked the fuel tap, i am getting no fuel from the main, and fuel out the reserve. it could be crap being sucked in from the bottom of the tank?

again annoying that i'm at work and can do much here

[Nope.]

If it is a blocked up tank what I would do (and im probably nuts) is this:

Obtain a large plastic bottle (lemonade bottle, coke bottle, water bottle) The thicker the better.

Cut/Melt a hole in the cap

Push the fuel line into the hole (take it off the bottom of the tank and turn the tank off)

Gaffa tape the line into the cap.

Cut/drill a couple holes in the bottom of the bottle

Attach the bottle upside down onto the side of the bike

Fill the bottle with a little bit of fresh petrol to see if it leaks

If it doesn't, Fill it up and ride home. Just dont crash, spark, or take corners too sharply.

Of course, if your not mad, call the AA.

Also, im not really sure if this is legal, but meh.
____________________
Former: Derbi GP1 50, Sachs XTC 125, Suzuki GSXR 400 GK73A, Kawasaki ZX7R, Suzuki DR250, Yamaha RD350
Current: 2011 Yamaha XT660Z Ténéré, 2003 Yamaha YZR-R1 5PW (In Build), 2009 Kawasaki ZZR1400

[Pete.]

Does your bike have a vacuum tap? In other words are there two pipes running to it - a large one and a small one? If so, you need to switch the tap to PRI, to prime the carb.

All the signs point to you having run onto reserve but drained the carb too far to run the engine long enough to fill the float bowl again.
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a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[richk]

love the solution computid! very heath robinson! that may be plan B (for bang...)


i dont have a vacuum tap, just a bog standard gravity one (main/off/res)

you could be right Pete, but surely by leaving the tap on res, the carb should fill up fairly quickly (or does it need the engine to suck it in...) or would i have to open up the drain tap to draw it through?

[jimspeed]

yea but the reserve bit is the lowest part of the tank and thats where any water or crap will go so you may have initially run low on fuel then dumped some water in the carb for good measure. I would send a mate from work for fuel (someone would help surely) then turn the tap back to main rather than res and drain what ever is in the carb (let it run thru the pipes a bit possibly catch it in a bowl or something as it will damage tarmac).
I try to use the reserve fuel up every now and again (work sells fuel so can run really low to there lol) so it gets fresh fuel every now and again.

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Hyosung cruise 125(passed test on, sold) Kawasaki el 252 (better than expected but sold on) Kawasaki GPZ500S first "big"bike.(sold) ZZR600 E5..Z750 2007,ER5, currently on a 2008 Enfield bullet electra x and loving it..
,"Alpha-9: Is there any correlation between dyno rod and dyno kits?"

[richk]

thanks for all the replies and suggestions. i drained the carb, and filled up the tank with some fresh petrol. changed the tap to main, and after a wee bit the bike fired up!

phew!

thanks all

[Pete.]

Just a thought here, what way is the lever pointing when you are on reserve? Usually, it's straight up. Reason I ask is because on some bikes it's not actually very clear and people ride around on reserve all the time, so they run the bike right out of fuel.
Happened to me a few times.
____________________
a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good