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Can anyone tell me why my Bike won’t start?

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Scaramoosh
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PostPosted: 14:44 - 15 Sep 2019    Post subject: Can anyone tell me why my Bike won’t start? Reply with quote

https://streamable.com/2thcb

It has sat in the Garage for about 7 years, I emptied the tank and put new fuel in, changed the spark plugs and charged the battery... which surprisingly works still. The throttle seems a bit jammed, like it won’t spring back, so I can manually move it, but it just stays in the place I’ve moved it to.

It’ll fire up like a second, then turn off as you can hear in the video.

Thanks.
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Scaramoosh
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PostPosted: 15:12 - 15 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

It’s Carb, I was hoping I didn’t have to take it apart Sad
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stinkwheel
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PostPosted: 16:02 - 15 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

The needle valves will be stuck in their seats. I bet if you crack the drains on the carb float bowls, little to no fuel comes out.

It's just about started though. Does the fuel tap on those have a "prime" position? I'd be tempted to stick it on prime, crack the drain screws open one at a time and tap the side of the carb sharply with a bit of wood a few times until fuel runs out (tapping often frees off stuck needle valves). Then try starting it again.

Sounds like you need to lube or replace the one or both throttle cables anyway. That's a task that's probably easiest with the carbs off anyway. As I recall, the carb end is a total sod to get on and off with the carbs on teh bike.

Pattern throttle cables are cheap as chips on ebay. Almost to the point it's not worth pissing about with the old one if it's sticking.
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Polarbear
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PostPosted: 16:25 - 15 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

stinkwheel wrote:

It's just about started though. Does the fuel tap on those have a "prime" position? I'd be tempted to stick it on prime, crack the drain screws open one at a time and tap the side of the carb sharply with a bit of wood a few times until fuel runs out (tapping often frees off stuck needle valves). Then try starting it again.


As said above.

Flushing through and freeing up any sticking of the cab internals.

Don't be surprised if you have to strip them down though, old petrol can leave a sticky residue once it has evaporated and to get it running perfectly it will need cleaning off completely.
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Scaramoosh
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PostPosted: 16:30 - 15 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

It has a off, on and reserve... it doesn’t seem like much fuel is coming out of the tank though. It says to set it to reserve and to take
the hoses off to drain, but only drips are coming out of the tap. I took the Carb lids off and it looks brand new inside...

GPZ500.
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martin734
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PostPosted: 16:30 - 15 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Something I have done in the past in situations like this is to put a couple of litres of petrol with 2 stroke oil in at a 50:1 before refilling as normal.
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Polarbear
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PostPosted: 17:26 - 15 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Scaramoosh wrote:
It has a off, on and reserve... it doesn’t seem like much fuel is coming out of the tank though. It says to set it to reserve and to take
the hoses off to drain, but only drips are coming out of the tap. I took the Carb lids off and it looks brand new inside...

GPZ500.


You should certainly get a decent flow of fuel out of the tap. That could be a good part of your problem if you aren't getting enough fuel flow to supply the carbs.

You need to find out why which probably means taking off the fuel tap and stripping it down.
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Hong Kong Phooey
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PostPosted: 18:03 - 15 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Seven years of moisture stored in the tank, probably a fair bit of rusty crud blocking the tap gauze. I'd check the breather and vacuum hoses though before taking that tap off.
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Scaramoosh
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PostPosted: 19:14 - 15 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

It’ll only “start” with choke on, it does nothing any other way... but stopping right away. If I put any throttle on, it stops right away.

I’ll have to take it to a garage.
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martin734
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PostPosted: 19:26 - 15 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sounds very much like your carb needs a through clean. It starts with the choke because there is just enough fuel going through the carb for the mixture to be rich enough to ignite. When you take the choke off or open the throttle more air is sucked into the cylinder but the blocked jets won't allow enough fuel through so the mixture is too lean to ignite.
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stinkwheel
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PostPosted: 08:49 - 16 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Scaramoosh wrote:
It has a off, on and reserve... it doesn’t seem like much fuel is coming out of the tank though. It says to set it to reserve and to take
the hoses off to drain, but only drips are coming out of the tap. I took the Carb lids off and it looks brand new inside...

GPZ500.


It's a vacuum tap. If it doesn't have a prime position, fuel will only come out when the engine is turning over. I have checked this is working by sucking gently on the end of the vacuum hose before today. I'm not recommending you do that, just saying I have because a gobfull of petrol is nasty if the tap is dodgy.

It might take a while to fill the float bowls. Maybe long enough to flatten the battery again. Do not be tempted to touch the throttle while trying to start it, do just like you were doing in the video, choke on, push the button for a few seconds at a time, then wait 30 seconds for the battery to recover. When they fire up after a long wait, they generally pick up very limply on one pot which then settles to an idle then the second one picks up. No rider input is required or desirable until it's running on both, otherwise it'll just conk out again.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.
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Polarbear
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PostPosted: 11:52 - 16 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

stinkwheel wrote:
Scaramoosh wrote:
It has a off, on and reserve... it doesn’t seem like much fuel is coming out of the tank though. It says to set it to reserve and to take
the hoses off to drain, but only drips are coming out of the tap. I took the Carb lids off and it looks brand new inside...

GPZ500.


It's a vacuum tap. If it doesn't have a prime position, fuel will only come out when the engine is turning over. I have checked this is working by sucking gently on the end of the vacuum hose before today. I'm not recommending you do that, just saying I have because a gobfull of petrol is nasty if the tap is dodgy.

It might take a while to fill the float bowls. Maybe long enough to flatten the battery again. Do not be tempted to touch the throttle while trying to start it, do just like you were doing in the video, choke on, push the button for a few seconds at a time, then wait 30 seconds for the battery to recover. When they fire up after a long wait, they generally pick up very limply on one pot which then settles to an idle then the second one picks up. No rider input is required or desirable until it's running on both, otherwise it'll just conk out again.


I have never seen a vacuum operated fuel tap without a prime position which is why i didn't mention them earlier. He said it has off/on/res.
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stinkwheel
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PostPosted: 12:35 - 16 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Polarbear wrote:


I have never seen a vacuum operated fuel tap without a prime position which is why i didn't mention them earlier. He said it has off/on/res.

I could tell it was either a GPZ/ER5 from the engine noise. 1st gen GPZ500s have a prime position, later ones don't.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.
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Polarbear
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PostPosted: 15:38 - 16 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

stinkwheel wrote:
Polarbear wrote:


I have never seen a vacuum operated fuel tap without a prime position which is why i didn't mention them earlier. He said it has off/on/res.

I could tell it was either a GPZ/ER5 from the engine noise. 1st gen GPZ500s have a prime position, later ones don't.


Then am I right in presuming that that change happened when the bikes changed from carbs to FI?

You are always going to need a prime setting for carbs.
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stinkwheel
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PostPosted: 16:04 - 16 Sep 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Polarbear wrote:

Then am I right in presuming that that change happened when the bikes changed from carbs to FI?

You are always going to need a prime setting for carbs.


No. 1994 was the cutoff. When they went from exploding alternator rotors, rear drums and 16" wheels to non-exploding alternator rotors rear discs and 17" wheels.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.
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Old Thread Alert!

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Scaramoosh
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PostPosted: 11:36 - 18 Jun 2020    Post subject: Reply with quote

I had to sell it, I bought a new carb off a working bike and it still wouldn't start. I bought a new petrol tank tap and tried everything and it wouldn't start. Then I took it to a garage and they were like it needs new everything, suddenly the costs were mounting up and so I decided to get rid.

Not the bargain I thought when I bought it.
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Old Thread Alert!

The last post was made 5 years, 297 days ago. Instead of replying here, would creating a new thread be more useful?
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