Carburator and other Questions
- Thread starter KoolBreeze420
- Start date
Some thoughts off the top of my head....
- Check the needle position.. it may need adjusting up or down.
- Make sure the nut that holds the choke lever assembly together on the carb is good and snug.. if it's loose you'll have trouble keeping the intake open properly.
- Check the stem that draws fuel out of the float bowl (that the needle drops through), sometimes they loosen a bit and will eventually drop into the float bowl. Even 1/4 turn out of position is enough to really mess up the amount of fuel drawn into the intake.
- Make sure the carb is tight on the intake manifold. Air leaks between the carb and jug will make it hard to tune in. One trick I've used for this check is to remove the air filter and open the choke then point a small very bright flashlight into the intake. Looking at where the carb meets the intake manifold, if you see any pinpoints of light around where the carb is fitted to the manifold you have an air leak.
She wouldn't restart I think because the magneto got wet. AS for the Carb I'm just going to break it in with the CNS Standard Stock carb it runs great with that in until the magneto gets wet how can I seal the water out? Just got back from another successful ride checked the spark plug it's changing color from black to a lighter color now, I'm partially color blind so will be hard to tell but I am glad to see it changing from black. As for the magneto I'm trying some duck tape and on the tape I zip tied some inner tube to shield it and so far so good but if you have any ideas on a sure way to keep the magneto dry that would be awesome.
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A bead of silicone sealer on the magneto cover gasket and a glob where the wires exit the case should seal out any moisture.
Tom
Tom
When you say the cover gasket do you mean take the magneto cover off then put a bead right on the gasket or put a bead on the outside of the cover? Never thought of that that would work well I was pretty frustrated the other day when the new carb refused to run well enough then plain refused to start today with the stock carb it ran great then after stopping at a store I Could not start it on the way home, brought upstairs and did a spark test pulled the plug out then put up to the head turned the wheel no spark took the kill switch out, no spark checked all connections then remembered the magneto.
I had filled the hole with Vaseline seen that somewhere, anyways took the cover off and water came out so I used a hair dryer to dry it tested for spark and got it going again.
I am learning lots and hopefully soon will be able to fix any problems that come my way.
Will worry about the Gen 2 speed carb after break in simply because it runs awesome with the stock carb right now. So I will just do some more riding and get her broke in then I will try that carb and try what was suggested before I ask anything more about it so thanks so much for guiding me through this trouble.The gas cap leaks is there a fix for this?
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Also I later discovered that the ring gasket that goes in where you mount it to the head was not installed it fell out and was in the box could that have casued the problem I was having?
If the coil got wet, it can short intermittently for quite a while before complete failure. I had a similar problem after getting one wet. It would run fine a while, then die suddenly only to run fine again a few minutes later. This occurred off and on for weeks until it finally failed completely. After installing a new part,the issue was fixed for good.
Keep that cover sealed! Like 2Door said, a glob on the case where the wires exit and a bead on the cover should seal it right up.
Keep that cover sealed! Like 2Door said, a glob on the case where the wires exit and a bead on the cover should seal it right up.
On the inside cover or outside cover is all I was trying to find out now? Is there a fix for the gas cap leaking? I put a hairdryer to the magneto it dried up and ran with no problem. What I find odd is it would run no problem but getting restarted was a no go. If there was no spark on restart it must have got wet after shutting down, right? Wouldn't I have stalled out if it had got wet while riding?
Seal the mag cover by first removing all traces of the Vaseline you had on it. Apply silicone sealant to the gasket surface of the cover and then reinstall the cover.
Remove all traces of Vaseline from the wire exit on the front of the engine and seal that area with silicone sealant too.
How well does the gas cap fit?
Most all of them will leak if the fuel tank is filled up full. Leaving an inch or two of air space below the top of the tank when filling will help.
Every once in a while folks report that replacing the gas cap rubber seal with a slightly thicker one (sourced from wherever) helps too.
One source for the gas cap seal is a Harley shop that stocks parts for pre 1984 models.
You may need to trim it to size with scissors.
Do not use inner tube rubber. It is not gasoline compatible.
As for the water in the mag causing the no restart, water wreaks havoc on all things electrical. The results can be random/ unpredictable.
Remove all traces of Vaseline from the wire exit on the front of the engine and seal that area with silicone sealant too.
How well does the gas cap fit?
Most all of them will leak if the fuel tank is filled up full. Leaving an inch or two of air space below the top of the tank when filling will help.
Every once in a while folks report that replacing the gas cap rubber seal with a slightly thicker one (sourced from wherever) helps too.
One source for the gas cap seal is a Harley shop that stocks parts for pre 1984 models.
You may need to trim it to size with scissors.
Do not use inner tube rubber. It is not gasoline compatible.
As for the water in the mag causing the no restart, water wreaks havoc on all things electrical. The results can be random/ unpredictable.
Welcome to motor biking!
Goal is to ride everyday with no vibration and no leaks.
this is a hard task.
Your clutch arm can be articulated with your hand and adjusted w/the lil star nut, under the right side cover. The cable can be adjusted for optimum position w/the set screw @ the end of the cable.
As for the carb well they are not the best I've tried and installed at least 20 Dif. 1's.
the only adjustment on the stock carb is the idle,& good luck get'n 1 to idle .
here's the 1 I found to be best. 1/4 inch play in the chain is optimum, and if your bike is new, this will change every 10-12 hours-until its through strecth'n, don't put the guard on until your thrugh mess'n w/it which is never
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Yeah, that would have an effect. I'd put that back in there. None of mine have come with an O ring out-of-the-box (yet).
Update I got the new speed carb or Nt Gen 2 carb working after putting the O ring where it should have been, but wouldn't you know it 10 mins later the bike stalled, just before I was going to ride. I thought maybe it was just cause the carb was new, turns out that the moisture I discovered caused my Magneto to fail(at least this is my hypothesis) so now I have to wait on parts. We are going to replace both the CDI and Magneto.
Then I will properly seal with silicone and hopefully I will have no more problems.
Question are magnetos really this sensitive that a small amount of moisture will ruin them forever?
Is it possible to use the white wire to gain spark if your far from home?
Then I will properly seal with silicone and hopefully I will have no more problems.
Question are magnetos really this sensitive that a small amount of moisture will ruin them forever?
Is it possible to use the white wire to gain spark if your far from home?
if you spin the back wheel w/the spark plug out and grab the wire (blue or white) you will feel the lil shock---this will tell you if it is working or not.
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Yes I know how to adjust the clutch the question is mainly about the 2 springs that came with it the large one works as a heat shield. The smaller one seemed unnecessary to me for use with the clutch.
This is why I came to ask about that spring what it's purpose is and if it is needed somewhere else on the bike. When I installed the spring on the clutch cable between the housing and the clutch arm, I was unable to depress the spring enough to make the clutch useable, without the spring the clutch works perfectly fine. So I thought maybe the spring is intended for another use then what I thought.
I have had no problems with getting the carb's to idle. I just wasn't sure which way to turn the idle screw. I now know that when turned to the right which depresses the spring turns the idle up and left turns it down. I didn't know this when I posted the question.
How do you measure chain play?
This is why I came to ask about that spring what it's purpose is and if it is needed somewhere else on the bike. When I installed the spring on the clutch cable between the housing and the clutch arm, I was unable to depress the spring enough to make the clutch useable, without the spring the clutch works perfectly fine. So I thought maybe the spring is intended for another use then what I thought.
I have had no problems with getting the carb's to idle. I just wasn't sure which way to turn the idle screw. I now know that when turned to the right which depresses the spring turns the idle up and left turns it down. I didn't know this when I posted the question.
How do you measure chain play?
Welcome to motor biking!
Goal is to ride everyday with no vibration and no leaks.
this is a hard task.
Your clutch arm can be articulated with your hand and adjusted w/the lil star nut, under the right side cover. The cable can be adjusted for optimum position w/the set screw @ the end of the cable.
As for the carb well they are not the best I've tried and installed at least 20 Dif. 1's.
the only adjustment on the stock carb is the idle,& good luck get'n 1 to idle .
here's the 1 I found to be best. 1/4 inch play in the chain is optimum, and if your bike is new, this will change every 10-12 hours-until its through strecth'n, don't put the guard on until your thrugh mess'n w/it which is never
I have a multimeter no need to shock myself lol. I get a reading between black and white but not between black and blue or white and blue. I checked the blue wire for a break there is no break. The Mag is defective without a doubt. The questions are, Why would a small amount of water make the mag unusable?
and
Is it possible to use the white wire to gain spark if your far from home?
P.S.
I have a multiground spark plug do I have to replace with the same spark plug or the same type or can I use any spark plug as a replacement?
Do spark plug cables have any effect should the stock aprkplug cable be changed to something better and if so what would be recommended?
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That's odd my O ring was there but was stuck under a flap in the cardboard so I didn't see it, till the next day.
You measure chain free play by pushing up on the lower chain run as close to the middle distance between the 2 sprockets as possible. Sprockets are never perfectly round so you need to find the tight spot. With the clutch pulled in, roll the bike to rotate the chain and sprockets. Check the tension frequently to find the tight spot. You may need to roll the bike around alot to find it. When you have found it adjust the rear wheel to give the chain 1/2 inch minimum to 3/4 inch maximum freeplay.
The white wire cannot be used for generating the signal to the CDI for spark.
The favored spark plugs are NGK. Use a B6HS to start with.
Use a B5HS for cold weather, B7HS for hot weather or a B8HS for scorching hot weather.
Spark plugs are rated in temperature ranges. The higher the number value, the colder the plug. You want a hot plug in cold weather and a cold plug in hot weather. It really does make a big difference.
The factory spark plug wire is good, but the factory cap that snaps onto the spark plug is garbage. Most folks go the easy rout and replace the spark plug wire with a high performance wire such as the one that SBP sells or use an automotive one.
It is tricky to remove the wire from the CDI as the factory glues them in place. Also, to help hold the wire in place and conduct electricity properly there is a metal screw in the spark plug hole of the CDI box that threads up inside the spark plug wire to make proper contact with the electrical conductor in the wire. Usually this screw is plenty good enough to both transfer the electricity and hold the wire properly, but for some ungodly known reason the factory likes to use glue too. Because of this overkill method, when you go to remove the wire it typically breaks off flush with the CDI box and you need to carefully pick the remaining wire out of the CDI box with whatever you have
that is sharp and strong. A mechanic's pick set and tweezers come in handy. Sharpened nails or coat hanger wire can work as "shade tree" mechanic's picks too.
The replacement wire simply threads into the hole, over the screw.
The white wire cannot be used for generating the signal to the CDI for spark.
The favored spark plugs are NGK. Use a B6HS to start with.
Use a B5HS for cold weather, B7HS for hot weather or a B8HS for scorching hot weather.
Spark plugs are rated in temperature ranges. The higher the number value, the colder the plug. You want a hot plug in cold weather and a cold plug in hot weather. It really does make a big difference.
The factory spark plug wire is good, but the factory cap that snaps onto the spark plug is garbage. Most folks go the easy rout and replace the spark plug wire with a high performance wire such as the one that SBP sells or use an automotive one.
It is tricky to remove the wire from the CDI as the factory glues them in place. Also, to help hold the wire in place and conduct electricity properly there is a metal screw in the spark plug hole of the CDI box that threads up inside the spark plug wire to make proper contact with the electrical conductor in the wire. Usually this screw is plenty good enough to both transfer the electricity and hold the wire properly, but for some ungodly known reason the factory likes to use glue too. Because of this overkill method, when you go to remove the wire it typically breaks off flush with the CDI box and you need to carefully pick the remaining wire out of the CDI box with whatever you have
that is sharp and strong. A mechanic's pick set and tweezers come in handy. Sharpened nails or coat hanger wire can work as "shade tree" mechanic's picks too.
The replacement wire simply threads into the hole, over the screw.
Yeah I know about the CDI and how the wire works when I first got mine it didn't work the wire was not making contact with the screw, I learned via youtube that the wire tends to move away from the screw during shipping and that problems with no spark could be the result of this and the video proceeded to show how to fix it. I had to remove it clip the wire and screw it in then I wrapped it with electrical tape to protect from water or accidental gas spill.
I had already replaced the boot with one from Canadian tire but was curious about the wire and plug.
What about the Magnetos are they really this sensitive that a little water kills them or was my Mag faulty to begin with?
I had already replaced the boot with one from Canadian tire but was curious about the wire and plug.
What about the Magnetos are they really this sensitive that a little water kills them or was my Mag faulty to begin with?
The magnetos are strange little beasts. Some put up with all sorts of abuse and work great, others fail at the first sign of stress.
Water is a magneto killer though.
Spark plugs can cause headaches too. They can spark good just resting on the top of the cylinder head for testing purposes, but when put under the stress of compression and combustion they fail.
When replacing a spark plug, always check the gap before installation. 0.025" is a good gap to start with.
Also...
Check out this recent thread for more good suggestions concerning magnetos and CDI's:
http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=52674
Water is a magneto killer though.
Spark plugs can cause headaches too. They can spark good just resting on the top of the cylinder head for testing purposes, but when put under the stress of compression and combustion they fail.
When replacing a spark plug, always check the gap before installation. 0.025" is a good gap to start with.
Also...
Check out this recent thread for more good suggestions concerning magnetos and CDI's:
http://motorbicycling.com/showthread.php?t=52674