I'm going to head up to Wisconsin (I'm in AZ) to try and get my step-daughter's '77 CB550 running. She bought it in the fall, rode it a half dozen times, then the battery died, and it hasn't run since. She put a new battery in it, but cranked it till the battery was flat -- no start. The bike has been in a storage unit, and the battery is inside on a charger. I'm told the kick-starter doesn't turn the engine. It's been a long time since I worked on a '70 motorcycle. Anyone have any hints, or suggestions? I'm thinking: 1. drain fuel, and put in fresh fuel. 2. check plugs and points. This thing has points, right? Is there a condenser? My old Yami DT-250 needed a fresh condenser every so often.... 3. crank and check for spark. 4. Scratch head. 5. Drink a beer. Whats the story with jump starting a bike if the battery gets low? Can I JS from a car battery? Any danger in doing so?
I would add to invest in a can of starting fluid... having owned a few (10-ish) 1970's Honda four's I have found that a little starting fluid helps... and if a little doesn't then use a lot ! I'd say to charge the battery, change the plugs and the airfilter and fire it on up... checking the points would't be a bad idea either.
Ah yes! The ether! I was kind of hoping some would suggest starting fluid! Sounds good. Any word on jumping from a car battery? Thanks,
If the kickstarter don't turn the engine...hmmm. It's seized? On those bikes you can't pull the clutch in if you want to use the kicker. The kicker is geared to the clutch basket. Pull in the clutch and kicker don't crank the engine. Oh just re-read, guess it's not seized. No worries jumping from a car battery, as long as they are both 12V.
Having restored 77 goldwings & 78 750's your main problem is going to be carbs. They have many small passages that will get plugged. Make sure the battery is fully charged, drain all the carbs & the tank. Put fresh gas in the tank along with an ounce or two of Sea Foam. The plugs are most likely fouled & you should replace them. Turn the gas on & let the carbs fill with gas. If one or more is overflowing ( running out the carb overflow hose, tap the carb body gently with a plastic screwdriver ) and that should free the float. Then drain the carbs again. Now put the choke on full, don't touch the throttle and crank the starter. You don't want to burn out the starter so try for about 10 secs & then let it sit for a couple of minutes. These bikes can be tough to start if they've sat for awhile with gas in the carbs and you might have to take them apart to clean them. With any luck you should be able to get it to start. I wouldn't worry about the points etc. Once you get it running if it is running rough, you can find out which cylinder is not getting gas by just spraying some water on the headers. The one that is cold is not getting gas, tap the carb a few times and see if you can free it up. That's about it. Good luck.
Thanks, guys! Mr. Jerk, I bet she didn't know about the clutch and the kick-starter. I didn't! Cycleman2, I was planning on the plugs. I'll follow your recipe for trying to free the floats and get the gas drained. Thanks for the suggestions.
Definitely drain the gas and go with fresh. It must be something in the formula here, it goes bad FAST. One trick I use to start my fours in the spring, I pull the outside plugs and pour a bit of gas in there. That helps it fire up quicker. If she did not use gas stabilizer, you may have to pull the carbs & clean them
Thanks, all. I drained the carbs, turned the fuel on and let it run for 30 seconds or so. The float-bowl drain plugs have orifices in 'em. What are these? They were plugged so I cleaned the orifices in the drain plugs (jets?) I popped in a charged battery and in 2 or three kicks she was running! After a little warm up, I rode the bike a bit. It won't accept more than about 1/3 throttle and won't rev part about 5000rpm. The inside of the tank is pretty rusty -- so I'm thinking that if there's a fuel filter in the tank it may be clogged (although plenty of fuel flowed when I had the drain plugs out of the carbs.) So..... that leaves plugged jets in the carbs. Probably no easy way around this one, huh? (I haven't put new plugs in her yet as I brought a 13/16 wrench and something smaller is in there. I'll get another wrench and try the new plugs tomorrow.) Any thoughts or suggestions? Thanks,
It may very well be plugged jets in the carbs but it's worth checking the points too. I had a CB450 (twin) which ran like that until I got the points set right, then it ran like a champ. If the point gap is off, it screws up the ignition timing which can cause all kinds of driveability problems.
There are products that line the gas tank and seal the rust. I used one of them on a 1974 xl250. Worked out well
Well, it was a bit dark out when I could only get it to take 1/3 throttle. Turns out the choke was ON. :eek1 I had looked at the choke lever, but couldn't read the On/Off markings. When the lever was aligned with the airflow I had assumed that would indicate choke-plate orientation. WRONG. So the next morning, in DAYLIGHT I was able to read the On/Off label. That old bike runs pretty nice! Now maybe a front brake caliper overhaul, and about 100 other projects..... (Sealing the tank is #1) PS: I've got a nearly identical post going in Olds Cool, so if I have anymore to add I'll do it there. Thanks for all the thoughts and suggestions.