Topic: 77 Cb550 not starting

[kine8282]

i've trying to work on a buddy's 77 cb550. It used to run but the carbs were leaking the bike sat dormant for 5 months until he brought it over to my house to work on. I pulled the carbs and cleaned, replaced o-rings and such. Now it won't start. I've got and new battery and spark, the carbs are getting fuel and wet plugs so that means that im getting fuel to the cylinders.

Kill switch has been disabled and there is a full gas tank. The bike makes a "womp"  "womp" sound from the exhaust but the bike doesnt turn over. I've tried carb cleaner to the carb throats but still "womp" "womp" for a few times and then nothing. Any Ideas?

 

[Gordon]

If the plugs are soaked from unsuccessful starting attempts they may not be sparking very well, or at all, under compression.   

How well was it running before it sat?

[754]

Hope you have it outside or you may be worse off than Spikey...

[Gordon]

Hope you have it outside or you may be worse off than Spikey...

Good point.  Make sure nobody (or anything else of value) is standing behind the bike when it does fire up!

[hapsh]

Maybe the wet stuff on the spark plugs is old crappy gas and oil, the leaking carbs may have gotten some gas into the cylinders if some of floats and overflow tubes were clogged.  I would pull all the spark plugs and crank it over for about 10 seconds to try and blow that junk out (blow off the head with compressed air to get rid of sand and dirt first).  Make sure the plugs are cleaned of any oil or gas with carb cleaner then re-install.  Also check your static timing to make sure it is firing close to where it should.

[kine8282]

so maybe i just "flooded" the engine because of the previous attempts to start it? when you sau "crank it over" do you mean with the kick start or the e-start? any harm if i take the plugs out and let the cylinders air out?

the bike ran fine before it sat aside from the leaky floats.

[TwoTired]

If you know the plugs are sparking across the gap and not to carbon buildup on the center electrode, yet the plugs are "wet" and smell of gas...

Then check your air filter for clear flow, take the clutch off, and hold the throttle wide open, while you either kick or e-start.  The engine breathing should clear the cylinders.

It should light off any remaining fuel in the cylinders, allowing your to start over with a new starting procedure.

Normally, a cold engine needs choke to start.

Cheers,

[kine8282]

Thanks for the responding TT. Ill get new plugs to start fresh. Once I crank the motor a few times to get rid of the excess fuel i the cylinders, can i spray carb cleaner directly to the cylinder via the plug holes to get rid of any gas or oil? is that recommended?

[TwoTired]

Thanks for the responding TT. Ill get new plugs to start fresh. Once I crank the motor a few times to get rid of the excess fuel i the cylinders, can i spray carb cleaner directly to the cylinder via the plug holes to get rid of any gas or oil? is that recommended?

No. It's not necessary.  There are carb problems that dump far too much gas into the chambers, like stuck open bowl floats.  But, cleaning out the chambers isn't going to fix that.

Cheers,