I have started a thread on the Advrider forum on my project and some good people pointed out
that this is the best place to ask my questions.
To start with here is the link to my original post.
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?p=10596300&posted=1#post10596300And a short copy and paste.
I have purchased a 1977 CB550K with the intent of restoring and possibly turning it into a cafe racer.
I have the bike with around 10k miles and it's in a surprisingly good condition except the engine does not start.
The previous owner suspects that oil got to the spark plugs and I believe that is the problem by looking at them.What is the most likely cause of this?
I have not done engine work on a motorbike before so I'm not sure where to start.
I was thinking of getting a compression checking tool to see if the pistons and rings are OK. Am I on the right track starting there?
The engine turns over and the gas tank was 3/4 full. The fuel looked OK after removing it and there was only a little rust in the tank on the top where the fuel did not reach. According to the PO it has been sitting for a year.
Another thing I noticed is that it's filled with oil way over the max line.
I'm not sure if that can have any negative effect, but the quality of the oil looks good.
Got a new battery and cleaned the spark plugs, got rid of the fuel and filled it with fresh.
Checked each plug separately if there is spark and all work fine.
When I try to start it now it seems like the engine wants to go but after a couple of turns it dies.