Topic: Running horrible after a month of being parked

[NickC]

75 CB550k was running perfect before I parked it for a month.  Went to fire it up and it was very hard starting, ran like crap once it did start.  I traced that down to some bad wiring to the coils (they were firing, but getting low voltage).  Started right up after the wiring fix.
However, it is running VERY rich now.

I will set the idle (which is a little rough) and when I come off the throttle it hangs pretty high, around 4k, then when I adjust the idle knob, it dies.  When it was parked, nothing was touched/adjusted/messed with.

What gives? I need to be out riding in this awesome weather!!!

[HondaMan]

Open the petcock and drain all 4 float bowls for about 2-3 minutes. The gas we have now absorbs LOTS of water, fast, from the air, then it burns poorly. The watery part settles to the bottom of the tank and carbs.
I get to "fix" lots of bikes here from this, a quick $20. 

[KingCustomCycles.com]

A month is a long time for an old Honda to sit believe it or not.  Humidity causes corrosion on marginal electrical connections, rust forms in tanks, water settles out of the fuel, tire pressure may be lost, and oil leaks past the check valve and shows up low.  These bikes are a hobby and reqire fiddling to keep on the road.  My Honda rototiller is the same way.

[lrutt]

A month is a long time for an old Honda to sit believe it or not.  Humidity causes corrosion on marginal electrical connections, rust forms in tanks, water settles out of the fuel, tire pressure may be lost, and oil leaks past the check valve and shows up low.  These bikes are a hobby and reqire fiddling to keep on the road.  My Honda rototiller is the same way.

I don't know about this. I have several bikes that will sit for a month at least down here in Florida and I have zero problems going out and running any of them. Most important thing to do is set older bikes up with a proper fuel 'mix', drain carbs when done riding so no deposits get left in the bowls or on the jets, keep them on a battery tender with AGM batteries, and convert brake systems to dot  5 fluid. You will have no problems letting them set for many months at a time. They are always ready to go. Consider it preventitive maintenance for short term storage. It works great.

[KingCustomCycles.com]

Agreed, preventative maintenance is the key. Pull it in the garage, shut it off, come back a month later and problems may occur.  I keep 10-15 vintage Hondas ready to ride at any given time and some seem to store well, and others don't.

[CycleRanger]

These bikes are a hobby and require fiddling to keep on the road.  My Honda rototiller is the same way.

So how does that rototiller handle in the twisties? 

[bollingball]

And is it a SOHC

[MRieck]

Open the petcock and drain all 4 float bowls for about 2-3 minutes. The gas we have now absorbs LOTS of water, fast, from the air, then it burns poorly. The watery part settles to the bottom of the tank and carbs.
I get to "fix" lots of bikes here from this, a quick $20. 

Ethanol causes a lot of havoc in a short time. I use Star Tron in my fuel and can honestly say it works.

[78CB750CAFE]

+100 on the StarTron, use it or rebuild your carbs every time the bike sits a while.

[WarwickE36]

Does the Star Tron (Im picturing the Blue Guy from Tron) affect engine performance at all?  Does it make 10% Ethanol Gas run better? 

[TwoTired]

Open the petcock and drain all 4 float bowls for about 2-3 minutes. The gas we have now absorbs LOTS of water, fast, from the air, then it burns poorly. The watery part settles to the bottom of the tank and carbs.
I get to "fix" lots of bikes here from this, a quick $20. 

Ethanol causes a lot of havoc in a short time. I use Star Tron in my fuel and can honestly say it works.

Would you say it is more a preventative or a cleaner, or both?

Cheers,

[WarwickE36]

As I understand it...it is supposed to trap moisture and make it "burnable"... sounds questionable to me.  I had a local NAPA salesman try to sell me on K100 fuel additive for my fleet.  He made claims of "up to 20% fuel efficiency savings" which turned me off from the get go.  He gave me 2 free samples.  I ran one in my 328is no MPG improvement.  I also ran it in a 4.6L Town Car with the same results.  I walked away from fuel additives at that point.  But in regards to making fuel more stable during periods of storage I could see a benefit potentially.  I hope this doesnt turn into an "oil" thread.

[dna_level_c7]

I have been putting a 1/3 can of seafoam in the tank if my bike is going to be sitting for a while. Last time it sat for three months but it started right up. I just opened the choke and let her warm up. 

[lrutt]

I used to run std 10% ethanol premium fuel with the Stabil green Marine formula made for ethanol fuels. I also added lead substitute for the old brit bikes and also 2 stroke oil at about 100:1 ratio. Keeps petcocks and carbies working smoothly. Does not smoke at all as the new oils just don't.

I've now gone to ethanol free gas I get at the marina. Costs $1 more per gallon but it's worth it. I still run Stabil and 2 stroke oil in the fuel, plus an additive to boost octane and help with upper end lube called 'Mix i Go'. This also seems to be working well and will continue to use it as long as I can get the ethanol free fuel. I fill 2 5 gal cans at a time with the mix and use that in the old bikes and my old MG. When it runs out just make another trip and mix 2 more batches.

Most important thing though is to drain the carbs no matter what. I'll do this if the bike will sit more than a day. It just works. I haven't touched a carb in years.

[NickC]

Drained the bowls. Started running 10x better!
However, it was still running a bit rich (could definitely smell it) and was having an erratic idle, as well as hanging up on a rev. so just out of curiosity i fiddled with the air screws. #3 changed the idle pretty drastically. I drained that bowl and noticed some brass shavings in my container.......What the?