Topic: please help, wont start

[troppo]

G`day guys
I got a problem............
From the begining, went out tonight started the bike, blip the start button and she fires up nice, idles nice, let her idle a couple of minutes to warm the oil and turn her off.
drop the sump plug and drain the oil. Then drain the oil tank.
Refill with oil, manual says 3.5 litres of 10w-40 (couldnt find so used 15w-40) and she started ran like a bag of sh!t for 30 seconds and died, wouldnt start again...........
Recheck manual YEP says 3.5 litres in the maintenance and tune up section, check general information section says 2.7 litres....
Drain some oil, oil tank still reads over full, drain some more still over full hasnt moved (draining from the sump plug) and still wont start.
Have i done some terminal damage? have i done something else wrong? do i need to sacrifice a suzuki or two to the honda gods?
I know you guys are a mine of information so please can someone help me, i`m not game to try and start her till i have more of an idea of whats going on
cheers
troppo

[Gordon]

We're going to need some more info:

First of all, WHAT BIKE?  I know, sometimes it doesn't seem like it should matter, but it often does, and it always helps to know.

What do you mean by "ran like a bag of #$%*"?

And when you say it wouldn't start again, how's that?  Would it turn over, but not fire?  Would it not turn over at all?

Draining oil from the sump won't lower the oil level in the tank, assuming this is a 750 (unless your check valve isn't working at all), but overfilling shouldn't really be an issue as the pump sends all the oil the engine doesn't need right then to the tank.  Don't go by what the book says on how much oil to add.  Just fill the tank, run the engine for a minute to circulate, check the level with the dipstick, and top off as needed.

Is the electrical system working properly?  Is the battery fully charged?  Did you perhaps leave the ignition and headlight turned on while changing the oil, possibly draining the battery? 

[troppo]

sorry just so worked up i forgot the details

76 750 F1, when i started it up it wouldnt idle smooth, coughed spluttered and died in about 30 - 45 seconds then wouldnt start again, it would turn over fine on button and kicker, sounded like it wanted to start a couple of times but wouldnt.
battery is new and fully charged, no headlight on, ignition off and keys out while changing oil to prevent accidental (idiotic) start

sorry about the stuff up guys but this has got me freaked, i dont want to have to do a full re-build just ride the damn thing

[750goes]

1. are you getting fuel to the carbs - check your bowls for petrol
2. are you getting spark - check each plug lead
3. is the off/run/off switch functioning - what position is it in
4. is the fuel tap turned on - is fuel flowing freely
5. take a plug out - is it wet with petrol or dry...
6. has the tank got petrol does it need to be on reserve.
7. is a fuel filter installed - is it clear and clean
8. is an air filter installed - is it clean
9. when was the last or first time you cleaned your pilot jets ?
10. is key turned on ??

let us know before you freak yourself out

[troppo]

1. are you getting fuel to the carbs - check your bowls for petrol
2. are you getting spark - check each plug lead
3. is the off/run/off switch functioning - what position is it in
4. is the fuel tap turned on - is fuel flowing freely
5. take a plug out - is it wet with petrol or dry...
6. has the tank got petrol does it need to be on reserve.
7. is a fuel filter installed - is it clear and clean
8. is an air filter installed - is it clean
9. when was the last or first time you cleaned your pilot jets ?
10. is key turned on ??

let us know before you freak yourself out

too late, already freaked lol
right by the numbers
1/I assume so she ran fine ten minutes earlier
2/ I believe so but will check tomorrow after work
3/ It is in the RUN  position, checked that myself several times
4/Turned on and plenty of fuel in the tank
5/Dont know, will check tomorrow
6/Just put about 4 litres of fresh fuel in it
7/Original filter in the tank, cleaned by me last week
8/Pods fitted, cleaned and re-oiled last week
9/Never, has run sweetly since i bought her
10/Yes wouldnt turn over otherwise

I`ll check the couple of things tomorrow afternoon, but she ran sweetly before i changed the oil so thats what im worried about, all i did was change the oil, i followed the manual but she wouldnt start after the first spluttering run

[TwoTired]

Check the spark plug insulator (inside) for soot buildup.  If you run a lot with choke on, they can soot up and shunt spark away from the gap.
Check the had pipe temps, to find cylinders not firing.
Cheers,

[Terry in Australia]

Looks like it's fuucked mate, better send it to me so I can strip it for parts, and you can claim that you were "bike jacked" by two large Maori's and get the insurance money.

But seriously, did you leave the fuel on? Sounds to me like it's flooded. Pull your plugs, check the spark, give 'em a clean, and kick it in the guts! Cheers, Terry.

[troppo]

Well i just posted a response to TT and lost it because this sort of forum (response messages before you post) is new to me, bugger!
so first response first.........

TT
All pipes are getting hot (got the burns to prove it lol), and i`ve never needed the choke, she always started sweetly on the first blip of the starter (dont get too cold here this time of year).

OK now for terry........
Sorry mate no maori's here, so your gonna have to come over and bike nab it yourself lol...
That was one thing i had'nt thought of (idiot ) so i`ll pull the plugs tomorrow clean them and try again.

God i hope its that simple, that fact that she ran sweetly moments earlier was what freaked me
cheers guys
troppo

[Sweep]

If the bike was sitting for a while, maybe the pilot jets got gummed up on that initial start.

[troppo]

she`d been running fine sweep only moments before, thats my problem

[Sweep]

So everything was fine until you changed the oil?  If that's the case I know from experience it's probably connected to the oil change somehow.

What that connection is could be anyone's guess and I'll bet it's something wild

[Terry in Australia]

So is it a goer again mate? otherwise I'll be over directly!

[troppo]

Well terry
got home a little late, and being the impatient bastard i am went out and hit the start button, started easy but was really rattly and had a rough idle so i killed it, SWMBO cam out and said "i thought i heard her running, why did you turn it off? start it up again....."
So i did, started sweet idled fine but bogged on revs, let it idle for a few seconds then reved it again and she was fine.........
I figured i was pushing my luck at that point so came inside for a beer and to check the boards, dinner soon then out to see how she runs now.
Hopefully it was some weird temporary thing, i`ll find out after dinner when i start her up again.

Fingers crossed.

And NO you cant pick her up lol
cheers
troppo

[troppo]

G`day again guys
just been out and restarted the bike, sweet as a nut, started first touch of the button idles ok revs freely so i dont know what the problem was.
It might be as simple as i flooded it like terry suggested or it cold be something else altogether, beats me i`m just glad shes running again
now to sort out the neutral switch
cheers
troppo

[Terry in Australia]

Flooded. That'll be a six pack of Jim Beam and Cola for the consultation fee. Now take it for a ride and stop fuucking around with it, and don't forget to turn the fuel off,  ha ha!

[troppo]

no worries mate
next time your in adelaide i`ll give you whats left of it lol
as for the ride, that will have to wait, no rego and no front brake, getting new lines made for it
cheers
troppo

[Terry in Australia]

No worries mate, I've spent a bit of time in "The city of churches", (I can recommend the Adelaide Hilton, particularly if you're not paying for it!) I bought my GS1000S there too, I only wish it was rideable when I towed it home thru the Adelaide Hills! Cheers, Terry.

[Johnie]

Yah, that Terry is a bugger alright!!!     Nice call...