Bringing a motorcycle out of storage - simple things 1st

[Canuck750]

I have had my 1972 Eldorado off the road for about two years. This week I reinsured it, registered it and decided to go for a ride today. I had not fired the bike up since I swapped out the carbs and high tension wires with Nick when he made his epic trip on his Eldorado to the Yukon and up the Dempster highway to the Arctic Circle. I had rebuilt Nick's carbs and fitted the new distributor cap and high tension wires Nick had sent me.

Checked the oil, fresh battery, fresh gas, turns over smoothly but …. won't start. I checked for spark, yep a strong spark, pulled the carbs apart again, threw them in the ultrasonic cleaner, reset the floats, ….not even a cough.

Swapped the carbs out of my 750S, swapped another battery, replaced the plugs and the distributor cap and rotor (has Harpers electronic ignition) ….. nothin....

Checked the electrical again, checked the high tension leads, the distributor wiring, …. nothin....

Ran a compression test, 150 psi per side, checked the valve gap, … nothin....

By now 4 hours have passed and I have a sick feeling stressing out why a bike that has always run beautifully is dead on arrival??

I am siting on a stool staring at the right hand side of the bike.... then the penny drops, the high tension leads from a Loop distributor should cross over one another so that the left most lead from the distributor goes to the right hand spark plug.... and Yes I had crossed the high tension leads when I replaced the wires last year!

Swap the high tension leads, press the starter and the bike starts immediately and settles into a nice idle.

I AM AN IDIOT 

Todays lesson always look for the simplest things 1st!!!


The one saving grace is the bike got a complete going over before I take it out on the road this weekend 

[Kiwi_Roy]

You too!

[moto-uno]

  You're suggesting this is something new  , 40 years of my life fixing motorcycles and still I do the same kinda thing , it's almost ironic . Peter

[balvenie]

I can relate
After following the workshop manual for a Triumph Twin, 50 odd years ago, I collapsed in a heap after kicking the starter lever for an absurd length of time. Then I got to thinking.
And swapped the leads

[chuck peterson]

I buy my first guzzi, the convert

On the way home it quits running

I turn the petcock to what i think is reserve

A AAA tow later to a dealer 2 hours away, a week in the garage there waiting for service

“Hi Chuck, we fixed your bike. ......can we show you how to get reserve?”

[SIR REAL ED]

I buy my first guzzi, the convert

On the way home it quits running

I turn the petcock to what i think is reserve

A AAA tow later to a dealer 2 hours away, a week in the garage there waiting for service

“Hi Chuck, we fixed your bike. ......can we show you how to get reserve?”

not quite as obvious as wondering why the bike you took the gas tank off of doesn't run.... and then being puzzled by why the "Low Fuel" light came on.........

"Stupid people have more friends cause they can relate more easily to others."  -Sir Real Edism # 1324 (tm)

one would think that publicly humiliating self-administered dope slaps would drive the lesson home more so than the self-administered
dope slaps with no audience.....

someday, I'll let you know how that strategy pans out.....

[jwinwi]

I've probably done dumber stuff than that but won't go into detail here...
Too often it's been on a task that I've done several times before so I don't need to look at no stinkin' manual

[SIR REAL ED]

I buy my first guzzi, the convert

On the way home it quits running

I turn the petcock to what i think is reserve

A AAA tow later to a dealer 2 hours away, a week in the garage there waiting for service

“Hi Chuck, we fixed your bike. ......can we show you how to get reserve?”

So........ when the wife asked what was wrong with the bike you just bought..... Shirely, you were sharp enough to reply:

"It was really complicated.  It's tough to explain.  It took their 3 of their best mechanics almost a week to diagnose.  Good thing I had it towed it to a really knowledgable MG dealer......"

and then...... you got...... the look!

[s1120]

The few times I have thrown up my arms and had someone else work on my stuff im always happy when the problem is complex...  But really... Ive been working on my own stuff since I was 5....  far to many times I have passed over the simple stuff... 

[larrys]

No kidding! I have inadvertently done it playing with my old two cylinder outboard motors. Yer not alone...
Larry

[oldbike54]

 Good thing it wasn't the kill switch Jim , then you would have felt really stupid 

 Dusty

[Rough Edge racing]

Good thing it wasn't the kill switch Jim , then you would have felt really stupid 

 Dusty

  I never use the kill switch in normal situations. A friend rode one of my bikes and used the kill switch, then turned off the key....that took a bit to figure out

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

A customer of mine, who also has a small collection of microcars, called one day to see how I was doing on his BMW. In the course of the conversation he mentioned that his freshly rebuilt Vespa 400 wouldn't run. Not even a pop or fart, nothing. We talked about everything he'd tried and it all sounded in order. I mentioned he might try switching plug wires from left to right. He said "I'll be back", laid the phone down, I could hear him clumping down the stairs and the creak of the engine cover opening. Then... varoom, varoom. Clumping back up the stairs, picked up the phone. "It runs! You're a genius!" Uh, no. Been there, done that (not on a Vespa though). 

[s1120]

Good thing it wasn't the kill switch Jim , then you would have felt really stupid 

 Dusty

LOL!! 

Just last year I had a skipping, and bad running issue with my cali..   turned out to be the fuel light is broke, and it was out of gas!!!  After a few hours of research, and diag, I noticed there was no sloshing in the tank...  :)   

[Guzzistajohn]

  I never use the kill switch in normal situations. A friend rode one of my bikes and used the kill switch, then turned off the key....that took a bit to figure out

It's fun to switch a kill switch or two off at rallies  The switch on the CAL VIN is HUGE! easy to accidentally switch off!

[drbone641]

Good timing on the post. I'm going to pick up one of my Dad's old Harleys, an XLS 1000 Roadster. He died 12 years ago and it was the last of his 3 bikes. It's not anything that special, except for the fact it was his. I am hoping that the required work will not exceed my humble and limited skills. I'm not joining any Harley forums, as I have a feeling this board holds more than enough knowledge, if required.

[redrider90]

I had bought a 68 Cutlass convertible with a bad rod knock among many other things wrong.   I pulled the engine and blueprinted it. Had the machine work done on the block and heads at a
top notch shop. I oh so carefully reassembled the engine spec-ing everything as I did it. I got it the drivers seat(hood was still off the car) and I went to start it and shot fire out of the carb a foot high. I didn't have to think hard to know what I had done. Pulled the dizzy cap off, set the timing marks to top dead center and it revealed the truth behind my mistake. Reinstalled the dizzy and  rotated it 180º and she fired right up.

[n3303j]

'87 BMW K100RS starts and runs fine up to redline in neutral. Smooth as you could ever imagine. Minute I try to ride it the bike limps along at 5 mph. Went through about 3 hours of stuff before paying for the $125 tow and $500 week long dealer service. That's not to mention the 600 mile round trip rescue and the 500 mile round trip bike retrieval ride a week later.

Turns out that fuel injection will operate well with a gravity feed as long as the power requirements are low (neutral). When power requirements go up (driving) gravity flow is insufficient. Seems a recently replaced fuel line fell off the tank internal fuel pump.

I never imagined fuel injection would run without full line pressure. Learn something every day. Reckon the tuition on that lesson ranged around $1K. Hope I don't do that too often. 

[berniebee]

Maybe you should ride singles?   
Seriously, thanks. Nice to know it's not just me!

[larrys]

I got another one. I had long blocked a pair of 454 Mercruisers for a friend's boat. One was conventional rotation, the other opposite rotation. Boat was a 32' Wellcraft Topaz with V-drives. Set up, ran, timed, and tuned them in my garage. For some reason the caps and plug wires had to come off to get the engines back in the boat. Got 'em in the boat, aligned, everything hooked back up, plug wires and caps back on neither would start. WTF? Duh, with V-drive boats, the opposite rotation engine is on the port side, not starboard, stupid. I had used the wrong firing order on both engines. Rewired them, good to go!
Larry

[nick949]

Jim,
  I must say I'm both shocked and pleased - shocked that even you could do something so basic, and pleased that all those miscellaneous bits off my old bike are now working fine.

I'm freshly back from an 'interesting' trip to northern Ontario on the Cavalcade. 
Did you know, it is possible for a 68 year old former heart surgery patient to bump-start almost 1000lbs of bike and full camping gear?
The things we do...............

All the best and stay safe

Nick

[Canuck750]

Jim,
  I must say I'm both shocked and pleased - shocked that even you could do something so basic, and pleased that all those miscellaneous bits off my old bike are now working fine.

I'm freshly back from an 'interesting' trip to northern Ontario on the Cavalcade. 
Did you know, it is possible for a 68 year old former heart surgery patient to bump-start almost 1000lbs of bike and full camping gear?
The things we do...............

All the best and stay safe

Nick

Hi Nick, your a maniac! bump starting a Calvacade! WOW that takes some skill to balance that bike.

yep the parts you sent are running just fine! Today I went for a couple hundred km ride in the country on the Eldorado, such an easy bike to ride.

[Muzz]

Good thing it wasn't the kill switch Jim , then you would have felt really stupid 

 Dusty

Been there, done that....

[Muzz]

I rebuilt the engine on a Peugeot 404 years back.  Timed dizzy off the oil pump.  Carefully did everything right and the vacuum lead snagged .

The last sentence on the last page on the engine section of the manual says, "Note, number one cylinder is at the rear of the engine".

BLo**y French!  Who else puts #1 at the REAR!!!!

[nick949]

Hi Nick, your a maniac! bump starting a Calvacade! WOW that takes some skill to balance that bike.

yep the parts you sent are running just fine! Today I went for a couple hundred km ride in the country on the Eldorado, such an easy bike to ride.

While the Cavalcade (and, I assume all big touring bikes) is easy to make distance on and 500 mile days passed easily, I still find long distances on my old Eldorado pass just as effortlessly.  There is just something about the way they ride and eat miles.  Glad to hear yours is up and running again Jim. Stay well.

Nick

[Canuck750]

Hi Nick, yes to the big tour rigs for comfort but I think my Eldo is close for all day.

I road about 5 hours again Saturday with a small group (I usually ride solo) including a couple big Harleys. The HD guys were surprised the Eldo could match their 65. -70 mph pace.

On the last leg I rode 1st and I was surprised the Hogs could match the 75 -80 Mph of the GUZZI.

[chuck peterson]

Right here my friend Iron Mike would say....

“and then I put it in 5th gear...”