Wont start

[monkeydude36020]

Ok I finally got eberything done on my build and I tried to start it today and it just turns over all day. Its getting gas cause I can smell it prety strong. I stopped so I wouldnt flood it. What should I check first? I would assume its getting spart cause I just put a new coil on it. Whats the best way to check the spark?

[slightlybent47]

Unplug the spark plug and put a plug in the plug wire and touch it to the frame and hit the starter. You should see a spark jump across the gap. If not grab the plug and give‘er a spin. If it knocks the crap out of you it's working. LOL!!!!

[monkeydude36020]

I checked the spark. Its getting spark... Its getting gas. Whats next?

And I had a thought. It had stale gas in it that had been sitting for about a year. I drianed the tank and put fresh 93 oct gas in it today but could whats left in the carb have kept it from starting?

[rocky_mtn_honda]

plugged pilot circuit....

[slightlybent47]

Yep that’s most likely is the problem. I'm no expert on carbs but try this. Take the carb off and clean it real good. Don’t take it apart but spray it real good with carb cleaner, take the plug out of the bottom of the bowel and spray up in there real good and let it set a while and soak then blow it out with a air compressor. Spray some in the vent tubs and then blow air through it, and try it again. Even with the carb off the bike. You should be able to squirt a little fuel in the intake tube and it should fire off briefly till the fuel burns off. If it dose then the carb may be gummed up.

[jasonwayne222]

if ur gonna take ur carb off and apart you might as well pull all the parts off of it and soak it in a carb. bath overnight, you get it from autoparts store comes in a gallon can. it works wonders, the carb will look brand new after a good nights soak. the can recommends like 20 min. but ive done this a lot so trust me it wont hurt itll only help. ive left a carb in it for like 3 days and it hurt nothing just dont put any plastic parts like ur float in it.

and ya spray some starter fluid in the intake, if the carbs clogged it should at least fire off briefly. did u make sure you set ur timing correctly? cam lobes down,marks lined up with head,flywheel at T.

[rocky_mtn_honda]

yea...cram some ether down its throat, that should tell ya if the problem is in your carb or not...lol ;)

[monkeydude36020]

The ether does the trick for about 5 secs... Guess my carb needs cleaned... But for the few seconds it runs it sounds horrible! Ticking out of this world. I adjusted the valves just like the diy on this site and i rechecked them. Is this normal on first start?

[rocky_mtn_honda]

could be because theres no oil up in the head yet...could be many things. clean that carb and get it running for longer than 5 seconds to circulate the oil, see if the ticking quiets down...a few things to check if it doesnt...
did you replace your cam chain or tensioner?
is the decompressor sticking?
did you loctite the cam gear allen bolts?
positive you used the correct unit of measurement when adjusting the valves (i.e. .004 mm and .004 in are way different)
do you have an aftermarket cam? they tick
and last but not least, the cam stay dowels in the head are crucial so your cam doesnt walk around in there.

[slightlybent47]

Try to stay away from the ether it is to hard on a new motor, use gas in a spray bottle. That tick is most likely from the ether. Don't use it. Just soak it first before you take it apart, it may just need a soaking. Unless you just want to did it.

[rocky_mtn_honda]

Originally posted by slightlybent47
Try to stay away from the ether it is to hard on a new motor, use gas in a spray bottle. That tick is most likely from the ether. Don't use it. Just soak it first before you take it apart, it may just need a soaking. Unless you just want to did it.
very true...its most likely the ether

[monkeydude36020]

Originally posted by rocky_mtn_honda
could be because theres no oil up in the head yet...could be many things. clean that carb and get it running for longer than 5 seconds to circulate the oil, see if the ticking quiets down...a few things to check if it doesnt...
did you replace your cam chain or tensioner?
is the decompressor sticking?
did you loctite the cam gear allen bolts?
positive you used the correct unit of measurement when adjusting the valves (i.e. .004 mm and .004 in are way different)
do you have an aftermarket cam? they tick
and last but not least, the cam stay dowels in the head are crucial so your cam doesnt walk around in there.

I did not replace the cam chain or tensoiner, but I cant imagine that being the problem because they were fine before...

I have a hotcams 2s cam which does not use the decompressor. (could contribute to ticking but the partuctlar sound is alot louder than the aftermarket cam would be)

The cam stay dowels are in place.

I didnt use locktight on the cam gear alen heads but they are touqued to spec. Could that seriously be causing this godaweful sound?

[rocky_mtn_honda]

well the loctite thing is necessary...i wouldnt run without it, but chances are thats not the problem yet since its a fresh rebuild and hasnt been through any revolutions...reason why i say its necessary is, i just torqued mine to spec when i did my rebuild, and within the 3rd trip of the breakin it was ticking terribly...come to find out the cam gear bolts had backed out and the cam gear was wollerin around in there. if your running it on ether, stop, and do the gas in a squirt bottle method...as i was corrected earlier (i kinda spaced it was a brand new rebuild...drrr)
anyways, did you clean the carb up? is it running without being babysat with an IV of fuel? im willing to bet that god awful sound was your head and cylinder lighting that starter fluid...unless your using gas now

[55stone]

hey i just rebuilt one too and had the same issue well i never checked the carb i new it was good but i still couldnt get it to start..just crank and crank...so i tried pushing it just to see if it would even try to start..i pushed it down the hill twice and on the second time it fired right up... pushed it back to the garage and just let it go through heat cycle... everything has been fine since then..ok well it still wont start when its cold but everything else is fine..i think it needs rejetted is my issue but not sure yet...but just try and get it running any way..i wouldnt pull it though.. thats alot more strain on it than just pushing it... good luck let us know how it goes..

[monkeydude36020]

Originally posted by rocky_mtn_honda
well the loctite thing is necessary...i wouldnt run without it, but chances are thats not the problem yet since its a fresh rebuild and hasnt been through any revolutions...reason why i say its necessary is, i just torqued mine to spec when i did my rebuild, and within the 3rd trip of the breakin it was ticking terribly...come to find out the cam gear bolts had backed out and the cam gear was wollerin around in there. if your running it on ether, stop, and do the gas in a squirt bottle method...as i was corrected earlier (i kinda spaced it was a brand new rebuild...drrr)
anyways, did you clean the carb up? is it running without being babysat with an IV of fuel? im willing to bet that god awful sound was your head and cylinder lighting that starter fluid...unless your using gas now

I havnt had time to take the carb apart and clean it yet... As soon as I do Ill let yall know what happens. So far it only has ran on ether, so maybe some clean fuel with quiet this thing down...

[monkeydude36020]

Well fellas Im about to give up and take this thing to a pro... I tried cleaning out the carb, no luck, it still wont run. So anymore suggestions before I spend like $1000 getting it looked at?

[rocky_mtn_honda]

boy...maybe consider swapping out the carburetor for a known working and good one, anythings worth a shot before dumping cash on someone to fix it for you...but thats just me, if you smell gas, then i wonder if its an air problem? did you check for any air leaks at the intake boot and such? i'd throw everything but the kitchen sink at it before i paid someone else to do it...and even then, i'd walk into the service department and ask one of the cool looking techs if he'd come take a look at it after hours for beer....this method has proven to be successful, lol.
and that way i can keep my eye on him...no matter how you slice it, no one works on your bike with as much care as you do, except maybe family. try a few more things, and post up what happens, unless what i mention above doesnt bother you at all, then have at it.
o yea, with the carb off, but still attached to the cable, can you see it squirt when u push on the throttle? if theres gas in the bowl, if theres gas in the fuel bowl, it should squirt.

[slightlybent47]

Would it be the timing is off so bad it's not firing at the right time?

[rocky_mtn_honda]

i guess...i'd like to say no, but i didnt put it together. im pretty sure it fires on both strokes, but i could be wrong...guess he could be out anywhere between 0 and 180, but id like to think whoever put it together would have at least known to line up the flywheel and cam gear notches, if not i think he'd have a lot more to worry about than just not gettin fuel :eek: ...who knows :eek2:

[slightlybent47]

Yeah I'm just grabbing at straws.

[monkeydude36020]

I did follow the proper procedures to get it in time. So I dont think thats the issue, anyhow, its at the honda shop right now and Im awaiting a call to see what the figure out.

[rocky_mtn_honda]

well...since your payin for it, may as well post up some results when ya get em. always curious what they found and how much they charged.

[monkeydude36020]

the tech caled me up to come look at the damage and heres what he found... carb stopped up. he cleaned it out and it fired right up but theres still a ticking sound. i told him to go ahaid and tear it down... now I feel like an idiot. all the crutial things are right... timing, cam, cam gear and chain, all that stuff was installed correctly. but the piston was in backwards :eek2:

i had a buddy of mine helping me when i was puttin the piston in... its jus easier that way with two people. well he had the piston in his hands and he had read the instructions that came with the piston. so i assumed it was right, which was where i screwed up. and i thought the arrow went to the intake side, so really its both our faults, i just wish i had read the instructions also because i would have caught it.

the good news is that theres no extreme damage to the new piston or the valves. in fact the valves show no damage whatsoever and the piston only has some nicks. the tech said it wont hurt anything... so im picking it up tomarrow after its reassembeled.

[monkeydude36020]

http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t263/monkeydude3602000/th_100_0466.jpg (http://s162.photobucket.com/albums/t263/monkeydude3602000/?action=view&current=100_0466.flv)

[rocky_mtn_honda]

sounds money now! speakin of...what was the bill? a couple hundo?
...nothing but bangin piston and exhaust, sounds good

[monkeydude36020]

$280 to completely tear it down to piston, turn around piston and reassemble, valve adjustment, and they cleaned out the carburator... could have been worse.