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View Full Version : Help me get my new bike started!



The Shaolin
05-23-2011, 08:40 PM
Hey dudes,

Just picked up a 1996 GSX600S Bandit. Detuned GSXR motor...oil cooled and carb'd.

Dude said he put it away for the winter and then bought a new bike, hadn't really tried to start it.

It wouldn't crank at first but then I bypassed the clutch safety switch and it cranks good.

Haven't had the battery to 100% charge yet, but had it enough to spin the engine over nice and fast.

I took the plugs out and dried them and took the tank off...cranked it a bit with the plugs out....reinstalled the plugs and tried to get it to pop on starter fluid....NOTHING.

Here's what I have for spark:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vdq39R3xKio

It doesn't look great, but the battery wasn't at 100% and that should be enough to ignite starting fluid, right?

Any guesses?

Rocket Power
05-23-2011, 08:57 PM
That gap looks pretty wide, what is the stock spark plug gap supposed to be? Get the battery charged up and gap teh plugs right for starters.

BoosTT
05-23-2011, 09:33 PM
Yes... that gap is huge!!!

The Shaolin
05-23-2011, 10:39 PM
Hahahahaha...sorry, all 4 new iridium plugs in the engine at this point. That was an extra plug I had laying around...the spark looked weak, I opened up the gap to see if it would still jump.

Rocket Power
05-23-2011, 11:15 PM
Are you getting a blue spark on the new plugs?

The Shaolin
05-23-2011, 11:58 PM
No. Old or new plugs, all 4 cylinders are weak like that. Coils tested out good with a multimeter. I don't know enough about the ignition system to try and fault anything else....haha.

-stew-
05-24-2011, 03:03 PM
Drain the tank, fill it with fresh gas, drain the carbs (pull them and pull the float bowls and take a look if your feeling ambitious), blow the cylinders out and make sure they are dry, 1/2 a teaspoon of trans fluid in each cylinder to bump the compression and seal the rings if they've been washed down with gas, make sure the battery is fully charged. Fully charged, not "it spins ok." Fully. Charged. Use a hydrometer and check the cells, add acid or distilled water. Better yet, go buy a new AGM battery, it prolly needs a battery anyway; and no sense fucking with a shitty old lead acid battery if you don't absolutely have to. Even with a new battery it wouldn't hurt to hook up a car battery with some jumper cables. Did I mention make sure the battery is fully charged? A new set of spark plus and you should be good to go. I said a new set, not they got fuel soaked and you cleaned them with brake cleaner, a new set.

Rocket Power
05-24-2011, 03:23 PM
Yep def make sure you have a fully charged good battery. When the battery is low on my bike it won't start even though it spins over.

The Shaolin
05-24-2011, 07:28 PM
Well, here's today's update:

4 brand new plugs.
Fully. Charged. Battery.
I drained the fuel out of all 4 carbs and the tank and added a mix of fuel and seafoam.

Tried cranking it while spraying starting fluid. I got a few random pops and then a giant fucking fireball out the airbox, which then started on fire.

Little bit of fire extinguisher action later, and here's the bike:
http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/249343_623403319439_184800787_33766343_7892669_n.j pg
and my eyebrows/eyelashes:
http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/247404_623408718619_184800787_33766454_1364001_n.j pg

I cleaned the bike off and tried another thing or two before the battery started getting low again.

Frustrating.

Now I'm going to take the tops off the carbs and spray em out real good and try again when the battery comes back up I guess.

I wish I could know if the spark was good or not. It doesn't look so, but it was enough to ignite a giant fucking fireball...hahaha.

Rocket Power
05-24-2011, 08:47 PM
When I use starting fluid I spray then crank not both at the same time. but thats just me.

Have you been using the choke while trying to start it? Has the airbox and filter been in place ?

The Shaolin
05-24-2011, 11:58 PM
I have tried with and without choke. Usually with, but if I'm spraying starting fluid I leave it off (not that it matters with this crazy plunger choke thing anyways).

Airbox and filter were in place, they are not now...does that matter?

Rocket Power
05-25-2011, 10:29 AM
It did for an other Suzuki I had years ago. Sometimes they are set pretty lean from the factory and it makes a difference . Haven't had a Bandit though.

The Shaolin
05-25-2011, 11:39 AM
Hmm, interesting. Looking at the plugs and talking to the old owner, this bike has been running rich.

I'm going to pull the carbs tonight and clean them out.

The Shaolin
05-28-2011, 07:29 PM
Well, I got the carbs off the bike and apart. There was some gummy residue in two of the float bowls, but they looked yummy fresh pretty much everywhere else. I boiled all the jets and hit the carbs with carb cleaner and 100psi.

I dropped a pilot jet during reassembly and spent an hour crawling on the floor looking for it. I eventually found it though.

I only found one of the o-rings under the pilot screw. Dammit. I don't remember them coming out of the carb, I'm guessing I blew them into oblivion with the shop air. Looks like I sit on my thumbs for the next few days until the dealer is open :(

Rocket Power
05-28-2011, 10:36 PM
While you have the carbs off, if your bike uses the big orings between the head and the intake pipe the carb mounts to, replace those too. They get hard and can be a vacuum leak source.

The Shaolin
05-31-2011, 08:11 AM
Good idea.

The Shaolin
05-31-2011, 10:00 AM
Got 8 o-rings ordered from the dealer, I won't see them until Thursday :(