GSXR1100 ain't startin'

**eelracing** · 13th May 2009, 00:47

Originally Posted by Coyote

Before I drain the tank and check out all the fuel lines, is there something bleedingly obvious that I'm missing? Besides being in neutral and having it on run!

Ummm have you tried checking for spark.Pull off the nearest sparkplug cap and (if you still aint got a plug socket use a spare spark plug)plug spare into cap and rest plug electrode on the cylinder head (to earth it)place it so you can see it.

Warning,do not hold onto it as you may get a shock.

Now crank engine over with the starter and look closely to see if a spark jumps across.If you see it spark then your all good and its time to check the fuel flow etc.Good luck

By the way thats a great avatar you got.Good to see a fellow Motorheadbanger

**Coyote** · 13th May 2009, 19:27

Holy mother of crap! Ether fucking rocks!

I'm on KB passing the time until it dissipates. Never used it before so I must've sprayed too much in!

Start the bike. vvvvVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV. Panic! Kill it.

Fuel related then?

Originally Posted by Anthrax

Kill switch is definately set to run? Not sure whether this model can wind over or not when switch is off?

Doesn't turn over when it's off. But I have done that on an old bike, being a muppet and all

Originally Posted by gwigs

check the fuel cock ... its vacuum operated ....check that the vacuum hose is still connected....if the carbs have run dry you will have to set the fuel cock to the prime position...this allows the fuel to flow via gravity instead of engine vacuum....

That was what I checked immediately. Bad experience with the VFR. Ended up doing the mod to bypass the vacuum hose. Might do the same on this thing.

Ahhh, that's what prime is! Even so, didn't seem to work either way I turned the cock.

Originally Posted by eelracing

Ummm have you tried checking for spark.Pull off the nearest sparkplug cap and (if you still aint got a plug socket use a spare spark plug)plug spare into cap and rest plug electrode on the cylinder head (to earth it)place it so you can see it.

Warning,do not hold onto it as you may get a shock.

Now crank engine over with the starter and look closely to see if a spark jumps across.If you see it spark then your all good and its time to check the fuel flow etc.Good luck

By the way thats a great avatar you got.Good to see a fellow Motorheadbanger

I found out it had spark after I electrocuted myself. That's the easiest way to do it rather than looking for a spark

Motorhead are great. However the Avatar is mainly due to the new bike being nicknamed "War Pig" by a previous owner.

**CookMySock** · 13th May 2009, 21:22

Originally Posted by Coyote

Fuel related then?

Sounds it. Check the vacuum fuel tap and fuel pump.

Steve

**cs363** · 13th May 2009, 21:47

Originally Posted by Coyote

The bike was running sweet yesterday. Started every time, which was a few times as I was going place to place to show it off.

However, this morning before work.....

****************Edited

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Before I drain the tank and check out all the fuel lines, is there something bleedingly obvious that I'm missing? Besides being in neutral and having it on run!

Reading the main points (above) it does seem fairly obvious that something in your parking/start-up procedure has caused the problem. Yes, there's a minor chance something has packed up, but I'd leave that until you're sure we can rule you out of the picture

I think Crasherfromwayback is probably on the mark regarding the plugs, though I'm unsure of your "wasted on ether"

post as to whether the vvVVV's signified that it ran?

Originally Posted by Crasherfromwayback

Full choke and no throttle whatsoever. She'll fire up. If you've wet the plugs...now with this unleaded shite we've got...you can normally throw them in the bin and fit fresh ones.

**Squiggles** · 13th May 2009, 23:11

I'd say plugs too, happened on my 88 Gixxer750, took a large hill to bang start it... chucked some new plugs in and had no problems after that

**Coyote** · 14th May 2009, 11:53

Originally Posted by cs363

Reading the main points (above) it does seem fairly obvious that something in your parking/start-up procedure has caused the problem. Yes, there's a minor chance something has packed up, but I'd leave that until you're sure we can rule you out of the picture

I think Crasherfromwayback is probably on the mark regarding the plugs, though I'm unsure of your "wasted on ether"

post as to whether the vvVVV's signified that it ran?

I didn't sniff the stuff ya muppet.

The thing just sparked to life incredibly quick. Revved to reline faster than it would normally, plus I wasn't touching the thottle. It was fucking nuts!

Tried to get the air filter off. Had to remove the carbs to get some room, still haven't got it out yet. Whilst I've pulled it this far apart, I'll give everything a degrease, plus I replace the fuel lines with brand new coloured ones

What plugs does the bike need? I'll be calling Wellington Motorcycles to ask later unless someone responds before that.

**cs363** · 14th May 2009, 12:29

Originally Posted by Coyote

I didn't sniff the stuff ya muppet.

The thing just sparked to life incredibly quick. Revved to reline faster than it would normally, plus I wasn't touching the thottle. It was fucking nuts!

Tried to get the air filter off. Had to remove the carbs to get some room, still haven't got it out yet. Whilst I've pulled it this far apart, I'll give everything a degrease, plus I replace the fuel lines with brand new coloured ones

What plugs does the bike need? I'll be calling Wellington Motorcycles to ask later unless someone responds before that.

Muppet!!?? How rude.....

Weird that it revved like that, the choke wasn't still on was it? Or have you now got the idle wound up too high?

Sounds like it may have just been flooded or alternately as you've said you filled it up it could even have been out of fuel....bit hard to tell. Anyway, the fact that it fired is good, so can't be too much wrong.

Plugs for most GSXR1100's are JR9's though I think some of the later one's ran CR9E's. What year/model is it?

**JayRacer37** · 14th May 2009, 12:39

Originally Posted by Coyote

I didn't sniff the stuff ya muppet.

The thing just sparked to life incredibly quick. Revved to reline faster than it would normally, plus I wasn't touching the thottle. It was fucking nuts!

Tried to get the air filter off. Had to remove the carbs to get some room, still haven't got it out yet. Whilst I've pulled it this far apart, I'll give everything a degrease, plus I replace the fuel lines with brand new coloured ones

What plugs does the bike need? I'll be calling Wellington Motorcycles to ask later unless someone responds before that.

NGK book is a little vague on that year for it, though it looks like J9A. Worth checking with Wgtn MC though just to make sure. Don't know if Drew did the plugs, but I didn't whist I had it so they could be quite old. The revving thing was the Ether buring better than fuel would and you not being able to regulate it with the throttle since it was in the air being inducted, umm...like full throllte in the air I suppose, not at the right hand!

Not sure how far you have got with the airbox and carbs but it is a fiddly job huh!

I belive that there are two 'wire' like handles (hard to explain, 2mm thinck metal rod in a 'U' shape beside the airbox) on either side of the bike at the airbox. Pulling those apart/out should let the airbox separate...

**cs363** · 14th May 2009, 18:31

Dunno, I just think that pulling things apart might be a bit of overkill seeing as how it was running fine when he parked it up...on the face of it I would still be leaning towards something simple caused by unfamiliarity with the bike/starting procedure.

Unless of course there's a gang of bike wrecking leprechauns in the neighbourhood that strike in the dark of night....

**JayRacer37** · 14th May 2009, 18:42

Originally Posted by cs363

Dunno, I just think that pulling things apart might be a bit of overkill seeing as how it was running fine when he parked it up...on the face of it I would still be leaning towards something simple caused by unfamiliarity with the bike/starting procedure.

Yeah I agree, new set of plugs could only be for the best. Sounds like it could have been drowned. I never used any throttle to start it Coyote, and full choke to start and then half choke (it has two notches on the choke) for a min or two before I rode it away.

**Fatjim** · 14th May 2009, 18:53

Having said that Jay, surely the thrashing C gave it with gogo juice would have cleared any fouling.

**JayRacer37** · 14th May 2009, 20:40

Originally Posted by Fatjim

Having said that Jay, surely the thrashing C gave it with gogo juice would have cleared any fouling.

True...hadn't thought of that!

**riffer** · 14th May 2009, 21:01

Hmmm.

GSXR1100 is very similar to RF900.

One prob with the RFs is that the choke cable gets loose and slips where it locks on to the carb rail.

And the bastard won't start.

I'd be checking to see if the choke is working okay as well as replacing the spark plugs.

And Coyote- War Pigs is a Black Sabbath song, not Motorhead.

**FruitLooPs** · 14th May 2009, 22:54

Riffer, pretty sure they have choke knob on the carb itself rather than cable actuated, at least my 87 750 does.

I'd also watch it with removing the vacuum petcock, I know when a carb float failed in my carbs and my gravity fed fuel petcock dumped plenty in and bent a conrod when a friend started the engine.

One of the benefits for having one i'd say, I always turn off my gravity petcock now. Good habit.

If they're completely run out of gas they take quite a lot of cranking to get it back through sometimes. I know at one point I was convinced something was wrong with the carbs i'd just purchased and put on it. Took lots and lots of cranking (with gaps to cool the starter) in the end with a fine mist of petrol down the carb throats. Once it was running it sucked the fuel in and was fine.

You'll have it going in no time, sure its not just out of gas and needs reserve?

**Coyote** · 15th May 2009, 08:52

Got it going. Don't know how. Ended up pulling the carbs, airbox and battery box apart. Air filter looked clean, blew through the fuel lines and they seemed fine and didn't want to pull the carbs apart so I put the bike back together.

I'm pretty sure I flooded it. Though it didn't start immediately after I tried the ether. Thinking back now, I don't think I primed it afterward and refilled the carbs.

So I didn't have to pull everything apart, but I did. And it's all back together, which only one bolt left over afterwards and I knew where it was meant to go!

Originally Posted by cs363

Muppet!!?? How rude.....

Weird that it revved like that, the choke wasn't still on was it? Or have you now got the idle wound up too high?

Sounds like it may have just been flooded or alternately as you've said you filled it up it could even have been out of fuel....bit hard to tell. Anyway, the fact that it fired is good, so can't be too much wrong.

Plugs for most GSXR1100's are JR9's though I think some of the later one's ran CR9E's. What year/model is it?

Choke was on. Hadn't touched the idle at that stage.

Originally Posted by JayRacer37

NGK book is a little vague on that year for it, though it looks like J9A. Worth checking with Wgtn MC though just to make sure. Don't know if Drew did the plugs, but I didn't whist I had it so they could be quite old. The revving thing was the Ether buring better than fuel would and you not being able to regulate it with the throttle since it was in the air being inducted, umm...like full throllte in the air I suppose, not at the right hand!

Not sure how far you have got with the airbox and carbs but it is a fiddly job huh!

I belive that there are two 'wire' like handles (hard to explain, 2mm thinck metal rod in a 'U' shape beside the airbox) on either side of the bike at the airbox. Pulling those apart/out should let the airbox separate...

That ether is good stuff. Might have to run the minimoto on it sometime.

The airbox was really fiddly. I was convinced I wouldn't be able to put it back together, yet somehow I managed to do so. I'm quite proud of myself actually, and confident I can put everything back in place after I've pulled it apart and painted everything.

Originally Posted by riffer

And Coyote- War Pigs is a Black Sabbath song, not Motorhead.

Oh ye of little faith. I'm aware of that. I've been singing it for the last week since I got the bike.

But the War Pig is Motorhead's logo.