Needle in a Haystack Appeal

[AnnapolisAirhead]

Ok, this is sort of way out there, but on my way to the RA Rally, I broke down outside of Cumberland, MD on my '83 R100. I only had power on the left cylinder. Checked the timing, set the valves, pull the float bowls, then each carb. It's likely something to do with spark, but it was getting near sundown.

I called a couple numbers from the BMW Anonymous book and a kind gent with a truck hauled me back to his place. In the rush to get the truck, panniers, etc. onto the truck I left my well fortified original toolkit behind. Lots of custom tools in addition to the usual suspects. Not 20 minutes later we returned to find it had already been picked up.

In the highly unlikely event that another rider picked it up, recognizing it wasn't left behind intentionally--please contact me. I'm hoping I haven't found the best (the anonymous contact) and the worst (a opportunistic thief) of society.

...why didn't I just button up the tool kit and wait for the lift? :banghead

[DS74BMW]

Sorry to hear that. I hope you recover it.

[seniorasi]

Sorry to hear you've been ripped. On the bright side the person who took it had no ill will but was elated to find a well equipped tool kit that he could use. I would check craigslist and the local papers. From time to time finders will list items in an attempt to return them to the rightful owners. Best of luck!

[rinty]

Break downs are stressful. Good luck.

[AnnapolisAirhead]

Thanks guys. I was able to connect to a great guy through BMW Anonymous (and another chap who called when he returned fomr the RA rally) who came to the rescue with a truck and great ramp. He also allowed me to keep he and his charming wife up until 10:00ish and leave the bike overnight. I managed to rent a pick-up truck and haul it back home and onto the lift. Less stressful now...but much diagnosing to do. (Hats off to the HD lady who stopped and led me, limping on one cyclinder to a Holiday Inn parking lot (Lisa, at Lavale, MD Harley-Davidson...hats off to you, the only person to stop!! You are a very good apple).

I figure, its a good lesson learned that one of the oft overlooked tools in the kit is a contact phone or email. Afterall, it may not be a swarthy bloke who happened upon it--rather someone who knows what it is, but is not sure how to look for its proper owner.

Some extras in it included (from memory):

Dental mirror on telescopic arm
13mm bicycle "cone" wrench for clutcch adjustment
spark tester (homemade)
Chopstick with piston TDC markings and 201mm for clutch adjustment
tiny spring needle nose pliers
8, 9, 10 and 12mm ratcheting "Gearwrenches"
Intake and exhaust feeler guages (blue, purple)
Rotor removal bolt
Bing carb top allen (I think it was 3.5mm)
tiny file
Male-to-male electrical connector (4" long)
Female-to-female eclectic connectors (4" long)
Bent box wrench to remove stator brush housing
circui tester
All the good BMW tools (box, open wrenches, shock adj., 36mm wrench for forkscaps, tire irons, etc.)
Biege waterproof BMW toolkit canvas (about 5-6 inches across when rolled)
Standard spark plug deep socket and 3/8" breaker bar (laying next to tool kit)
Spare carb throttle springs, choke springs and float retaining clips
2 spare wrist pin circlips (new)

[Bill Burke]

Can't help with the toolkit, but in your troubleshooting, check compression. You may have burned an exhaust valve.

[AnnapolisAirhead]

Can't help with the toolkit, but in your troubleshooting, check compression. You may have burned an exhaust valve.

Will do, but I hope that's not the problem as I just spent $900 on new valves not 1500 miles ago. I suppose anything it possible. Thanks.

[Bill Burke]

Will do, but I hope that's not the problem as I just spent $900 on new valves not 1500 miles ago. I suppose anything it possible. Thanks.
Good. That should decrease the odds it's a burned valve. So then I'd put the VOM on the plug caps and run a "cap to cap" test (meter set on ohms/resistance, probe in each spark plug cap). You should come up with about 23K ohms (in that ballpark). This is a quick test to see if you've got a cap, plug wire or coil issue).

[AnnapolisAirhead]

Hmmm...resistance measured about 40k on the wire without caps on one wire and 38k on the other. With the caps on I couldn't get any Ohms to show...very strange. It's dual plugged and these are the wires on just on the right cylinder.

I cut the wires myself in August of 2008 from an NGK kit and they have been working just fine until halfway on this weekend trip to the RA rally. I'd been meaning to bite the bullet and get OEM resistor wires.

I'm going to check compression on both cylinders. After than, I'll pull the heads and check things out. If this is a valve issue, I don't want let it go any further so an $18 set of head gaskets is a small price to pay for peace of mind.

[Bill Burke]

The resistance test indicates an electrical issue, to me anyway. I'm single-plugged. The compression test will tell the tale on valve or ring failure, but before you pull the heads, I'd be interested to know what happens if you switch the wires side-to-side (install your left side wires on the right and vice versa). Obviously, if your non-firing switches sides, you've found the problem (wires/caps). Take a very close look and feel of the plug wire connection to the coil. This could be as simple as a failure to have a solid insertion of the ignition wire into the coil on the bad side. Am I missing something?

[AnnapolisAirhead]

The resistance test indicates an electrical issue, to me anyway. I'm single-plugged. The compression test will tell the tale on valve or ring failure, but before you pull the heads, I'd be interested to know what happens if you switch the wires side-to-side (install your left side wires on the right and vice versa). Obviously, if your non-firing switches sides, you've found the problem (wires/caps). Take a very close look and feel of the plug wire connection to the coil. This could be as simple as a failure to have a solid insertion of the ignition wire into the coil on the bad side. Am I missing something?

No, you aren't missing anything. The wires are new (late last summer-ish) NGK, cut to fit then screw the cap in. I am a believer in making shiny electrical connections and then using di-electric grease on them. I know there are differing opinions on that, but its worked well for me. I did pull and re-insert the wires into the coils and onto the plugs to be certain that wasn't it. But what's most odd Bill, is that I had ridden nearly a couple hundred miles up until that point...it was just an all of the sudden thing.

I dropped the float bowl, plenty of fuel and stops flowing when I raise the float manually. I checked the vavles on the right (non-functioning) side and found that the intake was nearly closed up. So I set it, to no avail.

Am I to test each wire individually and come up with about 26k ohms resistance? And should that be just with the wire (no cap)? IIRC it should be 40k or so from one cap through the coil to the cap on the other wire. Does that sound right?

I'm headed down to the garage to swap wires and give it a go. More later...

[Bill Burke]

Am I to test each wire individually and come up with about 26k ohms resistance? And should that be just with the wire (no cap)? IIRC it should be 40k or so from one cap through the coil to the cap on the other wire. Does that sound right?

I'm headed down to the garage to swap wires and give it a go. More later...
The wires alone should produce no resistance whatsoever. If you have 5K ohm caps then that's 10K ohms there and then each of the coils adds 5 to 7K ohms resistance, hence total of 22 to 24K ohms when running a "cap to cap" test. On the 83 R100 with electronic ignition do you have dual coils or is it the black coil pack?
Maybe we'll be closer to the solution when you switch the wires.

[AnnapolisAirhead]

The wires alone should produce no resistance whatsoever. If you have 5K ohms caps then that's 10K ohms there and then each of the coils adds 5 to 7K ohms resistance, hence total of 22 to 24K ohms when running a "cap to cap" test. On the 83 R100 with electronic ignition do you have dual coils or is it the black coil pack?
Maybe we'll be closer to the solution when you switch the wires.

I have dual Accel (red) coils and a Dyna ignition booster. The plug connections come out at a 45 degree angle onthe side of the coils. The bike came to me this way and has been faithfully running in all sorts of conditions. I will say that I've only made a few 300+ mile trips at a clip. Mostly, I used to commute about 50 miles each way to work in Wash DC beltway traffic and then 2-300 mile weekends. I know there are all sorts of opinions about can a Dyna booster be used with an electronic ignition and dual coils, but it's worked for me. I've not changed any of the wiring of it, short of cleaning each connection periodically. In 1981 electronic ignition was standard I believe and mine is a 1983.

Ok, a few corrections (problem persists).

I wasn't reading the meter correctly. Each wire with caps does indeed show 5k resistance measured end to end (off the bike obviously). I also measured ohms from one wire cap end to the other wire cap end on the same coil. That reading indicates between 25 and 26k (each side). So I am thinking (unfortunately) that it is not a wire issue.

I double checked each connection on the coils. All good.

I switched the wires from right side to left side and tried to start it. Gave a couple grunts like it was firing, but essentially just ran down the battery. It is on the charger right now.

Here is what's new on the bike:


Spark plugs
Bosch w6dc on top (stock) plug
Bosch w6bc on lower plug (w6bc being shorter threads, but the same heat range)
NGK wires
Hella voltage regulator
Bosch starter rebuilt within the past 3 months
Complete valve job with Black Diamond (intake & exhaust vales, new seats, new springs, new keepers by Memphis Moterwerks--seems to be a solid job)
New rotor (Bob's BMW, I think its the same one Rick Jones sells)
Thunderchild diode board and solid mounts
New stator wiring harness
Both carbs freshly rebuilt,
New choke and throttle springs,
All cleaned in heated ultrasonic with Gunk
New floats, diaphrams, carb-to-head tubes
New throttle cable, throttle tube, gears
New choke cable
Freshly balanced carbs prior to trip with TwinMax immediately after a 40 mile ride
Freshly set valves prior to trip, stone cold
Cleaned and di-electric greased all coil, starter relay and spark plug ends
New Stiebel air horn wired just before trip...and used just once during trip.


Everyone says not to worry about the airhorn setup, and it was pretty straight forward, but I'll disconnect it anyway since it was a change.

Sorry to be so lengthy, I think I've said plenty. Thinking the timing, then valves need to be checked in the morning.

[Bill Burke]

If your twin coils are like mine (which I'm not sure about), check the jumper wire that connects the two coils in series. Make sure it's connected solidly to both coils. Bad coils? On my coils, primary to primary resistance is 1.4 ~ 1.5 ohms - you measure between the two terminals marked 1 (-) and 15 (+). Secondary terminal (where the sparkplug wire goes) to either primary terminal is 6.4K ohms. It could very well be that your setup is different and the info above will be of no use.

In the meantime, you've got a lot of great new parts on the bike. When I was reading the list, what stood out is the Black Diamond valves. There's been traffic on the airhead's List that suggests that the BD valves metallurgy is subject to premature failure. Don't want to poop in the punchbowl, but the compression test is probably a good thing to check earlier rather than later. Stick with it. The solution is right around the next bend.

[seniorasi]

Just wondering how the compression check went? Did you pull the heads then?

[AnnapolisAirhead]

Just wondering how the compression check went? Did you pull the heads then?
In a word, odd. All this time, the right cylinder is the one not firing, yet its compression (with carb off) is 157. The left cylinder compression is 117. I'm puzzled. 1200 miles on the heads and no indication of anything wrong.

If your twin coils are like mine (which I'm not sure about), check the jumper wire that connects the two coils in series. Make sure it's connected solidly to both coils. Bad coils? On my coils, primary to primary resistance is 1.4 ~ 1.5 ohms - you measure between the two terminals marked 1 (-) and 15 (+). Secondary terminal (where the sparkplug wire goes) to either primary terminal is 6.4K ohms. It could very well be that your setup is different and the info above will be of no use.
Headed down to do that now.


In the meantime, you've got a lot of great new parts on the bike. When I was reading the list, what stood out is the Black Diamond valves. There's been traffic on the airhead's List that suggests that the BD valves metallurgy is subject to premature failure. Don't want to poop in the punchbowl, but the compression test is probably a good thing to check earlier rather than later. Stick with it. The solution is right around the next bend.

I read the debates back and forth about OEM valves and Black Diamonds, in the end after several conversations with machinist that are familiar with working on airheads, I went the Black Diamond route. I'm not saying this couldn't be the issue, but the valve job was first rate. I had every component on the heads replaced with the valve job.

So, 117 on the left cylinder rates a closer look at the actual heads. I'm also not 100% convinced that the booster hasn't partially failed as my initial problem.

...more later.

[AnnapolisAirhead]

Ok, I've got plenty of spark now. On the right side, the black wire at the right coil had a bad connector (2 strands left holding it on). I corrected that and tested for spark. Plenty.

pulled the valve covers off, re-torqued the heads and proceeded to check the valves. The right side exhaust was tight (that's the side that measures 157psi on the compression test--with carbs removed, btw). The left side valves were both closed. I reset them as well, then buttoned it all up and re-ran the compression test.

Right side: 156psi
Left side: 134psi

It still runs horribly, like the right side is not working. I'm thinking at this point I'll do two things, drain the oil and look at it closely (has ~200 miles on it) and the drain plug. Secondly, I need to pull the heads and take a very close look at the valves. I'm wondering if a stuck intake valve would explain the compression delta.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Have fuel. Have spark. Valves set. :dunno

Scary Territory:
Another oddity I noticed when cranking for the compression test was an unusual sounds like something internal to the engine is grinding or rubbing in an cyclical fashion. This is why I want to check the oil and pull (at least) the heads. Just before my trip, I changed the oil and filter and was careful to install the filter, shim, o-ring correctly.

I did get it started, and felt the right header: stone cold. Felt the left headed and am now licking my wounds!

I think I need to step away from the bike for a few... :bang

[skiteach]

Did tou replace piston rings? Rings starting to fail might allow oil to seal, at cranking speed, explaining the high right side compression. Did you try a new plug or switch sides, after wire repair? Plugs can fail (short internally) and sometimes fouling doesn't clean by running.

[seniorasi]

Did tou replace piston rings? Rings starting to fail might allow oil to seal, at cranking speed, explaining the high right side compression. Did you try a new plug or switch sides, after wire repair? Plugs can fail (short internally) and sometimes fouling doesn't clean by running.

Plugs can do it alright. I've had the same experience. They looked great but were junk. And they really didn't have very many miles on them.

[AnnapolisAirhead]

Did tou replace piston rings? Rings starting to fail might allow oil to seal, at cranking speed, explaining the high right side compression. Did you try a new plug or switch sides, after wire repair? Plugs can fail (short internally) and sometimes fouling doesn't clean by running.

I had just replaced the plugs with new Bosch w6dc and w6bc a week before the trip or so. I did swap the plug wires, same deal.

I think I am down (most likely) to a valve issue on the right cylinder. It could be the rings, but I measured the ring gap when putting the heads back on and they are damned near new.

A friend suggested putting oil in the cylinder (40 or 50w) and re-running the compression test. If the compression goes up, it would indicate a ring problem. If it goes down, probably the valve, so off with the heads.

[skiteach]

I would swap plugs, side to side before any teardown-seen too many new defective parts. Unlikely that valves are problem with compression over 100psi. Any way of doing a leak down? Or at least blow air into sealed cylinder, any leakage shows precisely where pressure (compression) is going. I let piston go to bottom dead and release the rocker arms.

[AnnapolisAirhead]

I would swap plugs, side to side before any teardown-seen too many new defective parts. Unlikely that valves are problem with compression over 100psi. Any way of doing a leak down? Or at least blow air into sealed cylinder, any leakage shows precisely where pressure (compression) is going. I let piston go to bottom dead and release the rocker arms.

I could swap the plugs, but its a dual plugged bike so I'm not sure both on one side would fail. Anything is possible though.

What I am still wondering is why one side is still 157 (the right side which is not working, despite the presence of fuel and strong spark) and the working side (left) is at 135psi. these numbers are repeatable everytime: left cylinder 135psi, right cylinder 157psi. I can keep my bare hand on the right header while it is running until the heat migrates through the crossovers. The left side it hot pretty quickly (DAMHIK!!)

I thought a leakdown test would be more likely to show you where you are losing compression, not gaining it. :dunno

I'm thinking I'll go down, pull the carb and header off the right side, turn the engine manually and look into the intake and the exhaust ports to see that the valves are actually opening and closing.

[skiteach]

Did not realize dual plugs, unlikely both failed. Interesting about valve movement; as I remember, no intake movement would not allow much air in, leading to low compression, no exhaust would give high readings and popping thru the intake-compressed air has to go somewhere. Excessive (unburnt) gasoline wouldact like oil and help to raise compression values. It's been a while since the worn camshaft days of the GM and Volvo lines. You may also want to remove valve covers and check rocker action. Really haven't heard of substantial cam wear in BMW's.

[seniorasi]

I would still get new plugs and try them first, you'll need new ones at some point down the line any way. It will just eliminate a source of trouble on the front end.

[AnnapolisAirhead]

I would still get new plugs and try them first, you'll need new ones at some point down the line any way. It will just eliminate a source of trouble on the front end.
It turned out to be the black feed wire to the primary on the coils. The wire was badly frayed at the crimp. For whatever its worth, I re-crimped it like this:

Snipped the old crimp off and stripped the wire casing with 3/8" of bare, stranded wire (fresh, unoxidated).
Heated the exposed wire with a pencil torch, flux and applied solder on it. This (the lead solder) should keep the copper wire from oxidating
Crimped the soldered end to a new connector
Heatshrinked the connection end (which faces forward, btw)
Sanded the spade protruding form the coil and applied a light coat of di-electric grease to it.
Jumped for joy what I saw spark again (short lived....read on)

Sure makes for a nice bond.

So I have fuel, spark, heads torqued, valves set and still nothing on the right side. I can still hold the right side header pipe while the bike is running. Left side hotter than a brothel on two-for-a-nickel day still!!! :type

The odd thing is that I still have 135psi on the left cylinder, and 157 on the right. So, its not anything wrong with my rings (I would guess) or the 157 would be more like 100psi. My next logic thought was that one or both of the valves are stuck closed, likely the exhaust.

Before pulling the heads, I pulled the mufflers off thinking an odd chunk of the baffles could have become lodged--I know, a desperate guess, to no avail. there are, after all twin crossovers on these blacktop airheads.

I removed the carb and header pipes, got out the flashlight and turned the engine manually watching the valves. Both open and close right on queue.

When I installed the fresh heads, I did roll the pushrods on a flat surface and all was well. I also pulled the camfollowers and they show no signs of unusual wear on the faces.

Now I am baffled and thinking I need to remove the heads.

Has anyone had to replace the rocker arm bearings before? I'm not sure how this would affect things. I ran the bike with the valve cover off and saw both rockers doing their thing...could even watch how the oil ride out along the top tow studs, so those aren't clogged.

Anguished in Annapolis... :drink

[83014]

I might have missed this when I read the thread, but my 81 R100RT had identical symptoms at the Vermont National. I started it up to return to the rally site from the local Walmart. It was running on one cylinder, the left one actually. I nursed it to the Airhead tent where a bad plug wire was diagnosed. Max's BMW had the wires on site and it's been running on two cylinders ever since. I hope it's that easy for you.

[83014]

http://bmwmotorcycletech.info/multimeters.htm

If fuel is getting to the carb, I think it's electrical. Did you drop the float bowl to check that fuel was making it there, no stuck float needle or clog? Just thinking...

[edwarddieck]

Did you try changing the wires at the coil?
This will let you know if it is the wire or the coil.

Good luck,
Ed

[AnnapolisAirhead]

Did you try changing the wires at the coil?
This will let you know if it is the wire or the coil.

Good luck,
Ed
Its getting good spark at the spark plug, so the electrical issue has been solved. The black feeder wire to the primaries on the coils had a bad connector. Since that fix, I've verified good strong blue spark at both cylinders.

http://bmwmotorcycletech.info/multimeters.htm

If fuel is getting to the carb, I think it's electrical. Did you drop the float bowl to check that fuel was making it there, no stuck float needle or clog? Just thinking...

I did indeed drop both float bowls and am getting plenty of (clean) fuel and shutting up when I lift the floats. I also tested each spark plug wire with caps off, with caps on, from the spark plug end of one wire through to the cap on the other wire and all is well within spec'd ohms. So I think I am good there.

I suppose at this point, I need to verify the timing or start the entire analysis over again. Could be the rocker arms...Just watched them tonight as I manually turned the engine and they seem loose even though the valve clearances checked out.

[edwarddieck]

This is interesting. It appears it is not electrical.
I had a similar problem recently and it turned out to be a stuck float. Have you checked the floats? Snowbum has some info on his site. Maybe the float has become saturated and doesn't float.

Ed

[tghsmith]

remove and clean your air idle jets, the small jet forward of the main jet, make sure they have good orings, and you can blast carb cleaner through them from all angles when you have out of the carbs(very small jet),, one of these gunked up can turn you into a 500cc thumper....

[AnnapolisAirhead]

This is interesting. It appears it is not electrical.
I had a similar problem recently and it turned out to be a stuck float. Have you checked the floats? Snowbum has some info on his site. Maybe the float has become saturated and doesn't float.

Ed

Just checked the float and float needle. So good there.

remove and clean your air idle jets, the small jet forward of the main jet, make sure they have good orings, and your can blast carb cleaner through them from all angles when you have out of the carbs(very small jet),, one of these gunked up can turn you into a 500cc thumper....

The more I think about it, it can only be fuel at this point. I've removed the valve cover, carb and header then watched the valves open and close right on queue. Heads are torqued, vales set an I get a bright blue spark. So, Tghsmith....I think you are right. I'm off to Bob's BMW anyway to continue assembling my lost tool kit. Carbs kits are probably a good thing to have anyway.

Thanks for all the help guys. Simple by choice has me questioning just WHO is simple....me or the bike. I'm not a factory trained BMW tech, but not a bumbling idiot either, still, this shouldn't be that hard. More progress later...

[Bill Burke]

remove and clean your air idle jets, the small jet forward of the main jet, make sure they have good orings, and your can blast carb cleaner through them from all angles when you have out of the carbs(very small jet),, one of these gunked up can turn you into a 500cc thumper....
I like this theory now too Annapolis. A welder's tip cleaner kit (available for about $5 at your hardware store) provides some really handy little wires for cleaning out carb orifices.

[AnnapolisAirhead]

I like this theory now too Annapolis. A welder's tip cleaner kit (available for about $5 at your hardware store) provides some really handy little wires for cleaning out carb orifices.

Ok, I've rebuilt a toolkit (needed a victory) and fortified it with all I lost, I think.

I got new carb bits, but did not find a welders top cleaning rod...I'll get one tomorrow.

Still a mystery though...I did the compression test with the carbs removed and still got 157psi on the right, 135 on the left. Is it possible that there was some sort of a vapor lock due to my running the bike on just the left cylinder for 10 miles or so? This would seem to indicate that it is not actually the carb.

Further, even though I have the rockerarm boxes that are captive, there is more vertical tolerance than should be I think.

Before I tear the carb apart, I'm going to re-torque the heads, reset the valves and run a compression test again. :scratch

[Bombayduck]

If you have good spark at the right time, and you have compression and you have fuel you should have ingition. I suspect that you are still not getting fuel into that jug. Try this: Remove one of the plugs on that side, and start the bike. Look to see what's shooting out of the hole. Is it a fuel/air mixture or just air?

Brad

[roncooper]

I would try putting the left carb on the right side and see if the right cylinder makes power. You don't have to hook up the throttle or "choke" cables-move the levers by hand.

[AnnapolisAirhead]

...any theories as to why the right, non-functioning cylinder measures 157psi and the left, functional one measure 135psi? Both heads done a the same time. Compression tests performed without carbs on the heads.

[tghsmith]

differnent oil amounts on cyl walls, minor crud on valve faces, really wouldn't stress over it untill you get running well on both sides, compression test have to many variables ,

[manybikes]

I use my old guitar strings for cleaning out jets.
High E and B seem to work best.

[seniorasi]

I use my old guitar strings for cleaning out jets.
High E and B seem to work best.

Obviously not a classical guitar? :-)

[AnnapolisAirhead]

Obviously not a classical guitar? :-)

...so I need a "tune" up? (Couldn't resist).

Finally, I found the issue. The floats in my right side carb had two problems: first, the pin had come out during my bumpy ride from one side and I had 'fixed' that on the side of the rode. What I failed to notice at that time was that the tang was bent--not sure how that could have happened, but the pin was loose on one end, so anything is possible. The second thing I discovered was that the float on the right carb was noticably heavier than the left carb. I replaced them both and FINALLY have a two cylinder again.

A recap of the electrical problem was that the black feeder wire to the coil primaries had become oxidized to the point that it was down to one or two strands. This was particularly a problem as I have a Dyna ignition booster feeding the coil to help the spark (dual plugged). There's no way that little oxidized strand was up for the load.

One more mistake I made was wiring the coils. I made new NGK spark plug wires cut to length to reduce clutter when I replaced the very old, cracked ones that came on the bike (to me). When I did that, I put the two left coil secondaries feeding the left cylinder and the two rights feeding the right cylinder. Had I crossed mixed them, I would have been able to continue riding albeit with one spark plug on the right cylinder and two on the left. Sort of a fault-tolerant arrangement that I will restore with yet another set of plug wires since I cut these current one too short to reach.

Huge thanks to everyone pitching in--tghsmith, I think you nailed the fuel issue. Bill Burke, again thanks for the help tracking down the electrical gnome.

Cheers and virtual beers all around. :beer

[skiteach]

Really glad you didn't pop the heads off! And that it was an easy fix, despite the pulled hair. Been there and will most likely return! (don't we all?)

[AnnapolisAirhead]

Really glad you didn't pop the heads off! And that it was an easy fix, despite the pulled hair. Been there and will most likely return! (don't we all?)

Yeah, I'm sure my inner-bafoonery will return at some date.

The tang on the float was actually twisted at a 45 degree angle..most likely from the float pin slipping out. Never would have guessed that could happen, but it did. I only discovered that the pin had slid out of one end while on the side of the road (I dropped the bowl to make sure I was getting fuel...I was). I put the pin back in and pushed the float up...fuel stopped as it should, so I never suspected it.

I did pull the cylinder back, just to double check the wrist pin circlips for peace of mind. I know I'd forever worry about that as my friends circlip popped off, at 70MPH, enough blue smoke to shut down I-68 in western MD. He had about 1200 miles on his freshly done heads too.

Live. Ride. Wrench. Learn. :thumb

ps. A trip to Harbor Fight, a bicycle shop, Eastern Mtn Sports, Bob's BMW and couple hundred bucks later I have an even more fortified toolkit.

[seniorasi]

Yeah, I'm sure my inner-bafoonery will return at some date.


Live. Ride. Wrench. Learn. :thumb

ps. A trip to Harbor Fight, a bicycle shop, Eastern Mtn Sports, Bob's BMW and couple hundred bucks later I have an even more fortified toolkit.

Glad you got the scooter motioning again at long last! Kudos and congrats!

Just wondering if you could provide some pics or a description of your tool kit? I am putting together a kit for my 1983 R100RT and could use some ideas. I did the Harbor Freight run for cheap allens and combo wrenches. I also got a tool roll for $7.00! I was concerned about finding one that would work.

[AnnapolisAirhead]

...Just wondering if you could provide some pics or a description of your tool kit? I am putting together a kit for my 1983 R100RT and could use some ideas.

I think you've gotten off a lot cheaper than I did. I went the Bob's BMW route for the core toolkit, a bit expensive and missing some of what I think should be basics at $141.00--but Bob's has been good to me. Here is what I have thus far:


Basic tool roll p/n 711-112-306-85
Rotor puller p/n 833-004-017-03
Swing arm/Fork (dogbone) wrench p/n 711-112-378-57
Feeler guage (intake, exhaust, sparkplug, points, brake lever) tool p/n711-190-901-54
Telescopic dental mirror (HF)
Telescopic magnet (HF)
Mini Circlip pliers (HF)
13mm slim Bicycle cone wrench for clutch lock nut (Bike shop)
Steering head adjuster and fork cap puller hook tool (older tool kit)
Mini dike pliers (HF)
Progressive shock adjuster tool
Multi meter (HF)
Paper funnels
Rubber gloves
Mechanic gloves (for hot things)
Wine opener
Stubby tire guage
Mini flat/oval file and strip of emerypaper
Compact metric Allen tool
LED flashlight and Gator clip-on light for hat bill
Spare fuses, round and flats
Spool of electrical tape
Length of 12 gauge wire with female spade connectors
Length of 12 gauge wire with male spade connectors
4" coil of 12 gauge solid copper wire
14" Alligator'd clips with connectors
Notepad and pen
2 spare inline fuel filters
2 small double-ended caribbeaner clips
Mini Leatherman tool (knife, scossors, etc.)
1/2 dozen zipties


A few other things, but most of this all fits into the tool roll and a smaller pack. I also carry sparkplugs, turn signal bulbs and a couple H4 headlight bulbs.

Lots of stuff in there...but still I don't always pack my common sense.

[seniorasi]

Really nice kit AA! That is definitely some food for thought. It looks as though I've got some shopping to do.

[Bill Burke]

Good job. I hope I'm the next guy to load you into a pickup. That new toolkit sounds great! Meanwhile, let us know what your next compression reading results are. Ride safe and enjoy the ride. Cheers-

[tghsmith]

what no duct tape!!!!!few other small items
8,10,13, 17mm nuts
10mm bolts
set of crush washers
spare spark plug cap and wire,
carb kits(or at least orings)

[AnnapolisAirhead]

what no duct tape!!!!!few other small items
8,10,13, 17mm nuts
10mm bolts
set of crush washers
spare spark plug cap and wire,
carb kits(or at least orings)

Sorry to ramble on like that guys, Seniorasi had asked. I suppose the pic coulda said it.

Got the carb extras, sparkplug cap, crush washers (and wavies), didn't think about the 10mm bolts and all those nuts.

Duct tape for the radiator hose or the battery float?

Duct tape saves lives. :bolt

[skiteach]

[
Duct tape for the radiator hose or the battery float?

Muffler bearing also!

[tghsmith]

no, for the electronic fanastat