this bike i got has been sitting for like two years in a garage and the guy who had it never prepped it for storage... hes a friend of mine and swears it ran like a champ when he parked it. i have changed the oil and spark plugs... and got it a new freshly charged battery... when i go to start it, at first it just cranked.... then after a few tries it rumbled a bit ...then i think it back fired.... and finally... if i would get it rumbling a little and then crank the throttle to full it would sort of do a bucking idle...i have tried a few times after that and gotten it to rev up but in no way will it hold an idle... in fact, just to keep it alive i have to either keep it close to full throttle or rev the crap out of it... but it still doesn't rev properly... it almost feels like its not firing on all cylinders or something.... it feels weak. the bike btw is not a honda, its an 86 yamaha radian... but i spend so much time in the other honda forums here that i thought this would be the best place to turn... thanks a friggin ton ahead of time guys.... this thing is killin me.

oh yeah... and whats the best way to get the crud out of the gas tank?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by elmalouno &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">this bike i got has been sitting for like two years in a garage and the guy who had it never prepped it for storage... hes a friend of mine and swears it ran like a champ when he parked it.
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Uh oh
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have changed the oil and spark plugs... and got it a new freshly charged battery... when i go to start it, at first it just cranked.... then after a few tries it rumbled a bit ...then i think it back fired.... and finally... if i would get it rumbling a little and then crank the throttle to full it would sort of do a bucking idle...i
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Hmmm. I would say that the carbs need attention. Check for perished rubbers, but first strip strip them and blow the crap out of the bowls and jets. be very careful with them, they are easy to mess up. It may be a balancer on the carbs that has perished?
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have tried a few times after that and gotten it to rev up but in no way will it hold an idle... in fact, just to keep it alive i have to either keep it close to full throttle or rev the crap out of it... but it still doesn't rev properly... it almost feels like its not firing on all cylinders or something.... it feels weak.
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Check the spark at each cylinder. Be carefull not to ignite anything out of the chambers when you are cranking it. When you have confirmed a spark on each go to the carbs. I doubt whether the timing has moved but you may need to check it later on. It should be ok as it 'used to run', even if it is a few degrees off.
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the bike btw is not a honda, its an 86 yamaha radian... but i spend so much time in the other honda forums here that i thought this would be the best place to turn... thanks a friggin ton ahead of time guys.... this thing is killin me.

oh yeah... and whats the best way to get the crud out of the gas tank? </TD></TR></TABLE>

You want to fully empty it first. Then have a look inside with a flashlight. There are a few rust eaters on the market that maybe of use, otherwise just flush it with clean fuel.

Don't worry non starting is not exclusive to any make of bike

 

thanks alot for your help luke!
OK !! new developement!
i checked the spark at each cylinder and two are not sparking and two are ! the two that were sparking were blackened and the two that weren't were like brand new looking... i did notice a tiny pityfull spark on one that wasn't sparking... but it was nothing like the two that were. ok... but heres the twist.. at first i followed the spark plug wires up and found...i think they are coils? so i thought hey thats easy one of those must be smoked cuz the two plugs on the left of the bike work and the two on the right don't, so just replace the coil... but when i undid the bolt holding the "coil" on i found that infact one of the wires went to the left and one to the right... DOH! so whats the next step? is there another component involved? could both colis be bad and maybe only giving enough spark for one plug or something? i am stumped again...
anyone have a hint? thanks

 

if one of the plugs on the coil is firig good and one not it is not the coil in that configuration they fire both plugs at the same time once on the exhust strot and once when they are supose to to ignight fuel. I would clean the carbs very well including pulling and cleaning main jet, ideal jets and the neadles and seats. Coils rearly go bad even with lot of miles on a bike. If is still has problem with those other two cylinders you may want to try new plug wire caps. Good luck !

 

I disagree with Busa about coils going bad. They go bad semi-often actually. Try to find a service manual for your bike. Go to the dealership and ask for a photocopy of the page on the coil test procedure. You'll need a multi-meter.


As he said though, make sure you clean those carbs good. Make sure that the fuel filter is new/clean, and there's no rust in the tank.

 

yeah... cleanin the carbs should help but the real problem is that the two plugs on the right hand side are not sparking... at all.. but since one wire from each side(one thats firing and one thats not) go to each coil that would mean both coils are bad right? or what is the next component up from the coils? the ignitor? could that be faulty? thanks again guys