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1981 GS550 Wont rev above 6-7k

  • Thread starter Thread starter octusis
  • Start date Start date
O

octusis

Guest
Working on a '81 GS550L, Bike wont rev very high, and when its under load its even worse. I've cleaned carbs many of times and I can't figure out what it is any help would be much appreciated
 
Does this bike, have stock airbox, and exhaust? And I have to ask, by "cleaned", exactly how are you cleaning them? How long have you had the bike? Is this a "all of a sudden" thing, or? More details on the history of the bike are needed. You have absolutely come to the right place for help with this bike.

OH! And welcome to the GSR !
 
Spyder said:
Does this bike, have stock airbox, and exhaust? And I have to ask, by "cleaned", exactly how are you cleaning them? How long have you had the bike? Is this a "all of a sudden" thing, or? More details on the history of the bike are needed. You have absolutely come to the right place for help with this bike.

OH! And welcome to the GSR !
Click to expand...

I've got pods and straight pipes on it, I've already jetted the mains up a size or 2 (can't remember exact) I took them apart atleast 2 or 3 times (fully) and cleaned them with compressed air and carb cleaner. I've had the bike for maybe a few months (bought off a buddy) and with everything stock it had the same issues. Thank you for the welcome and fast response :)
 
Welcome to TheGSR from west Michigan,

octusis said:
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at looks like it will come in really handy. I guess I should look into buying a rebuild kit for it, any you would suggest? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Click to expand...

If by "rebuild kit" you mean new float needle and seat and other jets, the answer is "None".
Well, unless they are damaged.

If you mean O-rings, then the answer is Cycle ORings.
 
Nobody here will suggest a rebuild kit here, lol. Straight pipes and pods will require more than 2 steps up in jet size. I would get stage 3 dyno jet kit, and an O-Ring set from Cycleorings.com He is a member here, and puts the o-ring kits together specifically for our bikes. Doesn't cost much either. the symptoms you have suggest a lean condition. VERY lean. If you follow the above cleaning and rebuild tutorial, you should be up and running long before we thaw out. Don't hesitate to ask questions. Only way to learn in my opinion...
 
Spyder said:
...I would get stage 3 dyno jet kit, and an O-Ring set from Cycleorings.com.
Click to expand...

Absolutely agree.

And worst comes to worst, you can learn to live with it. My Sporster refuses to rev much past 6k, and I was told there's nothing can be done about it. :p:p
 
Spyder said:
Nobody here will suggest a rebuild kit here, lol. Straight pipes and pods will require more than 2 steps up in jet size. I would get stage 3 dyno jet kit, and an O-Ring set from Cycleorings.com He is a member here, and puts the o-ring kits together specifically for our bikes. Doesn't cost much either. the symptoms you have suggest a lean condition. VERY lean. If you follow the above cleaning and rebuild tutorial, you should be up and running long before we thaw out. Don't hesitate to ask questions. Only way to learn in my opinion...
Click to expand...
These are the plugs if this helps, do these look too lean?
image.jpg
 
hey private message "chuck hahn" he knows about straightpipes and such but just know with straightpipes youll have to be tuning ur carbs a good amount of times no real set and forget tune for them. if ur not worried bout peak performance and like the loudness youll be fine but you do lose power from those straightpipes.
 
One of the tricks to running straight pipes is to put "Lollypops" in the pipes to help generate some backpressure and reclaim that lost torque. Basically they're just a bolt with a washer welded onto them that's placed into the pipes. It's a cheap or even free solution out of a well stocked junk drawer. There's plenty of articles and YouTube videos out there on how to do it.
 
LAB3 said:
One of the tricks to running straight pipes is to put "Lollypops" in the pipes to help generate some backpressure and reclaim that lost torque. Basically they're just a bolt with a washer welded onto them that's placed into the pipes. It's a cheap or even free solution out of a well stocked junk drawer. There's plenty of articles and YouTube videos out there on how to do it.
Click to expand...

I have looked into them, I may try it tomorrow in my free time and report back. Do they tend to need adjustment or should I just run the washers straight vertical to the pipe?
 
timebombprod said:
hey private message "chuck hahn" he knows about straightpipes and such but just know with straightpipes youll have to be tuning ur carbs a good amount of times no real set and forget tune for them. if ur not worried bout peak performance and like the loudness youll be fine but you do lose power from those straightpipes.
Click to expand...

Will do, thanks much.
 
octusis said:
I have looked into them, I may try it tomorrow in my free time and report back. Do they tend to need adjustment or should I just run the washers straight vertical to the pipe?
Click to expand...

It's really an old school trick and there's no rocket science involved. Try setting them up so they sit at a 45? angle and take it out for a ride. After it warms up good you should be feeling a boost in low and mid-range torque, if it satisfies you leave em be. If not, try setting them square to the pipes to block as much as they can. Somewhere along the way you'll figure out where they do the most good, it's highly doubtful they'll make anything worse.
 
So, I pulled the plugs today on it and turned it over to look at my spark.
#1 Cylinder shot heaps and heaps of gas out of the spark plug hole, the other cylinders were all fine.
Could this be contributing to my issue with the bike not revving? and if so what should I look at replacing because i've already inspected the float needle and that seems to look fine.
 
If you're sure that the float needle is seated properly then you have two possibilities to look at. The first would be the seal that sits under the seat leaking, the second being the float height being off. From earlier in the thread it was suggested to get the oring set and do a proper cleaning following the tutorial and installing the jet kit. Anything short of that is going to keep you (and us) guessing and wasting your time.
 
LAB3 said:
If you're sure that the float needle is seated properly then you have two possibilities to look at. The first would be the seal that sits under the seat leaking, the second being the float height being off. From earlier in the thread it was suggested to get the oring set and do a proper cleaning following the tutorial and installing the jet kit. Anything short of that is going to keep you (and us) guessing and wasting your time.
Click to expand...

I've just set the float according to the guide someone posted on this thread a few days ago, so it must be that oring. I've tried to take that out before but I didn't want to damage the seat trying to pry it out. I guess I'll have to do my best ill report back with how it goes.
 
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