• Required reading for all forum users!!!

    Welcome!
    Register to access the full functionality of the GSResources forum. Until you register and activate your account you will not have full forum access, nor will you be able to post or reply to messages.

    A note to new registrants...
    All new forum registrations must be activated via email before you have full access to the forum.

    A Special Note about Email accounts!
    DO NOT SIGN UP USING hotmail, outlook, gmx, sbcglobal, att, bellsouth or email.com. They delete our forum signup emails.

    A note to old forum members...
    I receive numerous requests from people who can no longer log in because their accounts were deleted. As mentioned in the forum FAQ, user accounts are deleted if you haven't logged in for the past 6 months. If you can't log in, then create a new forum account. If you don't get an error message, then check your email account for an activation message. If you get a message stating that the email address is already in use, then your account still exists so follow the instructions in the forum FAQ for resetting your password.

    Have you forgotten your password or have a new email address? Then read the forum FAQ for details on how to reset it.

    Any email requests for "can't log in anymore" problems or "lost my password" problems will be deleted. Read the forum FAQ and follow the instructions there - that's what we have one for...

  • Returning Visitors

    If you are a returning visitor who never received your confirmation email, then odds are your email provider is blockinig emails from our server. The only thing that can be done to get around this is you will have to try creating another forum account using an email address from another domain.

    If you are a returning visitor to the forum and can't log in using your old forum name and password but used to be able to then chances are your account is deleted. Purges of the databases are done regularly. You will have to create a new forum account and you should be all set.

81 GS850GLX refuses to start

  • Thread starter Thread starter DaveDanger
  • Start date Start date
D

DaveDanger

Guest
It's said that confession is good for the soul. If so, this oughta really clean me out.

About 2 weeks ago, I finished a short ride with the decision to pull the spark plugs and perform a compression check. Accomplished the task with no problems. Glass-Bead-blasted the plugs, reset the gaps and reinstalled them all using a drop of anti-seize on the threads. It hasn't cranked and run since. Simply turns over and over with the occasional backfire out the exhaust as it loads up with unburned fuel. Checked the petcock, floatbowls, inline filter, pulled the plugs again and checked for spark, etc. 4 battery charges later, everything checked out fine, except that it wouldn't crank. Today, I finally sat down on the ground beside the bike to stare at the engine with various looks of confusion... lots of 'em.

What began to penetrate my thick head was the arrangement of the plug wires, and the almost illegible number labels on each one. I'd managed to swap both wires on each side of the engine. All four wires went to the wrong plugs. Took 15 seconds to return them to their correct locations and got the stupidest grin on my face when the engine fired right up.

Please.... someone tell me they've done this before. :oops:
 
No, But I had a Dumb#ss Neighbor screw up the Plug Wires on My Ford Pick-up One Time. I soon told Him that His help wasn't needed when I was working on My stuff. :wink:
 
Just this weekend as a matter of fact. The GS550E I bought several weeks ago wouldn't start (not because of plug wires BTW) and was only running on two cylinders when it finally did, so I cleaned the carbs, checked float heights, changed hoses, changed all fuses, checked wiring, and changed plugs. The plug wires weren't labeled (they are now :lol: ), so I got two of them backwards in my rush to hear it run. It started fine, but wasn't running on two cylinders again and backfiring, so I swapped the wires as I wasn't sure if I put them back right anyway. Sure enough, I found my problem. Now that thing runs like a small wild animal!!!

Note to self: Label plug wires before pulling them...... :roll: :roll: :roll:
 
I haven't done this on a bike (yet).

Once when working on my wife's %$#@! stupid Ford pickup, I managed to put the distributor in 180 degrees off. Why? Who knows? Actually, it almost sorta ran that way, which was far better than the usual state of things with that heap.

Sometime about 2:00 am, I figured it out, swapped around some plug wires, and it ran just fine until something else broke. Buying her a Toyota saved our marriage.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top