Engine sitting too long

[Schmoe]

Finally talked my Dad out of this. He has a 1980 GS1000G Suzuki, air cooled, shaft drive, 5 speed, DOHC, that I used to drive when I was going to college. He drove it some but since he's gotten cancer, it has sit for a long time. He finally told me to come get it. It needs some love. I'm planning to strip it and paint it and "fix" it up. Keeping all things stock though. My question, it has been sitting for about a good 10 years now. Gas tank has rust inside, so I'll have to line it with that gas tank coating stuff that worked really well on my moped that, ironically I got from Dad and it too had sit for about 12 years. What do I need to do now to get it back running. I've heard the old story of adding kerosene or diesel fuel in the crankcase and pour it through the spark plugs and let it soak for a while. I don't even know if the engine will turn over once I get a new battery for it. So, I am open to suggestions. I never did change the oil in it, I don't even know where the oil filter is. Rear gear, drain the fluid or you think it may be OK because it's been sealed all these years? It doesn't leak or anything.

[ June 26, 2003, 09:54 AM: Message edited by: Schmoe ]

 

[3 Mad Ponchos]

If it were a car I'd say give it an oil change, fresh gas, and new spark plugs, and fire that sucker up.

But it's a bike, and the stakes are a lot higher (for you). Haul it home.

Cheers, 3MP

 

[MRC01]

quote:

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Originally posted by Schmoe:
it has been sitting for about a good 10 years now. Gas tank has rust inside

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The carbs are probably all gummed and varnished up. You will need to replace them, or remove them from the bike for a meticulous and thorough cleaning.

 

[Smoky14]

Pull the timing cover and put a wrench on the large nut, approx 19mm if memory serves, and see if the crank shaft will turn. If it does you are in power, if not you will have to, most likely, pull the engine down.

 

[Propflux01]

There is a good GS site that will give you a wealth of infor for the GS model. it is thegsresources.com and has more ansers to anything you ever want to know about a GS.

 

[Schmoe]

Hey, that website is great!!! I've looked through a couple of search engines and they did not find this site. Man, I hope I don't have to tear the engine down. That is a little over my head and where I live, there isn't a Suzuki dealer for 100 miles. My thoughts would be engine may have seized, to un-seize it, it needs lubrication. Kind of like spraying WD40 or a penetrating oil to loosen it up. That wouldn't work? It ran like a bat out of #ell before Dad quit driving it. I'm also wondering about the valve seals. Carb's, all 4 of them, I figure a good dose cleaning of Berryman's Carb Cleaning, the good stuff with tetrachloroethylene will clean and de-gum anything.

 

[sam]

Before I tore it down completely, I would drain all the gas, change the oil, change the fuel filter, remove the plugs and put a tablespoon of Top Oil in each but dont put the plugs back. Then use a wrench to turn it over or if you feel brave charge the battery and just tap the starter. You just need to move the Top oil around. Put new plugs in and fresh gas and see if it will kick over. If it does get some fuel injector cleaner in it and run it long enough to get it through the system. With the tank being rusty though you may have other problems and I definitly would not ride it until you had every bolt and cable checked or replaced, and new brake fluid put in. Theres nothing like being thrown over the handle bars when something falls off and stops you dead at 30 or 40 mph or finding you cant stop as you close on the back of that semi truck at 50 mph.

 

[MolaKule]

Recommendation:

Soak the cylinders with 4 oz. of LC even before turning the crank. LC will derust and decarbon anything in the cylinder assembly area.

 

[Schmoe]

Appreciate the info, if you got any more from the others out there, bring it on. I just went to thegsresources site, but did not like it. Registered and even posted a topic but it just didn't feel comfortable. I guess what I'm saying is I ain't leaving this board and you guys are just going to have to help me (can you feel the LOVE

????) School me, what is LC? Lube Control? Is it a Walmart thing? This Dennis Kirk, parts dealer I take it? website probably also.
Can I resonably expect the diaphrams to be shot? Geesh, the more I learn the more I realize that this is going to be a major undertaking. Need to load it my truck and get it out of Tenn. and to Oklahoma. Will TCE get varnish out of the carbs? Or am I breathing hot air and just take the plunge and get four rebuild kits? Didn't even think about front seals. Man, what the #ell am I getting myself into. I thought this would be fun...

I am mechanically inclined but I don't own a garage. Does any know if that bike is a wet clutch?

[ June 26, 2003, 01:58 PM: Message edited by: Schmoe ]

 

[rat_rider]

quote:

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Originally posted by VaderSS:
I opened the jets up using a pice of wire from a wire brush, and after letting them soak in carb cleaner, spin the wire bewteen my fingers using the brush like a drill. Took a long time but it opened them all up.[/QB]

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Just about any manual I've ever seen strongly warns against using wire to clean up the jets. They're just brass and can easily be enlarged or deformed enough to mess with fuel mixture.
Better bet is nylon filament and good (plastic and rubber safe) carb cleaner, compressed air helps too.
Do Not throw the whole carb assembly into a bucket of "carb dip" or similar product. Most of those type of cleaners will eat all the rubber parts and ruin your day. Diaphragms are expensive and hard to find - the seals on the butterfly shafts are often not available at all.

Ben

 

[VaderSS]

quote:

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Can I resonably expect the diaphrams to be shot?

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It's a 50/50 sort of thing. They may be fine, they may be crap. Just carefully pull the covers and they will be nice and flexible or... Like I said though, you can collect a lot of cheap spare parts off ebay...

www.denniskirk.com All kinds of good stuff...

As for the wire brush thing, you would have had to seen the jets. I thought I was going to have to buy new ones... Monofilamament would not have cut it. It took about 20 minutes with a small strand of the wire per jet to clean them. Bike ran/runs fine.

Like he say's though, do NOT immerse the entire carb in cleaner, unless you REALLY want to be buying new parts. I just priced a NOS carb(complete) for my fazer. $350, it takes 4 of them. Occasionally they pop up on ebay and usually go for about $100-$250 for all 4, depending on the condition.

Don't get scared off, patience and care will get that bike going again, and you will be PROUD...

Don't blow money on rebuild kits unless the carbs are truly skosh. If you had seen my fazer before I got it running... First time I got on it and hit 60 in about 4 seconds, OH MY!!!

[ June 26, 2003, 04:52 PM: Message edited by: VaderSS ]

 

[Schmoe]

That's what I'm TALKING ABOUT!!!!! Just talked with Dad, he had planned on riding it again but cancer kicked in and now he's on all types of chemo and radiation and can't ride anymore. But, he did tell me that the last time he drove it, it ran like a scalded dog. He did not get the fuel out of the lines. Gas tank is empty and rusty, I can fix, no problem. Toilet bowl acid cleaner works great, just have to keep track of the time it's in there. Then when it's all rinsed out, put a clear in-line fuel filter on it so you can see if it gets clogged up anymore. So, all the lubrication should still be in decent shape, just has sit for some time. Maybe I'll try and fire it up next week, or at least see if it will turn over, as suggested by some excellent posters!!!

I wonder, since I have to take the tank off anyway just to get started, if I should go ahead and take all 4 carbs. off and just clean them? My thoughts are to take the bowl and floats off, clean them, check the jets and the slider, and then check out springs and the fuel passages. At least this way I can narrow the problem down if it won't start. You think it may start without worrying about cleaning the carbs????

[ June 26, 2003, 09:44 PM: Message edited by: Schmoe ]

 

[VaderSS]

FIRST thing I would do, is get a service manual. Preferably a Suzuki one, but Haynes or Chilton can do. I can't tell you how much hassle the Yamaha manual has saved me from though. The Chilton one is garbage in comparison.

Check out Ebay for parts. www.Partsfish.com has many OEM parts. They buy out dealer suplies when they discontinue them.

My Fazer sat for 7 years. The only issues I had were that the calipers were froze and the master cylinders all had to be rebuilt. Also, the carbs were varnished up. I opened the jets up using a pice of wire from a wire brush, and after letting them soak in carb cleaner, spin the wire bewteen my fingers using the brush like a drill. Took a long time but it opened them all up.

Very important is to make sure that the plug wires are in the correct order, and you will need new plugs and probably need plug towers. Get the plug towers at Dennis Kirk. Prices for parts from the dealer, if they even have them, will SHOCK you. I do recommend genuine fork seals(which will start leaking if they are not already) though. Oh, you'll need new tires and probably new chain and sprockets, again, Dennis Kirk...

Be very careful with the carbs. New parts are very dear. A set of diaphrams for my carbs are worth more than I paid for the bike, no joke...

 

[VaderSS]

quote:

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You think it may start without worrying about cleaning the carbs????

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If he did not run it dry when he shut it down. The gasoline dried to a shellac like finish...

My jets were solidly packed with it. The only way it would have started is to have poured raw gas in the intakes, and I don't reccomend that at all.

At the very least, pull one of the bowls. You should be able to do that without pulling the carbs, and it will give you an idea of what the rest look like.

 

[Schmoe]

Just got to Dad's house and had a good look at it and started tearing things down and need some input. Fuel was still in the tank, God, what a smell. Brought back memories from other projects but thought I was going to barf. Wife ran out of the garage when she smelled that stuff. There was a about a inch of crud in the bottom of the tank. Yuck. Drained one fuel bowl and it still had fuel in it. Tires were shot but still had oil in the crankcase. Think I need to clean out all the carbs? The fuel hasn't dried yet obviously so that, I was wondering. What do ya'll think? Drive shaft had leaked some oil too. Is it going to be an expensive undertaking? Just wondering if it's worth it. Will need a paint job too.

 

[satterfi]

Unless you are emotionally attached to this POS, forget it. I'd find something else to waste time and money on.

It's not worth more than a few hundred dollars. Buy a modern bike with real brakes, cartridge forks, radial tires, etc..

Even in new condition, a 1980 vintage bike is junk compared to what's available today.

 

[Schmoe]

I know, but where is the sense of mechanical adventure? No $hit? You don't think it's worth the time? Motor has low miles.

 

[satterfi]

I used up all my "mechanical adventure" working on Italian machinery.

Maybe you'll get lucky and it won't take much to get it going again.

 

[3 Mad Ponchos]

'long as you're not in a hurry, why not fix it up? You already own the thing right?

I mean, so far it just sounds like it needs a really good cleaning.

Cheers, 3MP

 

[Propflux01]

Schmoe, you gotta keep this in mind.....what is it worth to YOU? being in the family and all, maybe worth more than some 'bike off the street'. It seems more like it needs LOTs of TLC moreso than anything else. You said you were not that mechanically inclined? Here is a good place to start. Good luck with your decision., and one more thing.....It maybe 80's tech, but I know my big, heavy GS1100GK will out run alot of other big bikes around today......