Help diagnose by listening to my sick 1982 Goldwing GL1100

[slabghost]

after sitting with petcock off starter jambed on a restart
- rocking the bike in gear allowed the motor to turn over and then start but now doesn't fire on cylinders 1&3
In light of the above I'd double check the timing belts.

 

[CreatorsDream]

I think we can all confuse the hell out of you.
Dan seems to be giving concrete advice, eliminate possibilities one at a time.

To summarize as I understand it

- bike was running fine
- after sitting with petcock off starter jambed on a restart
- rocking the bike in gear allowed the motor to turn over and then start but now doesn't fire on cylinders 1&3
- occasionally firing 1 or 3 under throttle
- can smell gas while running
- compression is verified good
- replaced timing belts and still runs the same

COILS
- one coil fires 1 & 2, one coil fires 3 & 4. Unless someone switched the plug wires from 1 & 3 to the same coil it looks like coils aren't the problem. Switch plug wires as Dan suggests and you should be able to eliminate coils as the problem.

CARBS
- If it isn't the coils is sure looks like carbs. Considering how it's running I would have guessed a stuck float, but that doesn't explain why both 1 and 3 aren't firing as both carbs starting to flood at the same time seems unlikely. Is the carb linkage working properly??? Did someone stick a potatoe in your exhaust???

Jorg

Jorg, thank you for reading through the entire thread and for giving such a good summary! I wish it would have been a potato...

Here's the thing about the start of this problem which you all may laugh at, but forces me to look at electrical issues. I bought this bike last spring and put 4000 miles on it before the ABRUPT change. The day this happened I found out from a friend that one of the largest solar flares of the year struck the earth on this day. I hear you laughing now but hold on. When I went to the bike to restart it after eating at a Cracker Barrel, I simply turned the key/ignition and the engine tried to start. I was looking down on the left side by the spark plugs and saw a very long squiggly arc go across the valve covers. Then the "click" and no starter turning. Click, click, nothing. I thought this is real strange because I just replaced the battery! That's when I started rocking the bike in gear, thinking that I had a gas lock because I could smell fuel. Little did I know that turning the petcock off every time was imperative to the bike.

This is why I want to rule out all electrical before I go into the carbs. My bike was running so sweet up until this incident. I drove the bike back home, a 46 mile trip smelling gas and using up a half tank of gas. This last time I took a test drive, I filled it up and drove maybe 12 miles or so and noticed another half tank gone! So there is a rich mixture, maybe so much that the plugs are drowning out. Maybe it is carbs but as I'm going through all the electrical, I am finding other things that are not measuring up. The rectifier is one issue which I have yet to understand how it works. It failed the ohm tests. I'm also concerned about my plug wires. After looking for answers on the web, I understand that a 7 mm solid copper wire is what I should be using. My local Advance Auto does not carry it. I'm going to call our farmers supply store (Agri Supply) to see if maybe they carry some. Seems I can simply cut sections and replace the existing ends.

Anyway, thank you all for helping diagnose my GL1100i!

 

[scdmarx]

The day this happened I found out from a friend that one of the largest solar flares of the year struck the earth on this day. I hear you laughing now but hold on. When I went to the bike to restart it after eating at a Cracker Barrel, I simply turned the key/ignition and the engine tried to start. I was looking down on the left side by the spark plugs and saw a very long squiggly arc go across the valve covers.

Perhaps someone here has the number of a good exorcist?

 

[dan filipi]

Wow, well there was all sort of a wild series of events that took place.

I still think the compression check should be done first.

You could try running it out of gas with the petcock off, sometimes doing this will clear any junk out of the float seat.

If compression is good then swap coils like I said earlier.

 

[CreatorsDream]

It's FIXED!!!

I want to dance! :Egyptian:

But I also feel soooo stupid! :swoon:

It WAS an ignition problem. I didn't see it until I started to pull the coils and switch them like Dan said. So many wires... I decided to draw a diagram for reference as I pulled the wires and drew which plug went to which coil. Then I new I had seen a diagram somewhere which coil used which plugs, and guess what? My #3 & #1 were reversed!!!

Okay laugh at me! I deserve it. See, the two plugs on the right were not marked, and when I changed the plugs, I must have switched them. But I swear to you, I thought I put them back the same way! A hard lesson learned!

In fact, I am more knowledgeable now than ever before because of you guys here on ClassicGoldwings. You made me think about the mechanics of this amazing machine. I can now ride with more confidence, knowing what may go wrong... and that can be anything! :yes:

I'll come back with a before and after video once I've put her back together and run a tank of Sea Foam. Maybe I can still get away from having to do the "carb rebuild" that everyone swears I have to do. :hihihi:

 

[joedrum]

great its better to look stupid than to have anything realy wrong ..... oh2: :rtfm: :help: :headscratch: :headscratch: :headscratch: :heat: :doh: :doh: :doh: :mrgreen:

 

[dan filipi]

That's great, glad it turned out to be a simple fix!

 

[89-300ce]

That would bring you right back to the stuck float that started this whole thing.

>>>"The starter simply would not turn it over. I had it in neutral so being in gear was not the culprit. Seems almost as if I had a vapor lock so I put it in gear and rocked it until I noticed the engine turning. I was then able to start it up, but something was not right any more so I drove back home - a 40 mile return. I noticed the smell of unburnt gas on the trip home. Every time I stopped and started, I notice it was hard to get going, but once I got up to cruising speed, things seemed to normalize."

>>>"#2 looked wet. All others looked dry."

>>>" I drove the bike back home, a 46 mile trip smelling gas and using up a half tank of gas. This last time I took a test drive, I filled it up and drove maybe 12 miles or so and noticed another half tank gone!"

Post#7

My two cents....

could the first locked motor be from a leaking float causing a hydraulic fuel lock? Once it was running at low speeds he had unburied gas and it cleared up at speed.
Could the trouble now be from a Leaking, very rich mixture? Mine sounds somewhat similar with over choking.

+1, I think we have a winner! From the description, you have a stuck float or a dirty needle & seat.

Maybe it cleared itself out but I would run the carbs dry like Dan suggests and keep an eye on your fuel consumption. If it's still high have a look at your plugs to isolate the carb.

Jorg

 

[AApple]

oh2:
:smilie_happy:

Whew!! It's always the silly stuff that gets us all wound up looking for a complicated solution. btdt many, MANY times.Congrats on getting it figured out....hope the rest all works out as well!! :Egyptian:

 

[slabghost]

:yahoo: That's great! Do your happy dance and ride. :Egyptian: