92 gs500 problem!!!

[calvert0014]

i just purchased a 92 gs500 with 21,000 miles on it. when i bought it, the bike was not running, but today i bought a new battery and cleaned the carbs according to the information in the "how to" section. after doing this the bike runs, but the problem is, that, whenever you try to turn the choke off, or give it any throttle it just cuts off (by the way i let it warm up for about ten minutes and the problem still persisted). are there any adjustments to the carburetor that i need to make? any suggestions would be helpful.

[davipu]

have you adjusted the air mix screw? and where is the idle screw set at?

[calvert0014]

exactly where is the air mix screw? and what should it be adjusted to? i had  it idling at around 1200 rpm.

[raylarrabee]

needs to be idling much higher than 1200 when under choke.  when you take the choke out, the rpms will drop by like 1/2.  when you back the choke out, give it some throttle.  If it stays running, your problem is likely that you have the idle set too low.  If not, it's likely somethin else.

[Roadstergal]

http://www.gstwins.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=15250

[calvert0014]

it wont accept any throttle at all even if i turn the idle screw it will cut off before reaching around 2000 rpm. also i just found out that only one of the cylinders is firing (the left side of the engine is cool). there is electricity getting to the spark, i checked using a volt meter. what else would cause the  left cylinder not to fire? Also, i have both air screws set to four turns out

[mjm]

it wont accept any throttle at all even if i turn the idle screw it will cut off before reaching around 2000 rpm. also i just found out that only one of the cylinders is firing (the left side of the engine is cool). there is electricity getting to the spark, i checked using a volt meter. what else would cause the  left cylinder not to fire? Also, i have both air screws set to four turns out

Stock setting on the air screws is around 3 turns out - 4 is generally acceptable.

What does the left plug look like?  Black? That is too rich but still firing once in a while at least.  Wet? Is it oil or gas that has it wet?  Is it gapped right?  

I would start by replacing the left plug with a brand shiny new ones properly gapped.  Also, check the valves - many problems blamed on carbs and ignition are valves out of spec.

[calvert0014]

i think i  solved the problem with spark plugs, i started jumping the bike to with my car battery and both cylinders are firing now. i guess the bikes battery got run down with all the      ing. but, my original problem still presist. how exactly do you inspect/adjust the valves, i dont even know where they are. they need to have a "how to" on valve adjustment.

[RedShift]

It sounds like you need to fish out $30 and invest in a GS500 Clymer manual.  

If you're going at this with just deductive reasoning, it will take a lot of time, patience and internet bandwidth.  

[Kerry]

how exactly do you inspect/adjust the valves, i dont even know where they are. they need to have a "how to" on valve adjustment.

As it happens, there IS a Valve Adjustment How-To right here on GStwin!
NOTE:  You don't have to remove the carbs unless you WANT to mess around with the camchain tensioner.  And even if you do remove them, you don't HAVE to remove the airbox.  But some folks find it easier.

Also ... I offer a 1-hour, 18-minute video on CD (play it on your computer) for the cost of materials and shipping.  (See this post for pricing.)

Finally, you can get on the list for one of 2 valve adjustment toolkits that are circulating around the country.  A copy of the video-on-CD comes in each kit, along with the tools needed for the job.  If you already have the tools (or you're in a hurry) feel free to PM me with your address and I'll send a CD out to you ASAP.

[calvert0014]

would valves that need adjusting cause the problems that i listed before? because i dont want to do all of that and have the problem still remain. by the way i ordered a clymer manual but it hasnt gotten here yet.

[Kerry]

Well, it's hard to say whether a valve adjustment will solve those particular symptoms.  But if you have reason to believe that a valve adjustment has never been done in 21,000 miles   (they're supposed to be checked every 4,000 ... and they usually need to be adjusted every second or third time) then I would certainly suggest that you get that done before chasing TOO many other possibilities.

10 minutes is plenty of warmup time.  That could even be enough to warp the front fender from the engine heat.  (If the bike sat still the whole time.)

Yes, there are other things you can try, like

* installing new spark plugs
* cleaning or replacing the air filter
* taking the carbs apart and putting them back together
* synchronizing the carbs
* etc.[/list:u]But don't put off that valve check / adjustment too long....

[RedShift]

...  by the way i ordered a clymer manual but it hasnt gotten here yet.

[calvert0014]

how exaclly can you tell if a cylinder is firing? the right side is always much warmer than the left although the left side is fairly warm. i tested it and there is electricity going to both spark plugs. what else would cause one of the cylindars to either not fire or  be significantly cooler than the other. the bike still will not go anywhere above 2000 rpm (with the choke on). here is what i have tried:

* switched the spark plugs (didn't change anything)
* checked the gap (btw what is the recomended gap i tried .76 and .86 mm)
* took apart and cleaned the carbs
* adjusted the air screw to 4 turns out
* ran a line directly from the tank to the carb

its proobubly going to be like a month before the valve adjustment screw gets to me. is there anything else that you guys can think of that would solve my problem. also how do you synchronize the carburetors maybe that will help.

[calvert0014]

bump!!

[ktrim]

check your float level, that would also cause some of theprobs you are having

[Kerry]

how exaclly can you tell if a cylinder is firing? the right side is always much warmer than the left although the left side is fairly warm.

Good question!  The "warmness test" seems like a good one, but if one side is running rich and the is running lean it could lead you astray, I suppose.

i tested it and there is electricity going to both spark plugs.

Care to describe the test you did?  Was it like this ...



... or did you use a fancy technique with electrical test equipment?

Unfortunately, I found out by sad experience that the test pictured above is not necessarily conclusive.  My bike was down for 5 months while I tried to figure out why it was running on only one cylinder.  In addition to the above test I tried leaving the spark plug in place and hooking up a homemade spark checker doodad between it and the spark plug wire.  I ALWAYS got a spark, but I noticed that it was on the yellow side; not quite like the nice blue spark folks would tell me to watch for.

I eventually tracked it down to a corroded connector.  If you have an ohmmeter and are willing to do some fairly simple tests, work through the checklist in this post.  (You may want to start at the beginning of the thread for some background.)

On a related note, read in this post about how dezmoduo recently (as in ... on Monday!) tracked down a similar problem on his bike .

also how do you synchronize the carburetors maybe that will help.

I know that I mentioned this as a possible next step, but I honestly wouldn't worry about it until we're sure that both cylinders are functional.  But if you're at wit's end and have nothing else to try, do a search for sync* tool ... don't forget to click "Search for all terms" ... and read until you can't stand it any more.  

[calvert0014]

hey guys thanks for everything!!!! i finally figured out what was wrong with the bike. earlier i decided to go to the "how to" section and re-read the information about fuel line routing, apparently, the person i bought the bike from had connected the vacuum hose to that outlet on the top of the carbs, so that is why it wouldnt go above 2k rpm. both cylindars are definately firing (nice and hot). i still need to make a few adjustments to get it idling in the right range (without the choke). unfortunately as soon as i figured all of this out it started raining here, so i guess the fine tuning will have to wait till tmr. then maybe i will go for a quick ride!!! also as soon as i get the east coast kit i will get those valves adjusted.      

[calvert0014]

i finally had time to go for a ride on the bike. i just did a few rides up and down my street , its about 2mi long, fairly calm, and pretty straight. WOW, the acceleration on the gs is amazing, 10x what i imagined it to be. it was the best time of my life. i still need to work on the shifting though, i stalled it a couple of times. the only problem that i ran into was, when i was done for the day i realized that there was oil all over everything (engine, battery, foot pegs, ect.) i was really worried at first, cause i thought that it was leaking from the engine. but then i realized that it was fork oil, apparently i need to replace the fork seals ASAP. now all i have to do is get my motorcycle license.

[RVertigo]

Don't forget the MSF course! It's totally worth it.