Bike broke down ON MY WAY TO SELL IT!!!!! HELP!

[Thor S Magic Bathtub]

I'm pissed at my gs right now...
I was riding it to my buddies house that was going to buy it from me and it broke down. I have no cluw what's wrong with it so if anyone has any ideas I'd appreciate it.
I had to jump start it this morning b/c the battery was dead (haddn't driven in about 5 days and battery is crap). When it started it sounded kinda sick. Like there was no oil in it or something, but after a few seconds of idling "loudly" the engine revved up and the bad sound went away. So I let it warm up then took off. It died at a stop sign a few hundred yards down the road because I had turn the choke off all the way while the engine was still a little cold and I forgot to rev it.
It wouldnt start again because the battery was too low, so I called my wife and she drove the car down to jump it. Hooked it up and hit the start button and it started up, but sounded horrible... It only lasted for a couple seconds before it died so I can't really remember the sound, but it was sorta like grinding I think. Now it won't even turn over. Just clicks once when I hit the start button, nothing else. I tried to push start it while walking it back home--no luck. Didn't even sound like it was trying to start, just made a sort of whizzing sound when I released the clutch. No turning over or anything.
To top it all off, I'm leaving for freaking boot camp day after tomorrow so I have NO TIME to look at it. That's why I was selling it in the first place. So now I gotta figure out what I'm supposed to do with it! I guess I'll probably leave it alone for now, have my wife bring it down with her when we meet up in a few months and deal with it then.
Anyway, if you have any suggestions, let me know.
I would think it was just the starter except for the grinding/whizzing sounds...

[Thor S Magic Bathtub]

Oh yeah...
its a 96
10,300 miles
no big maintenance done on it as far as I know. I don't think the previous owner did any carb cleaning/valve stuff...
Yes I change the oil regularily--I just did a couple weeks ago--oil level is fine right now.

[Mandres]

but it was sorta like grinding I think ...

That's not good at all.  Charge / Replace the battery and if it still doesn't start you're going to have to start going down the list.  Check the compression first and foremost.  If there is none you're going to have to tear down the engine and find the problem.  If you have good compression check the plugs and carbs.  If it's still making grinding or other strange noises once you get it started the engine will still need to be overhauled.

-M

[scratch]

Potential Stalwart's Syndrome.

[The Buddha]

Starwalt's you mean ...
That is very very rare ... goats is much more common, and its usually accompanied by a loud clank at startup ... Of course you may have simple goats instead of starter clutch and goats ... or starter clutch causing goats ...
Cool.
Srinath.

[corndog67]

If its grinding, its toast.

[tussey]

To top it all off, I'm leaving for freaking boot camp day after tomorrow so I have NO TIME to look at it.

Meh. Leave it be. The bike will be there once you're done with basic. It sounds like it's something serious that would take several days of wrenching to determine. You don't need that kind of stress before boot camp. Just let it go and deal with it when you're done.    Just my .02

[Thor S Magic Bathtub]

Starwalt's you mean ...
That is very very rare ... goats is much more common, and its usually accompanied by a loud clank at startup ... Of course you may have simple goats instead of starter clutch and goats ... or starter clutch causing goats ...
Cool.
Srinath.

Please tell me more... mine clanked really loud when I would start it almost everytime. I read a thread about it probably being the starter clutch but I didn't do anything about it at the time. Could that be my problem now, only in it's full manifestation?

[Thor S Magic Bathtub]

To top it all off, I'm leaving for freaking boot camp day after tomorrow so I have NO TIME to look at it.

Meh. Leave it be. The bike will be there once you're done with basic. It sounds like it's something serious that would take several days of wrenching to determine. You don't need that kind of stress before boot camp. Just let it go and deal with it when you're done.    Just my .02

Yeah, I don't plan on doing anything to it before I leave, but I wanted to ask you guys what the problem was while I could still remember what had happened.

[The Buddha]

Starwalt's you mean ...
That is very very rare ... goats is much more common, and its usually accompanied by a loud clank at startup ... Of course you may have simple goats instead of starter clutch and goats ... or starter clutch causing goats ...
Cool.
Srinath.

Please tell me more... mine clanked really loud when I would start it almost everytime. I read a thread about it probably being the starter clutch but I didn't do anything about it at the time. Could that be my problem now, only in it's full manifestation?

Starter clutch causing goats = srinaths syndrome or was it disease ...
The starter clutch getting some wear and putting some grooves in the hub and flat spotting the rollers (total cost like $17) will send enough of a shock through the rotor that its mounted on the back side of, to begin to shatter the rotor. You eventually start feeling a shaking sorta feeling like somehting is out of balance and soon enough, you dont have a battery that charges. You may also have a fuse that blows when you turn off the key (that was se7enty7's mutation), or have a tiny bit of magnet get into the starter clutchs engagement spot making it never dis engage, and that carries the starter with it ... aka Starwalt's disease ... Ironically all of these happened in the span of a month starting with Goat ... back in end summer 2004.
You'd prolly need a rotor, a stator, and a left case gasket in addition to the starter clutch. Open it and there will be a billion magnet pieces everywhere. Clean it all out, spray with crap, compressed air, diesel, pressure wash ... Take off the oil pan and clean oil screen and change filter ... goat rebuilt his bottom I believe, but I didn't. I changed the oild like every 200 miles for a 1000 miles or so and that was that. Magnets will get stuck into the mesh and all the steel parts like crank etc ... its not harmful unless it gets into the pump and pressure fed to bearings or the screen is blocked enough to kill oil pressure. Most likely not ... unless you saw the oil light at idle types. I and se7enty7 did not rebuild ... and he got it twice cos his case was just a shade cracked and epoxied, and it had the stator just a shade crooked and hit the rotor. Yours is definetly starter clutch vibrations making it break. I now should come over and thump you for ignoring that clunking starter clutch for this long ... mine did it for over a year ... before going kaput.
Cool.
Srinath.

[Thor S Magic Bathtub]

Thanks a bunch for your help. That sounds like my problem... I'll take care of it in a few months I guess.

I now should come over and thump you for ignoring that clunking starter clutch for this long ... mine did it for over a year ... before going kaput.
Cool.
Srinath.

Well I've owned mine for about 10 months now and who knows how long it was clanking before I got it... hopefully I learned my lesson. Now I can look forward to some good old wrenching on my gs when I get back...
And I take back what I said earlier about being pissed at my gs. It's not its fault.