How Angry Should I Be?

[muchADEW]

Well, another lesson learned. I used regular car oil in my bike. 

I now need to do an oil change for another reason. I saw 10w40 and thought ... well, that 10w40 was 10w40. Oops.

So, a couple questions: can I just do a regular oil change (using the right oil this time), or do I need to clean it out somehow?

Also, would the wrong oil cause the problems I mentioned above?

[Big Rich]

Oops! Yep, that can cause your clutch to slip. There's a couple ways to go about it: either drain the current oil best you can, add some motorcycle oil and let the bike idle for 5 - 10 minutes, drain the oil & filter while it's still warm, add more oil, test ride OR add about a half quart of kerosene to the current oil, let it idle, drain, add, etc, etc.

You can try the stuff they sell at auto parts stores called "Motor Flush" or whatever instead of kerosene, but it's about 75 percent kerosene anyways.

[mach1]

well i used royal purple motor oil and had no clutch issues

[muchADEW]

Oil leak from left side prolly is chain lube. BTW if you drag it over to charlotte NC, I'll be happy to tell ya what you should do.

BTW I am near about doubled over with pain in my ribs, so may just tell you if you did it in the next few weeks. Wait till I can stand upright and I may toss some wrenches your way and see what we can do.

96 bike should not need O rings - not a given. I also have seen floats leak when Idiot mechanics crank the drain bolts too tight, but no worries, I got plenty of bowls laying about. Oh I also have seen a cracked one when someone pushed the carbs down to remove them off the bike, and that big bolt that is sitting on the top rear side of the motor cracked it. But all in all, it takes a moron to get a metal float bowl that has held up for 15 years to suddenly leak.

Thanks for the offer, Buddha. I'm going to try some simple solutions first -- hopefully they work. If not, I've got all winter to figure it out.

[The Buddha]

I run car oil, all the time, in all my bikes.
I use accel 10W40 ... walmart issue oil. Dude it cannot do much of anything unless you run 20,000 on the same oil.
Cool.
buddha.

[reload]

yeh i used reg autozone 10w40 oil.

[muchADEW]

I run car oil, all the time, in all my bikes.
I use accel 10W40 ... walmart issue oil. Dude it cannot do much of anything unless you run 20,000 on the same oil.

Really? I'm already experiencing clutch slippage (I assume the pull forward when I first start the bike is from clutch slippage). I used Exxon brand 10w40.

BTW, Buddha, apparently the jets in my bike are from you. The guy who sold it to me said they were 25s/140s, I think. Does that sound right? I would assume that they wouldn't be gummed up already, so I'm hoping the Seafoam solution works b/c of some other dirty carb area. It's hesitating when I turn the throttle in low gears, so I have to rev it to 3-4k RPMs to get it started in 1st gear.

[JB848]

I run car oil, all the time, in all my bikes.
I use accel 10W40 ... walmart issue oil. Dude it cannot do much of anything unless you run 20,000 on the same oil.
Cool.
buddha.

Thank You Buddha...for clarifying. Oil is Oil with one exception er.. two..

1. The weight (Viscosity) of the Oil meaning thickness. The first number is the "cold" Viscosity and the second number is the rated "normal hot" thinnest Viscosity.

2. Probably most in important in our application with Motorcycles that have a common engine/transmission reservoir is the type of oil. Example Synthetic, Semi-Synthetic, and Mineral. The latter being most preferred for the GS500. Cars use completely different oils for the engine and transmission and are independent of each other.

Correct me if I am wrong Buddha...Synthetic oils actually lubricate "too good" for the clutch in the GS, hence the slippage.

I have always used high grade mineral motor oil and have never had an issue.

For more information on OIL and the proper applications refer to http://www.carbibles.com/engineoil_bible.html

[mister]

[
Really? I'm already experiencing clutch slippage (I assume the pull forward when I first start the bike is from clutch slippage).

So... you're in 1st gear, sitting on the bike with the side stand up. You pull in the clutch and press the starter button and the bike makes a slight move forward, as if someone bumped it from behind. Is that it? If so... don't worry about it, it's normal.

It's also normal that when in neutral and you want to move, sometimes you need to move the bike forward/backward a bit to get the gear to engage.

Michael

[The Buddha]

JB848: Oh yea here we go again car oil vs MC oil vs synthetic oil ... OK so who's got all day ... anyway I use access mineral oil, meant to go in cars made before 1990 and it is SF rated, so got plenty of zinc/phosphorous, and its definetly not too slipper for the clutch.

MuchADEW: You should have 40 pilots and 125 mains if its a stock filter in air box and a pipe or stock exhaust. Not 25/140's. But yes you can clog anything of course. So feed it seafoam and gas ... mix it up in a bottle and run just to carbs, not in the tank. I know of people who have fitted a small funnel to the fuel inlet line and poured it in there via beer bottle ... yea I know of people ... yea ... wink wink ... people. Shhhh not that I would ever ... OK fine I put that in the bike I picked up in richmond, tossed it in the truck and drove it home. 300 miles of our country's bumps perfectly agitated the crap out and when I got it here it was clean and a whistle. I rode it the next day.

BTW that lurching forward if you think abotu it, is the opposite of clutch slippage. Slippage is when you crank the throttle and the revs climb but bike dont go nowhere. Lurching can be reduced by warming the bike, and/or pumping the clutch lever a time or 2. Its caused by sticking plates, not slipping.

BTW if these are the problems you are having, taking them to a dealer is literally a sign on top of your head saying "I'm stupid, take my $$$".
You better post here and let some of the crusty dogs here get your issues manageable. Maybe your bike is just normal. When you start the bike on centerstand, does the rear wheel slowly spin ... OK normal. Just post it here, it may be nothing.

After carbs are clean, if you still idle @3-4K, open the air screws 1/2 turn. Sorry you got hesitation - is the air filter clean ? That can definetly cause a severe stalling type feel.

Cool.
Buddha.

[muchADEW]

MuchADEW: You should have 40 pilots and 125 mains if its a stock filter in air box and a pipe or stock exhaust. Not 25/140's. But yes you can clog anything of course. So feed it seafoam and gas ... mix it up in a bottle and run just to carbs, not in the tank.

Yes, you're right -- 40s/125s. My bad.

BTW, why should I feed the seafoam/gas mixture straight to the carbs and not through the gas tank? Won't it get there regardless?

BTW that lurching forward if you think abotu it, is the opposite of clutch slippage. Slippage is when you crank the throttle and the revs climb but bike dont go nowhere. Lurching can be reduced by warming the bike, and/or pumping the clutch lever a time or 2. Its caused by sticking plates, not slipping.

Good to know.

After carbs are clean, if you still idle @3-4K, open the air screws 1/2 turn. Sorry you got hesitation - is the air filter clean ? That can definetly cause a severe stalling type feel.

I think the idle issue is b/c the choke is stuck. For now, it actually kind of helps me, b/c it prevents stalling. But when I finally fix the hesitation problem, idling at 3500 RPM isn't going to be beneficial.

[The Buddha]

You put the seafoam in the tank, it can loosen and drag out the trash from the tank into the carbs. You will be worsening the very problem you are trying to solve. If your tank was perfect, yea no problem, dump it in the tank. BTW you can get to your goal with 1-2 oz of seafoam with the carb trick, but put it in the tank and you need a bottle or more. @10 bones a pint, I'd use 1-2 oz.

Choke is stuck ... OK open and clean and free out the choke, or lube it from the top after removing the tank, no sea foam is going to get it out ... luck or vibration or heat may ... may also make it worse. "Clean and Lube" may be the answer to all questions in a motorcycle forum ... and you certainly look like you're going to be helped by that. BTW revving @ 3500 is dangerous dude, if you ever fell off the bike, it will keep going ... and 3500 is serious torque rpm, it will jump out from under you if you dump the clutch and you certainly dont want to be engaging gears @3500.

Cool.
Buddha.

[JB848]

Buddha I always read about this Sea Foam stuff. I have never used it. I have however used StaBil with great results. I have had similar issues with dirty gas from filling stations and a couple of ounces of StaBil has always worked for me. Do you use it too?

[The Buddha]

I rarely use seafoam. I use yamaha carb cleaner which is similar to seafoam but stronger I think, again @ near 15 bones a bottle, I use 1-2 cap fuls in a few Oz of gas, and it goes in the carb. I think I have a 5-6 year bottle of both seafoam and yamaha stuff sitting with over 1/2. With over 20 bikes in the time I am guessing I should get 30-40 years out of it.

Actually the yamaha carb cleaner you can mix with water, heat it and put it in the carb, you can also put a lighter under it ... accelerates the cleaning. Maybe I'd boil the VW's carbs in it and that is the end of my 5 year old bottle of cleaner.

Stabil I have never used I dont think.

Cool.
Buddha.

[JB848]

LOL, I guess StaBil is the lazy mans Sea Foam. No disassembly required.

FYI I am sitting on a pair of 40mm Dellorto Carbs with intakes no linkage.

[The Buddha]

OOOo ... 40 dell's ... I got 42 solex kadrones (very much the equal of 40 dell's cos they are not that efficient) and I may need to fab up the linkage ... however the solex linkage doesn't wear an egg shape in the carb body cos its a sideways dragging linkage not a turning linkage.

BTW have you opened the thing. The damn carb is a joke right ... its about as complicated as a bowl with a hole on the bottom. The solex atleast is.

Cool.
Buddha.

[JB848]

Yeah sorry to thread jack. I'll post in odds and ends.

muchADEW try some StaBil if you're on a budget and lack tools. Follow the directions on the bottle and Voila!

[muchADEW]

muchADEW try some StaBil if you're on a budget and lack tools. Follow the directions on the bottle and Voila!

StaBil, eh? Is this the right stuff?

http://www.amazon.com/STA-BIL-22206-Fuel-Stabilizer-oz/dp/B000CCFY3O/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1286907190&sr=8-5

[JB848]

Yep! it is meant for protecting your gas from turning to lacquer during long storage but is also a great cleaner for gunk in carbs! The longer you leave it in the better it works. At least that is my experience with it. It's rather cheap too!

[muchADEW]

The longer you leave it in the better it works.

Wait, don't i just pour it and run the engine for a while?  BTW, how much?