1997 gs500e with start problems HELP!

[newbie1993]

A few months ago I purchased a 1997 GS500e from a private owner here in Maryland. I bought for $850 dollars. I was told all it needed was a battery and new fluids so I went to my local Pete's Cycle and bought a battery ( BikeMaster) and did the fluid changes. I installed the battery and went to start the bike and Nothing.. I thought it might be bad spark plugs, so I replaced those and tried again still nothing. So then I thought maybe its the starter relay, I replaced the Starter solenoid and then things got a little promising. I went to start the bike and it practically started. I believe i heard the starter motor working and then giving out. So today i decided to make a video of me trying to start her up. SO Frustrating!! [youtube<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/LcE-kna2_5A" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>][/youtube]

[jacob92icu]

May be insulting, but do you have the full choke on? Carb bowls full of fuel?

[newbie1993]

Not insulting at all, but yes full choke is on but after that I came here to find more qualified mechanics and veteran gs riders

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[newbie1993]

Upon checking there is fuel in the float bowls

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[Nahian]

Try starting fluid in the airbox? when was the bike last run? it might be dirty carburetors/jets...had lots of carb problems before I finally was able to get mine on the road.  Also the battery is prob fine, the starter drains a lot of power cranking like that with no start.

[newbie1993]

I cleaned the carbs.. guess I have to clean them again. I could try the starter fluid in the airbox but I'm not exactly sure how to do that.. do I just spray some directly in while trying to crank the bike? And I have absolutely no idea when the bike last ran. The previous owners registration says 2009 so I'm assuming that's when it last ran

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[Nahian]

Yeah I had to take mine off 3 times when I was assembling my bike...My bike hadn't run since like 89..Anyway be sure that the pilot jets in both carburetors are completely clean and you can see light through them as well as the main jets. This thread will help you immensely as well as the youtube vid on our carbs http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=56601.0

[newbie1993]

I could see through the jets I could actually get out. I hope I'm not missing any key parts that could be preventing my bike from starting

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[GI JOE]

I found out my bike had a clogged pilot that was stripped on top. After going crazy trying to get it clear I double checked it all by putting the injectors in my mouth and blowing through them. It's kind of a pain but if you blow in those two ports you can hear the air difference when you place and remove your fingers from the pilot jet and where the float needle seat goes. My simple way to make sure the jets and passages were clear, after that carb rebuild I've had no issues.

Also when I first got my bike I had a hard time starting too. Upon removing the spark plugs to check spark and cranking it, gas shot out. I let the flooded engine dry out and after that it started.

Just ideas from my minor troubles to throw your way.

[newbie1993]

Based on my video, are my spark plugs possibly an issue too?

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[newbie1993]

And how long does a flooded engin take to dry out?

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[Nahian]

If you think the plugs might be an issue, why not just pull them out and test them against the engine? You unscrew the spark plug, then hold it to the engine, crank it and you should see spark. If you see spark, check if it has strong spark. Since the plugs are out at this point anyway...try spraying some starting fluid directly into the cylinder heads (like 2 seconds in each), put the plugs back on, and fire her up with your bike's battery fully charged or hooked up to a car with the car off (you can potentially fry your battery if the car is on). This way you will have proper voltage and the battery will not be a contributing factor to your bike not starting.

[newbie1993]

If it doesn't start up after I spray the starter fluid into the cylinder head and put the spark plugs bacl in what the next step?

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[Nahian]

Prob make sure with an air compressor that all the air vents in the carburetors (theres two holes you'll see) are cleared out and you can blow air through them. I'd keep the tank off and use a funnel system or syringe to put fresh gas directly into the carb t connector which is the bottom one of the two t connectors on the cabs. The top is vent. But I honestly think if the bike ran in 09 and the starter turns over, the bike should start. But did you check the spark plugs yet for spark, like visual confirmation? Keep me posted.

[newbie1993]

I will go check right now

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[newbie1993]

Where exactly am I looking for a spark? I went to see if therewas a spark and I received a small shock.. what does that mean?

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[Nahian]

shock means theres spark but hold it against the cylinder head and look at the gap. You should see a strong bright blue, almost white spark. If the spark is like orange, yellowish, blue, it has weak spark. Check your spark plug gap between the electrode too and make sire its not to wide or too narrow.

[newbie1993]

UPDATE: I went to test the spark like you said to but I saw no spark at all.. I don't understand, those are new spark plugs. However, I went and bought starter fluid and it started up for about half a second. I gave it a little gas and it revved it then I let off the gas and it cut right off

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[Nahian]

Ok you prob didn't touch the plug to the right piece, or missed the spark somehow cause obviously it started/has enough spark to run. Pretty exciting to finally see it run a little right? haha, but your carbs could be totally out of sync causing it to have starting problems. Is the air filter clean? Keep playing with the starting fluid and do some diagnostics. Make sure you can physically see gas going into the carburetor line (best done with the tank off and feeding the line directly with gas from a funnel/would help with clear lines) Get the bike running, and when it starts dying spray a little more starting fluid in the airbox, if it keeps running then its prob bogging down because the carbs aren't getting fuel. If you can get it running for any decent length, try spraying some starting fluid around the filter end/the engine end (the rubber housings) end to rule out vacuum leaks. If you spray starting fluid around the black rubber housings and the revs go up, it means there's a leak. Did you blow air through the frame petcock in all positions? There could be a vacuum problem there causing fuel not to reach the carbs, or a blockage in the petcock.

[Nahian]

Just out of curiosity, you did not see spark in either plug, or just one?