hi guys. first post here. I posted this on customfighters and am still having some trouble getting to the bottom of it.

Heres the situation. I bought a 92 gs500 for 200 bucks. They said it had a broken rod, so i took it home. charged the battery, put some oil in it, and got it started. Heard a noise coming from the engine, figured thats what the broken rod sound was and decided to tear the engine down, and if all else fails buy a new engine.

To see everything i did you can check out the blog i made to document everything.
http://gs500resurrection.wordpress.com/

Anyway, so i got the bike back together, and now when i try to start it, it cranks over but never catches.

Every once in a while it will kind of pop like it got a little fire going but never fully starts. I tried push starting it, and when i do that it fires up, and if I pull the clutch in it dies automatically, and if i don't it just kind of bogs down and dies.

Heres what i've looked at so far.

Spark is good, and the plugs are brand new.

Compression is there, i did the thumb test.

the Crankshaft is turning i can see it when i take the pulse generator cap off

I took the carbs apart and cleaned them, it looks like all the orings and gaskets are there.

I checked my fuel lines to make sure they are not clogged

I checked the fuel filter, its got no debris in it and no holes.

I drained the tank and put about half a tank of mid grade in

I checked the vaccum suction on the carb by putting a piece of plastic up to it and cranking and the carb sucked it to it, then blew it away with each rotation.

I have drained the float chambers, and after trying to start check for gas in them to make sure gas is getting to the chambers and it is.

i've tried every combination of no choke/choke/half choke & on/res/pri both with standing start and push start.

the only odd thing i noticed was i sprayed WD40 around the carb boots and when i crank, it bubbles up a little. not sure if thats enough to ruin the air delivery to the engine or not. or if its just bubbling because the movement of the engine.

additional info:
its got dynojet stage 3, and a K&N filter straight on the carbs.

i checked my plugs, and they look like they have some oil on them even though they are new.
link to a large image of the plug
http://gs500resurrection.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/dsc00880.jpg

i took a pic of the carbs too for some reason just in case anyone sees anything


and i took a pic of the cams when i put them in
http://gs500resurrection.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/dsc00850.jpg


they line up if you look at the big picture you can see how the notches are. the one on the right is at about 8 o clock and the one on the left is at about 2 o clock.

when i secured them though i cranked it to the right so they should line up where they are facing eachother.

i also took some video of me cranking away

standing still
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHoJoM0TePI

push start
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0C9O8aPgsjo

I also bought some starter fluid today and without the tank on i sprayed it into the carbs, and the engine fired it. it didnt start completely but you could tell it combusted it.

Sorry for the long post, but im at a total loss here, and have no idea what to do now.

Thanks a bunch!

also! i just found this post on here that is exactly the problem i had setting up my camshafts.

but i figured this would be ok when i rotated the crank manually to put the 1 2 and 3 in place.
http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=52573.0

Your spark plugs seems to be oil fouled. Do both spark plugs look like this? It may run on just one cylinder. You can test this by removing one spark plug cap and then push start the bike. Then try with the other one removed.

no the other one looked a little dark but not like it had any oil on them. I'll try doing that before i open the valve cover up and mess with the timing.

I know it sounds too simple to be possible, but are you sure the idle is turned up high enough? If it's way too low the bike might try to start, but without any air getting in it's just dying as soon as the engine isn't forced to spin. Just twist it in a good couple rotations and see what it does.

That's impressive that your thumb can tell the difference between 90 and 140psi of compression  

Also, looks like you got a good deal on a bike with some upgrads. Did you put some new parts on it after you got it, or did someone seriously sell you a bike with a that front end, upgraded rear suspension, and what looks to be cbr pegs for $200?? I would've paid $200 just for that front end without a second of hesitation. Good stuff.

I have solved my cam timing issues FYI!

Quote from: nitehawk on May 26, 2010, 05:23:52 PM
also! i just found this post on here that is exactly the problem i had setting up my camshafts.

but i figured this would be ok when i rotated the crank manually to put the 1 2 and 3 in place.
http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=52573.0

I would check the cam timing again, you say you 'figured it would be ok when i rotated the crank....'. You need to see that is OK, and not just that the marks on the cams line up with the head, but that the crank is in the right position too,  and there are 18 pins on the chain between the marks on the sprockets as per the manual. You could have the timing off enough to stop it running, but still be able to feel compression. If the timing is OK, borrow a compression tester and see how much you've got, the more we know the easier it is to diagnose. Good luck!

I did a bench sync on my carbs, and i have it to where both the butterflies only show just a smidge of the little hole on both carbs. Thats what the post i read said to do anyway. should that hole be completely exposed?

My thumb is pretty awesome, but i tried using a compression tester from autozone but it wouldnt fit in the hole. so i tried holding it down, but when it got to 30 psi i couldn't hold the seal any longer.

And yes all those upgrades were on the bike when i bought it, i've only messed up the engine since i bought it

I will be following your post gunslinger to retime my bike, because its identical to what my problem was.

i just replaced the valve cover gasket though, will i need to get a new one again or will this one be ok as long as i dont break it?

thanks again

valve cover gasket should be ok to put back on as long as you dont pinch or break it. i wouldnt imagine having to buy a new one every 4000miles. that'd be ridiculous.

guys it started!

i followed the cam alignment comments on the thread earlier in the post and it fired up like a charm.

i had to adjust the idle screw also because it wouldnt stay on.

but now it will turn on and run no problems.

i have another issue that i'll post in a separate thread though.

thanks so much for everyones help!