| Author | Message | ||
     Gearheaderiko |
It is easy to install the cams wrong. I took a picture before I pulled mine just to see how the dots lined up as my experience has been that timing dots rarely line up perfectly. Mine could have gone in either of 2 ways. I would say that the pushrods/lifters were adjusted too tight, but it sounds like you are using the stock set up. Did you get the long and short pushrods in the right place? Your head/cam setup may require the use of adjustable pushrods/lifters (I dont know exactly what you had done). Have you asked whoever sold you the cams or headwork what they think? (If it was the dealer they should have fixed it or charged you nothing). If the dealer couldnt find the problem (not surprising however), it sounds to me like your only choice is to re check assembly. Pull at least the cam cover and check the timing marks (get a new gasket). This is where having adjustable pushrods and collapsible tubes come in handy. It makes very short work of changing cams and checking to see if the lifters/valves are too tight.) (Message edited by gearheaderiko on October 02, 2006) | ||
| Destinya |
Hi guys, my name is Destiny and I own an 03 Blast. About a year and a half ago, a family friend was killed on a bike, and I started having major confidence riding. The bike has been garaged for about a year and a half, and I realized its time I sold it. We have replaced the gas and given an oil change. However, when we turn the key and give it gas, it tries to turn over but can't. I am really hoping someone can give me advice, because the insurance and registration are both expired so I can't ride it to the dealership. Thanks in advance for any help!! | ||
| Vortec57 |
Is the battery fully charged? If it's trying to crank but not doing it that might be the ticket. fyi, if it wont start its harder to ride to the dealership than if its not registered  | ||
| Hans |
Welcome Destinya, Pity, that you will leave so soon. However: Best chance that the battery is too low. If it doesn`t turn over because a low battery, which you charged fully before, the battery capacity became too small to deliver all that amperes. Another possibility: You left the gas tap open and the engine is full of gas. Remove the plug and turn the engine (contact off) by pushing the bike in second or third gear. Gas will stream out of the plug hole. In that case: Come back and we will talk more. To loosen up sticky pistons you can also turn the engine, with removed plugs, by pushing the bike in gear. In fact is that what I would do first. Hans | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
If the battery is fully charged (and engine turning over), my next guess would be clogged fuel jets (from old gas sitting) or fouled/bad spark plug. Check for spark. If you do end up taking it to the dealer (via pickup truck or trailer) make sure they know that it ran perfectly fine until it sat for a year and a half. | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Nice to see you over here Hans! | ||
| Lokie |
Well, here's the problem, I have been riding in the rain day in and day out, (live in seattle) and today my bike just died while I was ridding! I checked the oil as it seemed a little hot and while a little low, there was still oil in it, does anyone think there is a bigger problem, or maybe it was just overheating? | ||
| Swampy |
Welcome to the Badweb Loki! Have you checked your electrical connections? Did your bike restart after awhile? I would start by checking your spark plug, wire, coil, and primary wire connections at the coil and the connection from the wire running from the timing cover to the main wiring harness. Then I would check the kill switch at the handle bar and ignition switch. Then I would look for chaffed wires in the wiring harness. Be careful to check the electrical connection pins over closely as there have been reports with other model Buells with electrical pin corrosion. Go easiest to hardest. Loki you are welcome to post on the Badweb, but, we in the Thumper Forum have the forum broken down into sections and sub sections for different areas and concerns with our beloved Blasts. This question would be better posted in the Knowedge Vault, Diagnosing Problems for engine quit running. It just helps to keep information in an order and in easy to locate places. Thanks, and Welcome to the Badweb! | ||
| Ezblast |
Welcome! Check das boot! GT - JBOTDS! EZ  | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Concur with Swampy! Did it restart? Did it have any other symptoms? It is possible that it could be unrelated to the rain (das boot). Generally dying in the rain is caused by a bad coil, plug wire or ignition module. If it really only dies in the rain and you have a dry garage to work in you can spray the coil with water and see if it dies. Although the spark plug wire can be tested this way, its easier to use a grounded screw driver and run that along the length of the wire (if its bad in the rain it will probably spark to the screwdriver when dry too). Pull off the 'points/timing' cover and see if its wet underneath. You can also mist this and see if it stops running. | ||
| Lizardwhisperer |
'06 Blast Dies...Mystery. This is my first bike and I bought it brand new in May. It did not give me any problems until after the first service interval. I rode it about 300 miles one day on a round trip to the Ruidoso,NM Golden Aspen Rally. The bike ran fine all morning, but on the way home it died (without any symptoms) 7 times. Riders with me were thinking vapor lock, as the bike would restart easily. On the way to taking her in to the dealership, she died again. The guys kept her for 14 days, put 60 miles on her and could not get the bike to die. I picked up the bike and have continued to have the problem. It will run great all day and then boom...dead. The speedo "sticks" sometimes and won't go above 20 mph and doesn't sit at zero on idle. It always unsticks and starts working...eventually. I've taken my bike back to the dealership as I am not okay with riding a bike that just dies. The last time it happened I was in the middle lane of an 8 lane city street...not a happy place to be on a dead bike. Rubber manifold/carb boot? Wiring harness? Kickstand kill? Anyone???} | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
You've obviously read through the posts and done your research-Thank You! The kickstand safety switch is a good bet. However, since this is a brand new bike I'll assume first that it may be rider error. Have you overfilled it with gas? That could cause the 'vapor lock' that your friends suggested as well as the fuel tank vent line being clogged (with something other than gas) or crimped. Did you tell the dealer about the speedo problem? That could be related to the dying problem or not at all. It would certainly indicate an electrical problem such as a bad wire or connection close to the speedo wire/connections. Unfortunately for you and the dealer its a lot harder to find a problem that isnt there when you bring it to them. Be assured though your problem is not a common occurrence for Blasts (unless its a California model). | ||
| Ezblast |
Check your tank vent - known to stick, loose plug wire, intake boot, kick stand switch, and also ignition come to mind - let us know what you find! GT - JBOTDS! EZ | ||
| Kdkgrizz |
Hey everyone. Got an interesting one that will undoubtedly be very simple. I have noticed that the second P3 that I picked up recently has a small idle issue. When it's cold it starts with no problem at all, but after riding for say 45 minutes to an hour the idle tends to jump quite a bit when I am stopped at a light etc. Also if I shut it off and run into a store or whatever say 15 minutes or less it really doesn't want to start again. Anyone ran into this problem before? | ||
| Ezblast |
Replace Das Boot! - intake boot needs replacing - you may get away with tightening, however, that old and as inexpensive as they are - I'd just replace it and rest easy. GT - JBOTDS! EZ | ||
| Kdkgrizz |
Oh, well then the problem should be solved because when I bought the pro-series intake for it I also bought a couple of new boots. Just haven't had the time to install it all yet. Cool thanks EZ. | ||
| Buellistic |
Ezblast: Remember a while back "i" told about how "i" did my stock "Das Boot" ??? Has it worked for you OR is TEST is still going on ??? In BLASTing LaFayette | ||
| Ezblast |
Have yet to need to change it since I went to the stack on the red bike, the black bikes is fine now at a little over 6000 - If I ever sold the red - I'd have to offer to change back to a modified airbox probably - most just don't get a stack - even with a filter - though perhaps if I show them the huff on turnoff - a pretty cool sound really. No boot failures though to test the next on so far. Will do when/if it happens though - right now I'm making a list of things to purchase to get the Black bike right again, though the red never ran better - knock on wood - lol GT - JBOTDS! EZ | ||
| Vortec57 |
I'm still running my fuel filler neck hose with no troubles, just another option to the boot that seems to be much more rigid and long lasting | ||
| Jamieabad |
Vibrating down the driveway? Hi - new here - I just bought my wife a 2001 Blast. Now I know as a single cylinder bike it will vibrate but this thing shakes like crazy at idle. I mean it will literally "shimmy" down the driveway when on it's kickstand and has also shook the taillamp bulb loose. When riding at speed it is quite smooth. Is this normal or should I be adjusting/replacing something. Thanks in advance for any advice. Jamie | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Welcome and its normal! If the driveway is inclined and the bike is pointed down hill it will fall off its kickstand if left running. Buells are designed to decrease the chance of the kickstand being left accidentally down. If your Blast has a lot of miles the rubber mounts may be very worn letting it shake more. If you've got a bad mount (or mount bolt) it would probably shake a lot all the time (check the cylinder head mount just above the horn and exhaust). Is also not good to let the HD/Buell singles or twins idle a long time. Just not good for them. Lastly, the tail light/license plate assembly hooks under the tail section and commonly comes unhooked. That will let it shake a whole lot more. (if you pull up on the bottom of the plate you'll see it come unhooked at the sides underneath the tail just forward of the turn signals). | ||
| Jamieabad |
Thanks Gearheaderiko for the info that is reassuring. Jamie. | ||
| Bookends |
Hello all, This is my first time to post, and first time to own a Blast. I tried browsing through the various topics in regards to my problem and I think I have an idea for the cause, but I'd like to get some opinions really quick. I'm in a bit of pickle because my Blast is currently my only form of transport! On to the problem: I live just outside Denver and this past weekend I went on a road trip to Sante Fe. The bike ran great the entire way down, but coming back I ran into some problems. I gassed up with premium, hopped on and began the ascent to Denver. With the bike under load, in top gear it began to sputter and eventually died. The bike wouldn't restart right away either. This continued till I reached a point where one of my VERY good friends could come and get me...... Fast forward three days later and the bike is doing the same thing. I dropped it off at the local Buell dealership but they can't get to it till the end of June!! A tech gave it a quick once over and said it must be bad gas...... Ugh. As of tonight, I can start it up and ride for a few miles but it will eventually start to sputter and backfire then die. When it does run, I test it across all rev ranges in all gears and so far I haven't found a single situation where it will reproduce the symptoms..... I sprayed some carb cleaner through the butterfly valve and added some octane booster per the tech's recommendation and so far nothing. Any ideas?? I was thinking it could be the fuel tank breather vent. Thanks a ton in advance!! By the way, the bike is a 2003 with 2000 miles on it; originally purchased in Las Vegas (I'm the second owner). Could the carb be tuned for sea level? BookendS | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Gas tank vent (fuel tank breather vent) will cause this exact problem as you noted(as will having a California bike with charcol canister still connected). If it does it again, try pulling of the gas cap (or leave it loose) and see if the problem goes away.(be sure its not a CA bike) High altitude running usually leaves you lacking in power, but doesnt usually shut a bike down. A bad ignition module will also cause hair pulling symptoms as described, but the tank vent is more common. PS welcome! | ||
| Swampy |
Welcome to the board Bookends! I'm on board with Gearheadericko, check the fuel tank vent,if everything else check outs OK more than likely the ignition module is on its way out. When it dies did you check for spark? Good luck, let us know. | ||
| Joey |
I've had similar issues. A bottle of HEET fixed it for me, but I'm thinking it's more likely what Erik and Swampy said. Swampy's ignition had a broken wire on the hall-effect sensor. In my case, it was condensation from my winter riding. That's my theory and I'm sticking to it! (Message edited by joey on May 17, 2007) | ||
| Jerzydevil |
Is you Blast parked/stored outside?? If it is check for water in the gas and float bowl, and change the o-ring on the gas cap. I had the same problem at the end of last season and begining of this season. But definately check the tank vent first. | ||
| Bookends |
Hello all and thank you very much for the insights and quick responses!! As of this evening, 5/17/07, the bike is still experiencing the same problems. I popped the filler cap when it started to sputter and to no avail. The odd thing is that I managed to get in a little over 20 miles of 65+ speed from my friends house to my place before it began to sputter and eventually die!! Luckily for me I had my iPod with me and I listed to some jams for a little while, fired up the bike and finished the trip home......but with near constant back (or miss?) fires for the last two miles. This weekend I'll pop the tank off, drain it and clean it. Inspect the valve under the cap, inspect and clear out/replace the fuel lines and take a look at the carb. Aside from that, I'm not too sure what else to do!! Surely the ignition module couldn't be bad right? Why would the problem be SO intermittant? Thanks again!! BookendS | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Ignition module problems are very intermittent. Thats why all the hair pulling! It will drive you crazy! Generally they act up when hot and do exactly what you describe. A clogged fuel tank vent will act the same way! A bad coil can also act in a similar way, but they rarely go bad (havent heard of one yet). The best way to find out if its your module is to check for spark when it dies. (that involves pulling the spark plug wire off the plug, inserting a screwdriver into the end and holding it 1/8" close to the cylinder and seeing if it sparks-you can also do the same with an extra plug wire and spark plug-in case you didnt know the procedure). Due to the intermittent nature it may spark, but will be erratic. My last bad module sparked every 3rd engine rotation and it was a BRAND NEW module! | ||
| Swampy |
Sounds like an ignition module. Does it run fine before the problems show up? If it was a fuel problem it would run poorly all the time. Check for spark when it dies. If it isn't making spark, save yourself some time and replace the ignition module. It is not that hard to replace yourself. They cost about $125 from any of our fine sponsers. The worst part about the job is making sure you replace the connector pins in the correct spot in the connector. Make a drawing of the connector and wire positions before you remove the old wires from the connector and it will go that much easier when you put it back together. You can static time the Blast easily with out a timing light or clear timing window plug, so you can do this entire proceedure with out too many tools in 1-2 hours easy. |
