| Author | Message | |||
     Bhdooo |
Hello everyone, This is definitely one of those new person buys a cheaper project and needs to get it to run type threads. Am I in over my head? Possibly, but a big part of the reason I bought a blast was to acquire some mechanical aptitude. Anyways I got my bike at a charity auction in which the people originally listed as running and it wouldn't start. 03 with 9k miles. I effectively have no previous history. I plan on doing spark plug, filter changes, as well as fluids. Also the yard it was at was in San Diego uncovered. So there's possibility of vapor lock too? Which should be dealt with since I'm flushing the tank too? | |||
| Bhdooo |
https://vid.me/pd1Y Almost forgot the video, whoops. The clutch is held in (Message edited by bhdooo on June 07, 2016) | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
First: GET IT RUNNING! Don't do anything (anything) until it runs. It will probably show no oil on the dipstick. If that worries you, drain the oil and put in ONE QUART (it only takes 1.5 quarts for an oil change, so 1 qt is fine, unbelievable I know!). Between lines on the dipstick is about 8 ounces, not one quart! DO NOT TAKE THE CARB APART "to give it a good cleaning". It doesn't need it and will very likely add to any problems you already have. The most common problem is a clogged slow jet from sitting. The symptoms are usually no start or start and die quickly. Easy to change, about $6-$10, buy a #45 (stock on many Harleys) and have it on hand. The bike has obviously been down and tampered with (bent fly screen mounts and missing fuel filler to tank cover rubber). But from what you showed it looks basically stock (from what I saw). If the battery is good, see if the starter turns the engine. If it will (by bypassing everything), but the engine won't turn over using the traditional method, you probably have a bad safety switch-clutch, kickstand or neutral. Easy bypasses. The Blast is VERY SIMPLE. Get a repair manual and avoid every temptation to "replace everything" in hopes it will run. It probably has a very simple problem. Find it, get it running, ride it, THEN change fluids, spark plug, etc. | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
PS THE ONLY thing YOU MUST DO, is remove and bypass the charcoal canister. It's about the size of a soda can with 2 small hoses and one large hose going to it. Right under the seat frame, clearly visible. IT WILL CAUSE PROBLEMS and is the number one cause of issues on a California model (the only model with this 'feature')! If it still has it, let me know and I'll tell you the quick and dirty bypass. You can clean it up AFTER its running. The 2nd biggest offender of a poor running/non running bike is the rubber intake boot ("Das Boot"). Often the only way to see if it's split is to remove it. But get the engine to turn over first. DONT just start replacing things. | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
More pictures would help. | |||
| Bhdooo |
Sure thing. What angles are you specifically looking for? What is the fuel filler rubber? By bypass you mean flipping the diode? I can definitely tell you that when i hit the starter switch nothing happens at all. But my headlights can turn on, neutral light and oil light goes on with the key in the on switch too. So I need to grab a voltmeter to investigate more? I downloaded the manual as well. | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
Pics of the whole bike. Front back and sides! Around the fuel filler there is a gap between it and the tank cover. Most people can't get the tank cover down with it on. Yours is just missing (not critical, it's just a trim piece). Flipping the clutch diode will bypass the clutch safety switch (but sometimes this doesn't work). The "run" switch is in the on position? Do you have the charcoal canister? Get a test light. It's far easier to use than a voltmeter. Almost anything you ever need to know is whether you have voltage, not how much. If the voltage is low, the light is dim! Buy a good one. About the size of a regular screwdriver with spark plug wire sized cable attached. The cheap tiny ones are unreliable and almost worthless. | |||
| Blueblast |
You are tackling this very logically. Keep plugging away and with the help you will receive here you have an excellent chance of success. | |||
| Ezblast |
Check front and rear grounds and battery connections for tightness and cleanliness as well. EZ | |||
| Bhdooo |
I apologize for the randomness of the pictures. I just captured my curiosity. Also i literally just cracked my phone's screen so I have no idea how these pictures turned out. https://imgur.com/a/zohh3 I left comments on the pictures. But I forgot to ask about the hose that is attached to the what im not sure as either the vent tube or the rollover valve. Anyways bike looks like it has been at least tipped over before, and stored outside for bit... I also have yet to really do anything. Because I admit I need my hand held a little bit longer. I asked about the voltmeter because I can easily get access to one. Or at least something like that,maybe an ohm meter? But how exactly should I be testing the starter? And seriously, thank you everyone for your kind and generous help. (Message edited by bhdooo on June 11, 2016) (Message edited by bhdooo on June 11, 2016) | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
 Much easier to work with. Clip it to any ground (frame, engine, axles, fork, etc.) and use the sharp end to probe for power. Clip it to the battery positive and search for a ground. Get one with a screwdriver sized probe. | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
It looks pretty darn clean, stock and unmolested-a great find! Make sure the battery is good. Looking at the condition of the bike, I doubt it's the starter, it's probably a safety switch (or the "run" switch is in the "off" position). | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
A test light makes easy work of testing fuses. Again, you very, very rarely need to know how much voltage you have, you just need to know whether or not you have voltage (power). Yes, someone may have blown fuses improperly trying to start it. Your charcoal canister MUST BE disconnected. On the canister: PLUG the fat hose (3/8 bolt should do it). PLUG the small hose that goes to the outlet marked CARB (golf tee should do it). UNPLUG the hose that goes to the TANK outlet and leave it UNPLUGGED (open). Given the great unmolested condition of your bike, your problem is likely very minor. STOP fixing or changing things and find your problem. Don't clean or take anything else apart. Get the engine to turn over FIRST. Don't do anything (anything else-except disconnecting the charcoal canister). Get a repair manual and familiarize yourself with your bike. There's nothing worse than taking things apart when you don't know what they are. Simple steps. Your bike is bone stock and your problem is very simple. Far too many screw up their chances of repair by going overboard "fixing" things too soon. | |||
| Bhdooo |
Hello everyone, should be having some funds soon, so excited to start working again. I am definitely going to include that test light in my upcoming amazon order. That exact light should be fine correct? I can't find anything that mentions screwdriver sized or not. Anyways I did hook up a voltmeter to the battery the other day and it read 7.5 volts, dropped to 2.7 with the ignition on. Also if i remember properly when I hooked it up to the wires on the bike side it also read pretty low, so I am ordering a new battery. I also including a video of a weird sound I'm hearing only sometimes with the ignition turned to on. Also we tried towing the bike to see if the engine is seized. The bike does turn over when towed, and as we got a bit more successful with towing in a short neighborhood the headlight started to get a bit brighter and eventually did stay on a little longer after it started rolling. At least compared to it dying immediately before a couple tows. At its highest speed I want to say the bike actually backfired? Fuses looked good, just needed a bit of steel wool. I'm getting the battery off of amazon and wanted to get a spark plug while I am at it. I won't replace it until after it starts up unless I know the plug is dead for sure after I do tests with the new battery? Amazon says NGK (6546) DCPR8IX will fit on the blast, but I think the forum says it is too hot and is the wrong sized socket? Idk what that means exactly tbh. Does the denso 5377 ix27b fit? Amazon part fitter says it doesn't but I think the forum does? Or do I have to get the Denso 5731 IXUO1-27? Amazon says that doesn't fit either. As for the battery I am getting one that is listed YTX-14BS. Thanks again for all of the kindness and patience. Hearing the bike roar a bit to life really lit a fire in me. https://vid.me/KLzJ (Message edited by bhdooo on June 23, 2016) | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
I use the 5377 or ix27B | |||
| Bhdooo |
Finally an update! I'm ashamed to admit how little funds have been available but progress has been made! New battery showed all the electrical seem good. It would finally want to turn over. Anyways at first stuck float seemed to be dumping fuel into carb/airbox. Whacks and carb cleaner eventually got that to stop. We did this with the carb still on the bike. Currently won't idle. Will die without revs. Gonna put in new gas to see if i added too much seafoam (i definitely added a good amount) She runs! But ain't too happy yet... I sent an email to get a superboot. Shifts extremely clunky. I have heard its pretty bad from the internet but I'm not sure if mine is excessive or not. Although this does remind me that once while we were trying to bumpstart it the dang shift lever came off and we gorilla wrenched it back on... Man so excited! To truly hear the bike alive, I totally got the lawn mower engine comment but i don't care im loving it! | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
 Often the slow jet gets clogged from sitting and will cause the no idle situation. Replace with a #45 slow jet-you'll need it anyway. $5-$10 and is very common as it was used in stock Harleys for about 20+ years. | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
Did you bypass the charcoal canister yet? IT MUST BE DISCONNECTED as it will cause (or is causing) you problems. DO THIS before anything else. (Message edited by Gearheaderiko on July 25, 2016) | |||
| Bhdooo |
I actually did buy a new jet, and somehow I misplaced it. I'll be doing the bypass and possibly the jet today. I'll update after. Thanks again everyone! | |||
| Bhdooo |
https://imgur.com/a/4g0LS Unfortunately I found and promptly dropped and lost the 45 I bought to replace. The picture is how I tried to plug the charcoal canister to see how the bike liked it. The only non plugged hose is the one attached to the gas tank. I'll be getting another jet shortly. I cleaned the stock jet and the bike finally idled for a bit and my buddy took it for a quick run where it died about 3 mins later. He says he took it to 3rd and believes the idle was very high. After this the bike would not start again. Even with starter fluid. Actually the bike usually needs a quick spray of it, but this time it didn't work at all. Lastly I noticed the way this new battery mounts, i seem to have issues latching the seat back on. But I'm probably doing something wrong. What should I tackle next? Apart from having a better disconnect and rejet? I'm so close to riding I can almost taste it. (Message edited by bhdooo on July 26, 2016) | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
The seat does actually rest on the battery. Is it the same size as the old battery? The tank vent is open, correct? Just making sure, because if you mixed the hoses up, it will shut down. If the charcol canister was fouling things, it would take a good 5 minutes to work itself out, sometimes a bit longer. Get that jet changed!! The intake boot may be bad. The only sure way to check is take it off. If the boot is bad, it can cause a high idle. | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
The latch pin -on the seat- is adjustable. It has a locknut on the seat, but it strips out VERY easily, be gentle. If the battery is a different size, then one of the 2 batteries is wrong. Do the numbers on the batteries match? | |||
| Bhdooo |
I'm confident the battery is correct. This is the one I ordered. http://tinyurl.com/zmem4el I really hope I get a response about the superboot soon. I am stopping by HD today to get another jet. I also stumbled across a thread on I believe buellriders that said instead of using #4 brass washers (which I have) I could instead use a needle part #27094-88. Should I get that eventually? Or will the shims suffice even if I eventually do mods? I'm also going to try to find a better plug for the fat hose. I grabbed the shortest 3/8 bolt I could find but the hexagon makes it not fit into the hole and I found a random glue cap that fit. I did buy a pack of vacuum line plugs so is it possible to put it more upstream? Like take off the hose itself and plug what the hose is attached to? Man I'm just glad so far nothing has been too out of the ordinary. (Message edited by bhdooo on July 26, 2016) | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
Yes, you can get rid of all those hoses. Plug the vacuum nipple on the carb, it's the only vacuum nipple on the carb. Run a hose from the PCV valve on top of the rocker cover to the bottom of your bike (leave it open). Pull the tank vent hose out and run it to the bottom of your bike. Remove the complex system of hoses and vacuum lines. Remove the charcoal canister (slides out). Remove the bracket. | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
#4 washers don't have to be brass. Any R/C hobby store should have them. Easier to find and tune than changing needles. If the needle above is adjustable, that's great. I bought a bunch of needles and none were ever adjustable (even though some were reported to be). Most aren't skilled enough to to know the difference between a shimmed needle and a needle change (no offense). | |||
| Bhdooo |
I already have the washers, and the needle is some type of sportster needle that gaps it properly? Sounds like I'm better off keeping my washers. I'm still learning my motorcycle terminology, so is the rocker cover the top of the cylinder? Is the vacuum nipple where the venturi ring is? I'm actually at work right now so I don't have the bike in front of me. Although I suppose I would just follow the hoses, but I don't want to accidentally do something I shouldn't. (Message edited by bhdooo on July 27, 2016) | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
The rocker cover is the valve cover. On the very top of the engine. The carb vacuum nipple will have the small hose that ran to the charcoal canister going to it. All the hose that went to the charcoal canister can be pulled. But you can choose to leave the "tank vent" hose there or reroute it to a simple more accessible location. The big reason to do this is if the hose gets clogged or crimped, which happens, it will make it easier to find. But you can do this now or later. Don't be scared of the octopus of hoses-it does nothing special. It breaks down very simply: plug the carb nipple. Run a hose from the PCV valve to ground (open/vented). One hose front the fuel tank filler to ground (open/vented). Remove all the extra hoses that were connected. | |||
| Gearheaderiko |
Do you have a repair manual? If not, get one! | |||
| Bhdooo |
I have the pdf. Okay to reiterate with the vacuum nipple, the venturi ring has 3 screws, one of which has a spacer in the top right corner, this is where the tube attaches and this is what i plug?
| |||
| Gearheaderiko |
No. Yank ALL those hoses off. See where #10 goes? The small hose that goes from "carb" on the charcoal canister to the tiny 3/16" nipple on the carb. Put a tiny vacuum cap on it. |
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