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Starting problems on my motorcycle


Guest busteryhyman

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Guest busteryhyman

I got a motorcycle two weeks ago that didnt run and the owner knew nothing about why. The battery was charged and i had power, but it wouldnt start. i checked the fuel lines and it's receiving fuel and the plugs and wires seem "ok" in appearance. I've never really worked on a bike before but was wondering if anyone had any ideas of what i should check/test.

 

It starts to turn over but has a puttering, struggling sound to it

 

it's a 71 Honda 350

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Usually, with older engines that have sat forever, the carb is gummed up, but to verify that, use an eye dropper to drip some gas into the cylinder. If it starts, its a fuel problem.

 

You can pull the plug and hold it by the wire and ground it to the cylinder while you crank it. It should spark, if not you may have electrial issues. Another reason for no spark can be a bad ground. A sure fire way to test it is to have your friend/enemy hold the plug while you crank the motor. You will know real fast if its got spark or not. :D Sometimes the spark may look strong but when you put the plug into the cylinder it wont fire because it is too weak. 99% of the time though, if it sparks outside it will spark inside.

 

You may want to pull the air filters off and check them out eventually, since they could be heavily soiled.

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Guest xxxyyyzzz

Get a Clymer manual for the bike. Your bike is quite possibly the easiest bike in the world to work on (I know, I have one). The points are easily accessible, as are, well, actually everything on that bike is easy to get to. The manual will have troubleshooting guides, pictures, etc. If you have a simple tool set you can pretty much dismantle and rebuild everything on that bike aside from the forks...

 

Here are a couple sites to look at in case you haven't already:

 

www.honda350k.com

 

www.ricepaddymotorcycles.com

 

I think a CB350 is the perfect starter bike, as anyone can ride one, work on one, and yes, even race one. I may just keep mine after getting a nicer streetbike and make a racer out of it for Mid-Ohio, etc.

 

Good luck with the project...

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Guest busteryhyman

hey thanks. i'm hoping if the weather gets nicer i can take some of it apart. I foudn out today that some fuck who worked on it before caught the spark plug wires on fire, so yeah i'm gonna replace those

 

yeah it's my first bike, i still cant really touch the ground, but much better than anything else i've been on

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Guest xxxyyyzzz

You might look into getting the seat cut down (once you get it running). Your confidence would double being able to touch the ground comfortably.

 

Not a problem for me at over 6', but I can imagine... Again, good luck.

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Guest xxxyyyzzz
Find a place that does upholstery work or do it yourself if the seat is already tore up a bit. All they do is remove half the height of the seat foam and reattach the seatcover, trimming it to fit. You might also call some of the local bike shops, one of them might be willing to do it for you.
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