[tommyrich]

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I can't believe I found this website. This is my first post and the problem I am having is my bike a 1980 Goldwing Interstate sometimes just grunts when I press the starter switch. After 3 or 4 tries it will go. My mechanic just replaced the starter motor while in winter storage. Last fall I replaced the following parts - Solenoid. new wires, plugs, battery, used spark unit. This problem started after returning to Toronto from a trip down to the East Coast in the rain last summer. When the rain started the bike was missing like crazy. I bought a can of silicone spray and this was my saviour. I was able to make it home okay and thats when I started to replace components.

The other problem I am having is when driving in 4th or 5th gear and hit the throttleI feel like the bike is missing. I feel itthrough the footpegs. My mechanic rode it yesterday and said it feels like a mechanical problem, possibly clutch related and could also be related to the starter problem? Other than this my wife and I love the Wing. I have a couple of trips planned for the summer and hope I can get these problems resolved. Any tips would be appreciated.

 

[exavid]

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:waving::waving:Welcome to the Best Goldwing Site on the Internet, tommyrich!:waving::waving:

I gotta think about this one a bit. But I'm sure there are plenty of our members who will spin out some good ideas, so just hang in there for a bit!

One thought that comes to mind would be to pull the starter and check it out, just 'cause it's new doesn't guarantee that it's okay.One only other thing that might be having a problem is the starter clutch and chain.

 

[Guest]

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Hey tommyrich :waving: Welcome to the forum and visit often. :clapper:Would you please update your profile and complete the LOCATION section :crying:and tell us what country you live in. :stumped:

:weightlifter::18red::weightlifter:

 

[Guest]

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Thank you tommyrich. :clapper:

:weightlifter::18red::weightlifter:

 

[tommyrich]

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Thanks Redwing for the reply. I don't usually use the forums but I look forward to this. Just got back from a nice ride to Niagara Falls and did not have any problems starting, nor did I encounter any chucking as I drove quite conservatively. Hopefully this mechanic can spot something tomorrow. Have a nice evening.:11red:

 

[wingdawg101]

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First place I'd look is at the new battery?

Not uncommon for a new battery to have a weak cell or just not be putting out enough juice !

 

[philcsand]

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My 1200 has the same problem. It is common, and can be caused by a few things.

1. Faulty starter motor:

They were designed by drunken monkeys. The ground connection to the brushes is purley mechanical, with no wire. Pull the starter, and make a connection from the brush plate to the case with 30 amp copper braid. They also swell with heat, and the brushes will short against the case. Put some sort of high-temp, very thin insulating material on the inside of the case adjacent to the brushes.

2. Sticking starter clutch:

Try putting your bike in gear, and draggin it backward until you feel the engine turn just a little bit. Pop it back into neutral, and try to start again.

3. Corroded wire going to the motor:

Clean and / or replace.

My problem is the brushes shorting, but I solved it (sort of) by using header wrap on my collectors. It not only improves performance, but it prevents the heat from the headers from soaking up into the starter motor. I say it sort of fixed the problem, because it still has the hot starting problem, but I dropped the amount of time it takes to cool to about 5 mins from 45.

 

[Jason]

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Welcome to the forum. Does the starting problem only happen when the bike is warm or does it happen when cold as well? Starter clutches can stick on these machines and sometimes changing to lighter oil can help.

 

[tommyrich]

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Dear philcsand

Thanks for your input. When my bike wouldn't start this morning I did exactly what you said. I put it in gear and moved it backwards and tried it again. It started immediately. I took it over to the shop and explained and he thought there was merit to your input, however he said if that was the problem it would take about 10 hours of labour plus parts to fix this problem. He said he would have to drop the engine to repair this fault.

 

[rcmatt007]

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several years ago my 1000 would have the starter spin (clutch not engage) on occasional cold starts.... so having nothing better to do, I dropped the engine and replaced the bearing in the clutch... it still occasionallly does the "spin", usually it will enage after a couple of tries. I have just learned to live with it:baffled::gunhead: