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WASHINGTON state Disabled VETERAN needs maintenence HELP

4680 Views 53 Replies 22 Participants Last post by  plainmech
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Good afternoon. I am a long time Gold Wing owner, and have a 'situation.' I became disabled after being injured while flying with the U.S. Coast Guard. I have rehabbed enough to be able to ride, but my 1994 Aspencade has been sitting for a couple years without being ridden or started. I've tried the gas additive hoping to get the sticky junk unstuck, but I'm now in need of real maintenence for my bike. I am not able to tackle it myself anymore, though I wish I could. Is there a Wing riderin the Seattle/Issaquah/North Bend corridor that might recommend someone? When I first moved here from my last duty station in Sacramento, CA I tried I-90 Motorsports, but the bike just didn't really run smoothly, so I was hoping for two things; I was hoping not to have to spend another thousand dollars to get it running, and I was hoping to help someone who needed the work. I so appreciate any assistance you might offer. This site is such a gold mine!
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... Mark,

If you have changed out the air filters, just keep on riding the bike and downshift to the gear needed to keep the engine over 2,500 RPM.

You are now where my bike was when I was fighting that same thing. I just kept riding it, and pouring in more Sea Foam. It took about 3 months for my bike, it was stopped up baaaaadddddd.... but it did finally clean out and I never had to do a carb job.

Your experience may vary, but I am a cheap skate, and My trips to work and back were all on roads at 45 mph, or 75 mph. either way, I just kept the bike in lower gears until I hit the freeways.

In your situation, I would just keep riding it, and go on. It should keep getting better.

From what you are telling us, it is already better than it was, just not perfect yet.
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If you can get the air filter out I would check the carb slides. They may be sticking. Just move them with a finger and see if they run free a smoothly. If not, hit em with a generous shot of WD40 and work them back and forth. Then a bath of seafoam or a shot of carb cleaner.
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Markjens if you have to go to a dealer you might try Hinshaw Honda in Auburn, they used to run a pretty decent shop.
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markjens any progress?:action::waving:
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I would be more in line to be thinking accelerater pump. A bad one will give you the feeling you might need a new clutch, having to rev high to get off the line and dying at low speeds. Just my two cents.
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Drain the carb bowls and see if that helps.
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My current standing is that I had a slight detour. While working on it yesterday, one of my other priorities and concerns is that the rear brake was hardly working. We live .8 of a mile down a gravel road, and if I need to stop I don't want to grab a handful of front brake and start eating gravel. I need all three brakes in working order! They weren't frozen, there just must have been a lot of air in the lines or something. So I decided to bleed the brakes. I did the left front first (per the service manual) and then tackled the rear brake. Those of you who've had that pleasure know what a generous access port that Honda allows for this task. It all has to be done through a hole about the size of a fifty cent piece that is in the left saddlebag. About the time all of the skin had worn off the side of my right index finger I decided the saddlebag needed to come off. Oh, what fun! So, I took it off and set it up on a five gallon bucket. Now that I had room I decided to take the caliper off and give it a going - over. When I got it all back together with new brakes, I found out the reason there was air in the lines. It was impossible to bleed that rear brake without putting teflon on the threads of the bleeder. The threads just leaked way too much air. While doing that, my son's 6 month old Golden Retriever came out and knocked the saddlebag off of the trash can and REALLY scratched up the finish. I used to have an almost pristine 1993 Gold Wing, but it is anything but that now. I don't know what I'm going to do about all of the gouges and scratches, but I have to worry about them later. So - got the brakes installed. Got them bled. Started to put the bags back on and got called in for dinner. Went back out to start working in the dark and it was raining. I got things buttoned up and covered up as best I could, but for now I am waiting out the rain. I'll dive in to the filter(s) when it clears up, but I know the existing filters have perhaps twenty miles on them at most. For fuel it doesn't matter since they're trying to contend with crappy fuel - they need to be replaced. Air though, unless a few creepy crawlies got in there, they should be clean. We'll see. I've not drained the bowls or checked the slides yet, when I get some sunshine I'll do it. As for the accelerator pump, so far I am playing it this way; After my surgeries and therapy the bike had been sitting for some time. Too long. It exhibited the same symptoms that I'm currently seeing. So, I'm working on the assumption that I am paying the piper again for allowing this beauty to sit too long under cover. It I'd been able to keep it on the road, I surely would have. I don't need sunny and 80 degrees to ride. I'll keep you all advised, and thanks a ton for all of your experience and advice. None of it is going to waste.

Thanks,
Mark
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Markjens wrote:
Okay, here's the deal; I took Mardonna's advice, and added another can of SeaFoam to the wing. I went and bought yet another new battery (these things are about disposable, no?) and then I started her up. I ran the bike for quite some time, and got her good and warmed up. I ended up with a really smooth running wing, and it was idling like it did when it was brand new! Now that is good news! So, I blipped the throttle a few times and it seemed like it was time to take a ride. So, took an hour ride, and it ended up pretty much like last time. When I would try to take off from a full stop, it wanted to die and die and die. But if I was under acceleration, it ran like the raped ape that it used to be. Sadly, it is hard to keep a bike under acceleration at all times. At some point you have to coast, right? If anyone has ideas I'd love to hear them, Is this a low speed jet or something? Oh - one last thing. If the bike is warm and sitting still, it can sit there and idle with no choke or anything and it is sweet sounding. If you try to take off without revving to about 4500 - 5000 rpms, it is going to die. Hope this helps some to get the symptoms across. If I could get the low speed/low rmp stuff under control, I'd be all set. Thanks, all - I appreciate the help.

Mark

Mark


my 94 was doing the exact same thing. i finally gave up on those carbs and took some from a 91....took them apart, put'm in a pot of water and boiled them on the stove. i now have a very nice ride.

i think the main problem is is in the idle/air adjustments. thats the only things i did not clean on the 94 carbs..........because, i didnt know. wish i could help you.



i now get 43 mpg

finances just won't let me. best of luck,



mark z.
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AQUAMAN wrote:
I would be more in line to be thinking accelerater pump. A bad one will give you the feeling you might need a new clutch, having to rev high to get off the line and dying at low speeds. Just my two cents.
thats a good possibility, because when i got the 91 carbs on mine it shifts alot smoother. i also changed the accelerator pump, when i redone the 91 carbs. so thats very possible.



mark:waving:
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Put that wing on a trailer & bring it here to me. I cant get over there. Try some choke when it dies out just to see if it reacts well to that. It might give us more insight as to what is really going on.

It would also be awesome if you were in a position to swap carbs with a wing that runs well just for a test.

while its cold pour some water around the gasket areas of the intake tubes or the plenum area & see if it chokes on water because it almost acts like a vacuum leak as well as a plugged low speed circut.

plug gap is also important for a strong spark as well as good plug boots because of their internal resistors.

Unthread your plug boots & look at the center core wire for corrosion. If they look crappy, snip off just a lil bit until you see shiny wire. Than re thread your plug boots & try again.

what is the color of your plugs?
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Hatchet, yes, it will run with choke. That is the only way to really get it to run for an extended period under power. If it is just sitting in the driveway, after it warms up it will idle like a kitten's purr. But, if you take it off the stand and click it into first, as soon as you try to put that motor under power it is no go. Ya gotta use some choke. Once it is rolling it will ride quite briskly, but you have to keep pushing it or it is unhappy. I really feel this is the gummed up carb thing again, and I suppose it will either clear up from running it or I'll have to have it taken apart and cleaned thoroughly. If money were no option I'd have already taken it to a dealer for some service. It is just the wrong time for us financially though, so I'm trying to wait it out. I'll tell you this much - you guys are much more comfortable with this bodywork than I am. What a pain! I'm trying to remember back when I was physically able, and I guess I really did like taking things all apart to clean them so I know what you mean. I'm just not in that position any more though. Don't get me wrong - I'll never be one of those guys who wants to buy his way into each and every ride. I like my ride and I like to be involved in keeping it up. I sure do appreciate you all helping me this way - I learn a little more every time I read here. Thanks,

Mark
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hay mark

i had about the same thing with my 92 interstate. it set off and on for 2 years. turns out a mouse made a nest in my airbox mostly from the filter. after new filter and seafoam, i covered the air inlet tube with 1/4" mesh wire to keep it from happening again. hope you get things going good soon.
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Gidday Mark,

I'll post a couple of pictures of my Klicktronics electric shift installation. They are posed in my pictures as well on this site. If you need any assistance or info do not hesitate to look me up.

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Brad, I'm guessing the Kliktronics pictures were in reference to my disability rather than my current woes, right? As for the 'woes' part, I have been pretty busy there. I dove in after you folks inspired me to quit whining and start wrenching. Heck, if I could change the turbine on a C-130 motor I can work on a Gold Wing, right? Well, I started peeling plastic once the weather broke. I did a check of the carbs, and everything seemed to be working freely but I hit it all with carb cleaner anyway. I believe it must be gummed up jet(s). So, I cleaned everything up, checked the air filter, looked like new but I cleaned it out anyway. I changed out the plugs. I basically did anything I could think of to do while the plastic was off. It is riding so much better! I can ride on the dirt road without feeling like I'm taking my life into my hands. I have been riding with no choke for a couple hundred miles. The only time I need to add just a smidge of choke is when pulling away from a dead stop. Sometimes it needs a bit of help. But, from what I can see, if I ride it as much as possible with no choke on, I have a better chance of cleaning those jets out with the SeaFoam. (I filled the tank again today and added more.) Once again, thanks for all the help, it looks like the patient is going to live thanks to you folk!

Mark
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glad to hear mark ride thr hell out of her they really don't like to sit:action::waving:
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glad to hear your bike is doing better.



mark:waving:
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Mark, Glad your moving along on the wing. Actualy the old Hercy bird is simpler than a GL carb (FCU). Sounds like the wing needs a good streatch on the road. I've never used Sea Foam but, from what I read on here the guys like it.
Brad FAA A&P, QA Vector Aerospace (Vancouver, BC)
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Mark, it's now Sunday. Hoping you got to get it out and run for some distance. How is it acting? :action:
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