This poor guy in another forum

[GigaWhiskey]

Yea, I haven't been hanging out here because I have been in another forum that deals with Mrs. GigaWhiskey's new to her bike.

 

NEway, this guy just bought a clean looking CB550 and it stopped running on him right after he got it home. This is his first bike so he surely does have the ability to mess something up.

 

A couple of members have him taking his carbs all the way apart.

 

This guy has no idea if he has a dirt in the tank blocking the petcock tubes or fuel getting to the carbs or spark getting to plugs or a blown fuse or any of the basic things most of us will go through for something that could be really minor.

 

You think he even has a sync tool, LOL, doubt it. Well, I said my peace in the thread so how it goes is how it goes.

 

Btw, these things are sooooo easy to work on. Tank off in about 15 seconds, maybe 15 hours on ours, lol. I have no probem taking this CB750 to the frame for a powder coating, would not dream of it on mine.

[SaltyDawg]

:whistling:Petcock is in the OFF position.

[GigaWhiskey]

They have him taking his clutch cable out to lube it now. Oh, he might even be pulling the oil pan off to clean the screen too.

 

Yea, he does have a faulty petcock but they seem to be ignoring that. His did the same thing as mine twice before I realized that the petcock was faulty. I mentioned that too but they are not listening. So, i am reading and laughing. Evidently I have no clue because I am the new guy, lol.

[ventureblue]

it ain't got no gas in it!

[SaltyDawg]

They have him taking his clutch cable out to lube it now. Oh, he might even be pulling the oil pan off to clean the screen too.

 

Yea, he does have a faulty petcock but they seem to be ignoring that. His did the same thing as mine twice before I realized that the petcock was faulty. I mentioned that too but they are not listening. So, i am reading and laughing. Evidently I have no clue because I am the new guy, lol.

 

I had one of those way back when. The petcock was my first thought because of that.

[Naked Rider]

speaking of the petcock should i be turning it off every night? most times i dont even think about it but this guy i ride with said that i should.

[RedRider]

No, you don't need to turn it off every night. However, if you don't regularly run your tank to reserve, you should juat move it every once in a while. Moving the petcock will keep the O-rings lubed/wetted and prevent leaks.

 

RR

[GigaWhiskey]

I finally read him the riot act. He tore the petcock apart and took pictures. It was rusted and is really bad shape, he may be replacing it from bikebarn. You can still get that part and cheaper than ours.

 

He still does not know if he is getting spark though.

 

I had to stop him, he was ready to take the clutch apart.

[Squidley]

Sometimes you just have to let folks step on their own toes. I do that sometimes here, if I know what the problem is and tell them. Folks will try everything else, I let them. Guaranteed when they do fix it, they wont forget it and thats why this forum has the fix for just about everything. We have all broke something or such and learned the lesson the hard way

[Tartan Terror]

Sometimes you just have to let folks step on their own toes. I do that sometimes here, if I know what the problem is and tell them. Folks will try everything else, I let them. Guaranteed when they do fix it, they wont forget it and thats why this forum has the fix for just about everything. We have all broke something or such and learned the lesson the hard way

Hope thats not the issue with my engine (Water pump) knock dude. I actually listen to you!!

[oldandcrotchety]

BTW, in case you run across a part you have a hard time finding, there is what is probably the worlds largest warehouse of parts for old Hondas. They even have a section devoted just to the inline fours. When I had my '78 CB550 I had so many people tell me "oh, that's just no longer available anymore." One guy even said "you can't get carb kits for that anymore, not even aftermarket. we tried and now we have to make our own needles an gaskets, etc" I thought "baloney" there are millions of these old bikes on the road worldwide and he just didn't know where to look. It took me only a short time to find this place in the Netherlands. It's http://www.cmsnl.com. And yes they had the carb kits, OEM at that. You would be amazed at the parts they have. I doubt there is anything you need that they don't have.

[GigaWhiskey]

I check that site, cmsnl, and the shipping would eat my lunch.

 

NEway, 162 posts later and...

 

"WAHOO guys i got the bike running, i found the two problems. my needles get stuck not letting fuel into the carb and my petcock has had it so i need an entire new petcock because also a screw got broken in it when i was putting back together so if anyone has a working petcock for a 74 55o (not the sock kind) let me know or if they know where i can order one that will ship fast let me know."

 

I told him petcock first, but it took this long and that many posts for it to come out, lol.

[jlh3rd]

i have a 1975 honda 550f, in mint condition...has original seat no tears, original exhaust,no rust ...engine is immaculate....no tank rust......anyway, yes, you should turn off the petcock when leaving the bike and here's why.....the only thing stopping the fuel from entering the carbs are the pintle valves in the carb bowls......with the tank higher than the carbs,that is a constant pressure on these valves, which can cause fuel to seep past these seals, especially if the tank is full ( which should be as much as possible to prevent rusting )...if the bowls fill up, fuel can then run down the throat of the carbs, to the valves, and enter the combustion chamber.....if you notice, the carbs have a slight angle toward the cylinder head......so, if you store your bike like i do....or don't ride it much.....petcock should be off

check out hondarestoration.com......cms is not the only one out there ( used them and they are good) also have bettencourt up in the northeast, david silver spares in england, telemacular sports ,Ca. i think.......i have the sunrise orange.....