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Hi all. It's been a while since I last posted... truth be told, I'm considering getting rid of the bike since I don't have the room to store it, the money to put into fixing it up/keeping it licensed/doing required maintenance, or the interest in giving this amazing machine the attention it deserves. Anyway, on to the meat and potatoes...
Two years ago the bike started running like **** out of the blue toward the end of the season and left me stranded at a grocery store when I couldn't get it restarted. Eventually I managed to get the thing running again but after a few minutes on the road I had to keep the throttle cranked so it wouldn't die. I dumped some Seafoam into the tank and garaged it at my brother's place with the intent to work on it "next year". Obviously that never happened. I have FINALLY found the time to work on it a week ago when a friend wanted to see me fire the thing up. He even bought me a few gallons of premium no ethanol gas and a can of Seafoam!
I verified strong spark on all four plugs and dunked them in Seafoam to clean off a bit of residue, dried and replaced them, then prayed to the two-wheeled gods. Much to my surprise it started right up once I charged the battery. Warmed up without a hitch, and after I cranked the throttle a few times to see if it was going to mysteriously start sputtering again (it didn't) I decided to put a couple miles on it. Sure enough, halfway through the ride it started coughing and died at a stop. Restarted fine, but I had to keep the throttle cranked to keep it running; even at 3/4 throttle it wouldn't go above 2200 RPM and kept popping as if the mixture was too rich or a plug wasn't firing. Honestly I'm not a mechanic - just mechanically inclined - so I'm kind of grasping at straws here.
A few hundred feet from my destination it began running great of course, and my buddy thought I was bull****ting when I told him there was a problem. After a few minutes of idling in the driveway the bike started sputtering again. I stuck it in the garage and decided to consult the forums, and that brings us up to present.
I did a bit of searching and a small break in the pickup coil wire seems like a likely cause given the intermittent nature of the problem. When I go to my brother's place next week with my friend who's more familiar with motorcycles than I am the pickup coil wire is the first thing we're going to check out. I was wondering if anyone had insights as to what else I should look into - and ideally some simple diagnostic procedures - in the event that the coil wire isn't the cause. We already did a "wiggle test" to verify it isn't the spark plug wires. My friend suggested a vacuum leak or a funky air filter, but it seems to me like those would cause consistent problems, not a come-and-go gremlin.
Two years ago the bike started running like **** out of the blue toward the end of the season and left me stranded at a grocery store when I couldn't get it restarted. Eventually I managed to get the thing running again but after a few minutes on the road I had to keep the throttle cranked so it wouldn't die. I dumped some Seafoam into the tank and garaged it at my brother's place with the intent to work on it "next year". Obviously that never happened. I have FINALLY found the time to work on it a week ago when a friend wanted to see me fire the thing up. He even bought me a few gallons of premium no ethanol gas and a can of Seafoam!
I verified strong spark on all four plugs and dunked them in Seafoam to clean off a bit of residue, dried and replaced them, then prayed to the two-wheeled gods. Much to my surprise it started right up once I charged the battery. Warmed up without a hitch, and after I cranked the throttle a few times to see if it was going to mysteriously start sputtering again (it didn't) I decided to put a couple miles on it. Sure enough, halfway through the ride it started coughing and died at a stop. Restarted fine, but I had to keep the throttle cranked to keep it running; even at 3/4 throttle it wouldn't go above 2200 RPM and kept popping as if the mixture was too rich or a plug wasn't firing. Honestly I'm not a mechanic - just mechanically inclined - so I'm kind of grasping at straws here.
A few hundred feet from my destination it began running great of course, and my buddy thought I was bull****ting when I told him there was a problem. After a few minutes of idling in the driveway the bike started sputtering again. I stuck it in the garage and decided to consult the forums, and that brings us up to present.
I did a bit of searching and a small break in the pickup coil wire seems like a likely cause given the intermittent nature of the problem. When I go to my brother's place next week with my friend who's more familiar with motorcycles than I am the pickup coil wire is the first thing we're going to check out. I was wondering if anyone had insights as to what else I should look into - and ideally some simple diagnostic procedures - in the event that the coil wire isn't the cause. We already did a "wiggle test" to verify it isn't the spark plug wires. My friend suggested a vacuum leak or a funky air filter, but it seems to me like those would cause consistent problems, not a come-and-go gremlin.
After all the work I've put into the Quail bike, I tend to focus on the standard. As much as I try to help Ed, you would think I'd keep the Octy in mind, but as my mind is like a sieve now, I guess not.
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