Project BAMSFH™ - Part 8 - Yeah, it was a train...
So... yeah... It's been over a month since the last update to Project BAMSFH™ and unfortunately it was in fact a train coming towards me. Not a literal one of course... but close enough.
12/11/2013
I finally put the battery in for the first time since hauling it home. I'm still not ready to test fire it, but I wanted to know how bad the electrics might be. So far so good with only one big issue and one small issue.
- Running lights check out good and all came on as expected.
- Turn signals work... but I discovered big issue #1. The switch itself is going out or bad. I can turn on the signals left/right but only if I push the switch in just the right way. I hear the signal box clicking away, but no lights sometimes, but mainly the switch itself is squishy with no positive lock left/right or center/cancel. I will try to tear it apart tonight or this weekend.
- Headlights work... well Low Beam does. High beam switch kills low beam as it should but then no high beam. This is most likely just a bad bulb.
- Horn works
- Brake light works from both front brake switch and rear brake switch.
- License plate light works.
Also discovered the "Off...but stuck on the side of the road" position in the ignition. Between Off and Steering lock there is a position that keeps the running lights on. There is even a little "P" marked on the ignition to say I'm in PARK. Good to know... and it works.
The next day I was able to crack open the turn signal housing and began to clean it out. It was pretty nasty in there with a super thick and crusty residue most likely from some sort of grease. I pulled everything apart and cleaned it up really good then started reassembly. I used some good white lititum/dielectric stuff that should last a while. After it was all back together, the turn signal switch works smooth and perfectly and cancels as it should. I also ran some cable lube into the throttle and choke cables.
12/15/2013
I fired up Albee for the first time last night. Took a while to get fuel into the bowls and of course getting her to kick over and stay. Once going, she stayed strong and steady with choke. I need to up the idle a bit but I was able to drop the choke almost all the way off before idle dropped too low.
Slight possible problem... There is a bit of clicky clacky gong on in the rear valves. Not terrible and it seems to not be as noticeable with higher revs. I'll prolly give another valve adjust a try, but not sure I want to try it with everything still on. We shall see. I do have a slight leak on the #1 cylinder water line, prolly due to those new o-rings not fitting from the rebuild kit and instead using the old ones. It's not bad and might stop once the o-ring rehydrates.
Upside... No obvious leaks except for the small bleed on the water line. Not a lot of white/grey/black smoke on start up, so that's also a plus. Also... Low fuel light works!!!
I am cleaning/derusting the tank now and will be putting that on tonight if all goes well. I got a new headlight bulb that will go in also plus new grips coming tomorrow. This project bike is almost ready for a trip around the block.
12/18/2013
Finally got Albee all back together and took her for a spin around my complex. She's burning rich from the exhaust smells, which might also be why I can't get her to idle without a bit of choke, but otherwise she ran well.
Funny side note: I get flagged down by someone from the complex's admin team. I stop and flip open the face screen to talk. She asks me what I'm doing? I tell her I just got done rebuilding this bike and was taking it for a slow test ride. She laughs as she tells me that someone called in reporting a motorcycle "racing around" the complex. I assure her that I never got above 15mph and that was only for a short blip. She's cool with it and tells me she rides as well. I tell her I'm heading home so hopefully she won't get any more calls from the crazy biker terrorizing the neighborhood.
Now, we do have an issue with some younger people running their crotch rockets up and down the complex either showing off or "teaching" their friends to ride. So I understand it. I'm just confused how a slow speed rider could induce such fear and concern. :P
12/26/2013
Two steps forward and one step back on old Albee...
After my exciting spin around the complex last week, I didn't have a lot of time to do much and was waiting on adapters for the carb sync. I built my 4 bottle manometer and was ready to go once the parts showed up but I decided to readjust my throttle cables as well just in case I had set something too tight first. After getting it all set, I go to fire her up and discover that she won't run at all with throttle. The dreaded clogged fuel line/failed fuel pump scenario. I strain to hear the pump going at all during start-up and nothing. After a few quick tests to make sure, I unplug the harness and try running power straight to the pump. Nothing. Sigh... Off comes the pump and filter. I started to take it apart to see if I could clean the contacts or unstick whatever might have gotten stuck. I was able to manually work the pump and it still has pressure. But with the parts looking corroded and pitted it doesn't seem worth it to fix something that might just fail again on me when I don't want it to. I was looking over threads here and it seems I can use the one off a Prelude which looks pretty close physically for $65, which isn't too bad I guess. Then I found this little gem... (at least I hope it is a gem) while cruising the YouTubes.
K&L Supply Universal Fuel Pump Point Switch Kit 18-4615
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0034ZMVKU/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It looks just like the parts that are corroded on mine as well as after watching the videos, it connects and sits right where mine should. I figure it is only $29 shipped from Amazon right now, so worst case I'm out $29 bucks and a couple of minutes of testing time. Best case, I have replaced the failed parts and the pump starts working fine again. While I am waiting for this to arrive, I am going to get a bottle of gas and manually cycle the pump several times pumping good gas through it to make sure it is good and clean inside there.
01/10/2014
I got the new fuel pump points in and started to document the process, then realized that this video covers it already.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CmzkwuJlyA
Unfortunately for me, replacing the points did not fix the problem. This means that the failure/fault is inside the coils/guts of the pump and not and easy fix. I headed off to the parts store to see about a Honda Civic/Accord/Prelude pump that is LP and fits and won't cost me $165. Or else a Mr. Gasket 42s. But after seeing the physical pumps from Honda and even the Mr. Gasket pumps, none will fit in the limited space I have under the battery. Then I finally found what I think is the best fit for the V30s at least.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0027I88VQ/ref=pe_385040_30332190_TE_M3T1_ST1_dp_1
It is small enough to fit in the rubber mounting bracket. The fittings are already 5/16 (close enough to the 1/4 hoses in place now) and the only issue is rerouting the fuel lines to fit the flow through design versus the same side inlet/outlet. On the V4musclebike forum, someone mentioned taking apart the fuel pump halves and cleaning out the guts. I took the dead one aprt while waiting for the new one and didn't see a lot of anything I could fix. The diaphragm looked fine and as I noted before, the pump works if you manually operate the piston, so I'm back to it being something broken in the electrics. Possibly burned out from age or the thick crap that got sucked into the filter and possibly the pump. If your points look trashed, and manually working the pump pushes fuel thru it, it might be worth trying the Points Kit above.
01/21/2014
The new pump came in and I finally had time to mess with it. I clipped the wires off the old pump close to the points and stripped off the sheath. I spliced the wires together and soldered everything solid then heat wrapped each wire then a big one to cover both wires at the splice. I was able to prerun the hoses from filter to pump and changed out the pumps outlet port to a 1/4" fitting since I wasn't too worried about the 5/16 fittings between filter and pump, but I needed the pump outlet to fit the old 1/4" line leading to the carbs.
This is STOCK/OEM setup of the fuel delivery system on the V30
This is how I had to run the new pump since it is inline versus Inlet/Outlet on the same side.
After some finagling and mucking I was able to get the pump into place and made sure the lines were clear and as safe as I can make them. I wired it into the harness and the disconnected the fuel line at the carbs and directed that into a gas can. I turn the key "on" and flipped the STOP/RUN switch to RUN and the pump chattered to life quickly pulling fuel through the system and into the gas can. I stopped everything and reconnected the line to the carbs and ran the pump again. Then hit the starter. She fired up pretty quickly and was running with choke. I tried to mess with the IDLE setting again, but even with choke she would die if I blipped the throttle at all. I'm pretty sure some crap got into the carbs during all this.
The plan as it stands now is to pull the carbs again and do an in place cleaning of the float bowls, jets, fuel jet filters, and possibly the diaphragms to make sure everything is clean and not plugged up with gunk. I make also run the pump with the float drains open to make sure fuel is reaching all 4 carbs equally.
On the legal front, I am still waiting on the title and/or bill of sale. I trust my buddy who I got the bike from. But I do not know the registered "owner" at all, and am slightly worried that he may just up and decide he wants the bike back. And since I have no bill of sale, and my buddy cant find his, I could be screwed. My buddy say not to worry, but honestly until I have the piece of paper in my hot sweaty hands I will continue to worry.
Feeling so far on this project?
I am very happy I am doing it even with all the headaches and struggles. I have always enjoyed building and fixing things and have learned a lot about motorcycles already. So of it car knowledge that simply translates, but a lot of new knowledge. I am excited to get this bike rolling again and my hope is even if I do buy something else newer, I will keep this old gal for many years to come. Sort of doing my part to keep a little bit of motorcycle history alive.
