ironhead woes
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ironhead woes
hi,my name is jared carson,ive been working on this old sportster for awhile. ive got it all rebuilt new frame,tins,paint i over hauled the engine new jugs pistons and rings had the heads done at local machine shop.
im to the point where i wanted to hear it run but for the life of me it wont start,it has 170 pounds of pressure in both jugs,when i start to crank it it will barley turn over,,,now hear is the weird part,,,, with the carb off and hand over the intake it cranks fairly well when i move my hand to allow air in it almost stops. ive worked on bikes awhile and this has me stumped,another thing if i crank the engine with my hand over the end of the exhaust pipe it sucks and blows both that just doesn't seem right to me,,,,
i was hoping you being an ironhead guru you could shine some light on my troubles,,thanks jared
im to the point where i wanted to hear it run but for the life of me it wont start,it has 170 pounds of pressure in both jugs,when i start to crank it it will barley turn over,,,now hear is the weird part,,,, with the carb off and hand over the intake it cranks fairly well when i move my hand to allow air in it almost stops. ive worked on bikes awhile and this has me stumped,another thing if i crank the engine with my hand over the end of the exhaust pipe it sucks and blows both that just doesn't seem right to me,,,,
i was hoping you being an ironhead guru you could shine some light on my troubles,,thanks jared
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well i got it to light up finally last night.my timing was not set right and still not perfect.but my big trouble was the i had one cam in wrong. still seems weird that it doesn't have much compression till i open the throttle and give it some air?
one question? my crankcase breather i believe is timed correctly but when i crank it over it really blows hard out the vent tube is that normal no oil to speak of when its running i guess that's a good thing engine may need to just be broke in,thanks alot jared
one question? my crankcase breather i believe is timed correctly but when i crank it over it really blows hard out the vent tube is that normal no oil to speak of when its running i guess that's a good thing engine may need to just be broke in,thanks alot jared
compression test should be done with a warm engine and throttle pulled wide open.
ifthe cams are timed corectly and the oil pump is timed correctly then yeah blowing out the oil tube is fine. check for intake leaks and exhuast leaks, adjust your push rods and dial in your timing should be good to go fro mthere
ifthe cams are timed corectly and the oil pump is timed correctly then yeah blowing out the oil tube is fine. check for intake leaks and exhuast leaks, adjust your push rods and dial in your timing should be good to go fro mthere
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Feb 2006
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From: Houston Texas
well i got it to light up finally last night.my timing was not set right and still not perfect.but my big trouble was the i had one cam in wrong. still seems weird that it doesn't have much compression till i open the throttle and give it some air?
one question? my crankcase breather i believe is timed correctly but when i crank it over it really blows hard out the vent tube is that normal no oil to speak of when its running i guess that's a good thing engine may need to just be broke in,thanks alot jared
one question? my crankcase breather i believe is timed correctly but when i crank it over it really blows hard out the vent tube is that normal no oil to speak of when its running i guess that's a good thing engine may need to just be broke in,thanks alot jared
Additionally, you want to open the throttle wide open as you crank it over. The reason for this is to let the engine gulp all the air that it can before the compression stroke(s).
If you have an honest 170 psi on each cylinder that is great. That means no valves are leaking and rings are sealing. Just what you would expect on a rebuilt engine.
However, if you somehow failed to adjust the pushrods..... do it NOW before you go running the engine.
If you had a cam installed incorrectly then be glad the engine did not start!
To start, the engine must:
1) Have the cam timing correct.
2) Have spark and the ignition timing close to correct, but it does not have to be right on the mark.
Having the ignition backing plate in the middle of the adjustment slot is going to be close enough to start it.
3) A carb can give you problems starting, but if it ran before the rebuild then this is not going to be the problem, most likely.
4) And last, if the bike is an electric start then of course you will need a strong battery to turn over the engine quick enough to get it started.
First thing to do is see if you are getting a strong spark on both plug wires.
Stick a round shaft screwdriver into each plug cap and hold the metal 1/8 inch away from ground. Kick it over and the spark should easily jump the 1/8 inch air gap and be a bright blue in color.
If the spark is orange and weak (not having a loud ZAP!) then you need to inspect your points. Maybe install a new set along with a new condenser.
pg
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well i think i got it,, thanks guys,, the bike was a kick only but after about 3 hours and a 12 pack a beer i was pooped! so i put the electric start on it but i didnt have enough battery to crank it,but with the help of my charger on 200 amp start it wirls over nicely and fires up..the carb i have is not quite right its a cv carb and im sure its not jetted right its of an evo sporty, so i needed to hold the throttle open to get it to hit.
pinion gear,i have have a vm 34 will this carb work for me if i get it jetted right or should i just save it for something else,thanks again guys,,jc
pinion gear,i have have a vm 34 will this carb work for me if i get it jetted right or should i just save it for something else,thanks again guys,,jc
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Road Master
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http://www.nightrider.com/biketech/hd_cv_mods.htm
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Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Feb 2006
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From: Houston Texas
well i think i got it,, thanks guys,, the bike was a kick only but after about 3 hours and a 12 pack a beer i was pooped! so i put the electric start on it but i didnt have enough battery to crank it,but with the help of my charger on 200 amp start it wirls over nicely and fires up..the carb i have is not quite right its a cv carb and im sure its not jetted right its of an evo sporty, so i needed to hold the throttle open to get it to hit.
pinion gear,i have have a vm 34 will this carb work for me if i get it jetted right or should i just save it for something else,thanks again guys,,jc
pinion gear,i have have a vm 34 will this carb work for me if i get it jetted right or should i just save it for something else,thanks again guys,,jc
The VM34 should work OK. You may want to rejet it also.
A VM34 is a bit on the small side as the standard for a Sporty is a VM38, but it should work well.
If the CV came off an EVO Sporty it may not be too far off unless the bike was a 1200.
If that were the case the CV may be on the too large size. Running it will give the answer to that in either case.
pg
