Hello all,
Some day I may be posting less or posting less annoying questions....that is after this basket finally fires. Here's the lowdown. I purchased a basket from my neighbor a year ago (a 76 Ironhead). I did everything as far as assembly of the essential parts to get her running. It is a kick only. I have never had the bike fired or heard it run, but the guy says she ran before dissassembly years ago. I kept the lungs lubed during the reassembly and cleaned all the essential parts. I will be attempting to fire her hopefully this coming week when I get her out of the other shop.
Any suggestions to the first fire? I know there could be a million things that may get thrown into the mix. I put together a list of all the stuff I should check off first before putting my foot on that kicker. It's not like a fresh engine that you turn and fire, but one that could have had problems with in the past that I don't, or won't, know about as I am trying to kick and kick and kick.
Anyone had good or bad experiences with a basket? Any historical problems that may be eminent I should look for as I run myself out of breath?
Thanks

 

My kick start routine worked well on both a '72 CH, a '73 H w/kicker, and a '78 FLH. Bike should be on the stand when kicking it over. There are two basic methods, with variations; one (my preference) you straddle the bike and kick with your right leg. The other, you stand on the right side, place your left knee on the seat and kick with your right leg. A variation on this is standing on the right side and kicking with your left leg.

Now for the fun part!
Kick starting procedure: This is a general guide because every bike is a bit different. This is a cold start procedure. Ignition off. Gas off. Choke off. Don’t touch throttle. Kick through easily 2 times. Choke on. Gas on. Ignition on. Throttle all the way open, then back off to the ¼ open position. Kick smartly through. Do not move the throttle while kicking through. When it fires, start opening choke to help keep it running, while modulating throttle for the correct rpm.

This is all trial & error! A kick only bike MUST be in a good state of tune, or the kicking gets old right quick! A good state of tune includes plugs, point gap, timing, carb adjustment, and something a lot of people overlook - pushrod adjustment.

Something to try if you just can’t seem to get it kicked over is to push start it (2nd gear) and let it warm up. Then shut it down and try to kick it. No choke and only ¼ throttle. Again, don’t move the throttle when kicking it through as this can flood the engine.

 

In all the years I've worked on my various bikes and running batteries dead trying to start a miss-tuned motor after rebuild, all I can say is...

Break a leg, no wait... GOOD LUCK.

Hope all goes smooth and she at least fires up rough so you know which screws to turn.

Rich

 

First make sure that you followed the service manuals suggestions to ensure that all of the bearings are getting oil and that the oil pump is working properly. Secondly, If you are sure that the carb. is getting/full of fuel do not put on the breather until you roll the throttle over a couple of times while looking into the throttle body to see the accelerator pump actually squirt fuel into the throttle body. If it is squirting properly you have one headache eliminated. Thirdly, do not put the spark plugs into their holes until you connect them to the spark plug wires and kick the hell out of the bitch a few times while the plugs are laying on the cast iron heads being careful to ensure that they are firing. You can have a friend? hold them right up against the spark plug holes if you want but he may not do it to both plugs after the first one. If you are getting fire from both plugs install them and connect the wires. Fourthly, throttle proceedure is very dependent on the type of carb. you have. My old '75 with the stock carb. had a different throttle procedure for every state the engine may be in. that will be trial and error. Manly error. I never used the choke a single time in 13 years. when it was dead cold I pumped the throttle all the way over 2 times and it always fired within 2 kicks. I used the stand on the right side with your knee on the seat method. slowly kick the kicker over ensuring the you let the kick start pedal come to the top of its travel with each kick or the gears will not fully engage and that is where people hurt themselves. I always lifted my foot off the darn thing to make sure it was all the way up. when the bike got on a full compression stroke I would stand up using momentum and come down on the kick starter pedal with all of my weight and momentum. ENSURE that your right leg stays in the slightly bent position or you will be dancing around cussing. Ensure that you follow through the entire stroke with the kick start pedal and keep it in the fully down position until the engine stops turning over if it doesn't fire. If you make the mistake of getting in a hurry and try to return the kick start pedal to the starting position before the engine quits turning over (assuming of course that she did not fire up) you will be dancing around cussing again. Any hint of combustion noise is a good thing. It tells you what the engine is doing. backfiring through the carb usually means not enough fuel. A VERY deep internal cough usually is a hint of flooding. I really consider this to be a good thing because you know immediately what to do about it. Give her full throttle and hold her at full throttle when she is flooded while kicking the starter. If you pump the throttle while the enginge is flooded even one time you will be calling yourself a complete idiot. Make sure that the battery is fully charged.

 

Thanks for all the advice and time you put into this post, guys....I'll keep you all posted on the progress.