Bringing a bike back to life - where to start?
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Novice
Joined: Oct 2012
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From: Denver
Bringing a bike back to life - where to start?
The bike: 1979 FXE Shovelhead
The known: sat outside for about a year and the battery is toast
Suspected: bad gas and a varnished carb
I know the first step is buying a repair manual. I did that last night and hopefully it'll arrive soon.
Next will be to drain the fuel tank and give it a good cleaning, drain the oil, remove and replace the filter, new sparkplugs, and of course a new battery.
The carb might be in OK shape but there's no way to tell without pulling it apart, and if I'm going that far I might as well get a rebuild kit. Any suggestions for a decent supplier? Anything to watch out for once it's in pieces?
What else is recommended at this point?
The known: sat outside for about a year and the battery is toast
Suspected: bad gas and a varnished carb
I know the first step is buying a repair manual. I did that last night and hopefully it'll arrive soon.
Next will be to drain the fuel tank and give it a good cleaning, drain the oil, remove and replace the filter, new sparkplugs, and of course a new battery.
The carb might be in OK shape but there's no way to tell without pulling it apart, and if I'm going that far I might as well get a rebuild kit. Any suggestions for a decent supplier? Anything to watch out for once it's in pieces?
What else is recommended at this point?
Tourer
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 393
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From: Southern Indiana
Intermediate
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 29
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From: pasadena
should not be too bad, i have a shovel that was left in a basement for 10 years and is ok except for cosmetic and tires. you probably have a Keihn carb, by the rebuild kit, can of carb cleaner with the basket and drop it in for a while. when you take it apart, maybe a camera would help. sometimes the manuals don't show very well all parts. i have a parts manual on cd (pdf) file if you need anything.
how is rest of the bike??
how is rest of the bike??
Club Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 66,106
Likes: 51,387
From: Niles Canyon Ca.
Bikes only sat for a year leave the carb alone , just drop the bowl plug and clean any sediment & old gas out . You're on the right track with everything else , just check the tires real well for weathering & cracks , lube all the cables and the chain and try her . Worst case the clutch may need a tear down & cleaning , sometimes they gum up and get sticky sitting .
PS I'd also clean all the battery cables & grounds , bad grounds are about half of shovel electrical problems .
PS I'd also clean all the battery cables & grounds , bad grounds are about half of shovel electrical problems .
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 7,488
Likes: 3,687
From: Santa Klaus County, Cali
Other than sitting outside for a year, what is the history behind the bike that you know of. With winter coming on it might be a good time to just go front to back. Did that with my 84. Most time consuming was the motor becuase it needed a top end done. Advantage was that with the motor out I was able to do a lot of cleaning that otherwise would not have been done. Also gave me the chance to get inspect the tranny and replace some tired parts in the cow pie
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Novice
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 18
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From: Denver
All things considered, the bike is in pretty good shape.
I work at Avalanche HD in Denver. Two of the techs gave it a close look and proclaimed it solid. One of them is a shovelhead lover. The general manager said they took it as a trade-in about 8-9 months ago and the former owner rode it in, so it should be a runner. Aside from the king/queen seat and drag pipes it seems to be all original and unmolested, which is pretty rare for such an "old" bike.
My repair manual arrived today, which will help a lot. I'm going to pull the carb and take it into work and let the guys look it over. The battery will get hooked to my heavy-duty charger and maybe I can bring it back to life (maybe not). I figure fresh gas & oil, new plugs and points ought to be enough to get it running at least for a few minutes to see how it does.
I figure a Denver winter is a great time for a restoration project.
I work at Avalanche HD in Denver. Two of the techs gave it a close look and proclaimed it solid. One of them is a shovelhead lover. The general manager said they took it as a trade-in about 8-9 months ago and the former owner rode it in, so it should be a runner. Aside from the king/queen seat and drag pipes it seems to be all original and unmolested, which is pretty rare for such an "old" bike.
My repair manual arrived today, which will help a lot. I'm going to pull the carb and take it into work and let the guys look it over. The battery will get hooked to my heavy-duty charger and maybe I can bring it back to life (maybe not). I figure fresh gas & oil, new plugs and points ought to be enough to get it running at least for a few minutes to see how it does.
I figure a Denver winter is a great time for a restoration project.
1st Gear
Joined: Nov 2012
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From: Wichita Falls, TX
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Road Master
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 864
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From: Mt. Pleasant SC
One thing I like to do on an engine thats been sitting, is pull the plugs (you're prob going to replace them any ways) turn the engine over several (several) times with the starter. this circulates the oil so you don't have a dry start. a little marvel mystery oil in the gas and oil. you should be good to go
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Novice
Joined: Oct 2012
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From: Denver
Thanks. I spotted it the very first day I was at Avalanche and wanted it ever since. The general manager had it stuck in the "turd pile" and only a couple of weeks ago was finally willing to make a deal we both could live with.