I have spark but no start,........ took the tank........no gas comming out the petcock seems to be clooged..cant get the bike started any suggestions..first time bike owner....and very much a novice wrencher.....the tank had gas in it sitting for a year I drained it it was bad. little rust any suggestions on how to get teh gas flowing again....Thanks for any help.....

 

Pull the fuel valve completely off the tank and clean it. There is an internal screen which is probably clogged. Some of the fuel valves have a double nut arrangement so you might need to mess with the make up to get it to tighten up correctly.

While you have the fuel valve off, flush out the tank. You can use gasoline or alcohol. Also, pull the bowl off the carburetor and clean it out. It probably has a bunch of sludge in it.

Finally, make sure your fuel valve is in the on or reserve position. Sometimes, the positioning of the valve isn't always that clear.

 

Also, another good trick to use, after you have flushed out your tank is to spray some carb cleaner into the gas tank. Don't use the bottle pour in stuff, use the spray can and blast away inside the tank, then flush one more time with fresh gas.

Also, check for rust in the tank. If you have rust in it you can buy a cleaning kit from just about any motorcycle shop and follow the directions. There is a product on the market called "KREEM" that works well, but ONLY if you follow the directions EXACTLY as they are written. Good luck!


[edited---KREEM is a rust cleaner and tank liner that coats your tank with a plastic type material to prevent rust in the future. I've use it many times and have had good results.]

 

some petcocks have a diaphram in them and if that goes bad no gas to carb!

 

"The Works" toilet bowl cleaner from K-Mart costs $1.99 a bottle and works like a dream on rust in a tank. Dont spend the $50 for the Kreem or POR-15 kit from a shop. Buy the works, pour it in the tank (actually put 2 bottles in the tank) and slosh it around every 5 minutes for about a half hour. Pour it out, then rinse out your tank 3 times with warm water. Dry your tank out with a hair dryer on low setting for about 15 minutes so it doesnt flash rust. Fog the inside of your tank with WD-40, then put some fresh gas in there. Tank will be bare shiny new metal. Believe me, i had a 1974 honda CB750 with a tank so rusty inside it was pure orange in there. After i was done it looked like new. Rust in a tank can cause all kinds of havic in your fuel system and carb. Imagine having to deal with 4 carbs, like the hondas had.