Is my face red....

Heh... I am embarrassed, but I am man enough to tell what I did. I figured I would share and let you all know how bad I am at mechanics. The Lord works in mysterious and yet funny ways.

The last two weeks, I have learned so much about my bike; from the electrical system to the fuel system; from changing my oil to rebuilding my carburetors; from bleeding my brakes to calipers and everything inbetween.

A few weeks ago I thought I was having issues with my front caliper and took the front wheel off. I had taken off the seat because I could, and also (because I had never done it before), I took off my gas tank while doing this just because (again) I had never done that before. When I put it all back together, I got about a block down the road and the thing starts to crap out on me. I was able to get back home, but eventually it died and that was that.

I couldn't get it to start (though it would turn over). I worked on it for about three days, suspecting my carbs, but finally got my father in law over and he looked over the situation w/his multimeter and it began to look like I had no spark and therefore electrical problems (either the ignition coils or the TCI).

However this was not the case. Today I tore my carbs apart and cleaned them then put it back together. I got it to start up! It idled fine, and I got it to warm up! So, off I go, and I get it half way down the road, and BAM! It dies again like its not getting gas!

Right then, that inspiration, the Holy Ghost, or what ever you wanna call it spoke to me and I look again at my fuel source... this time, at the fuel line itself.

Like I said, I am embarrassed, because it turns out because of the way I ran my fuel line, it was pinched, and therefore I was starving the carburetors , but it also turns out that this is what I did w/the fuel tank when I put it back on after fooling around w/my front caliber brake (yeah I know)....

The funny thing was that it was the simple fuel line that caused the whole thing, but the mysterious part is the fact that I know a ton more about my bike now than I ever did before (which was one of the things I wanted this bike for; so I could learn more about mechanics and how things like this work)....

Heh

 

You're attending the finest school in the land, my friend......the school of Harde Knox. And while you don't get a diploma in the end, what you get is.....common sense. And you can't buy that anywhere. Congrats!

 

Yeah, I know... Seems the only cool thing out of this whole mess was that I got mega info on how this stuff works, and I feel much more comfortable w/the bike as a whole, now.

 

The Lord does work in mysterious ways Kishkumen and by you looking at to positive side has given you the eyes to see it. Humility is a good thing for future growth and giving thanks where credit is due will take you far in life and give you what you desire with independence, through rewards of achievement. I too am looking to learn as much as I can and sometimes it takes misfortune to give me the courage and the prompting to accomplish a task. My whole life has been full of lessens that have helped me to see and obtain knowledge of other things that I would have not normally seen or given the ability to do if I had never traveled down a specific road before.
I keep reminding myself that high bike shop rates and/or refusal to do work on old bikes is doing me a favor. PO's will sell their old classics to guys like me for pennies on the dollar because they gave up on these old iron jewels. Besides, I need something to keep my interest in life when I retire from my the career that I have lost challenge and interest for. I am thankful also that I am back into bikes as a hobby because I was obsessed with firearms for the last 20 years. My wife hates my guns and now bikes again but at least I have something that is more practical for everyday enjoyment. I just love my evening cruises to wind down from a busy day...very therapeutic indeed! I don't think about anything but the road when I'm on my bike.

 

Every day has and is a new learning experiance.... doesn't matter how old you are, you haven't seen it all!!

Glad to hear your fuel delivery problem is solved.

 

since you mentioned it.....we all make mistakes!

I was changing out my petcock and had my tank upside down on a t-shirt on the bench.

I thought I had all the gas out of the tank, a bit leaked out on the rag and that was when I found out that the clear coat wasnt all I thought it was.

Now I have a freshly repanted tank.

 

I learned in the first day of owning my bike. That if your going to spray carb cleaner into the intake with the carbs off. Please take off you gas tank,because it will catch on fire and you will do something crazy to put it out. I threw a flaming gas tank across the yard. It didnt blow up but i dented it real bad and burned all the paint off. Oh well you live and you learn right.

 

I made a mistake once...but it turned out that I was wrong. :wink:

Glad to hear you got your problem figured out.