The Service Dept
THE SERVICE DEPT
Len Vucci
If you have a question or comment of a technical nature, send it to us. We'll attempt to answer as many letters as possible and we'll publish those which we think are of interest to the majority of our readers. We'll also print some helpful hints and how-to's reflecting frequently asked questions. Technical correspondence should be sent to: Service Department, CYCLE WORLD, 1499 Monrovia Ave., Newport Beach, Calif. 92663.
RIM SCREWS
While reading the “Pro Techniques for Riding” article on maintenance in your December issue, a question came to mind. When you take out the tire locks and put in the screws, won’t the tips puncture the tires? If not, please let me know how to go about setting the screws in right.
Daniel M. Marra Chicopee, Mass.
The key to avoiding punctures is in selection of the proper length screw. Holes are first drilled in the rim, and the sheet metal screws are inserted into the tire head. A llowing for the thickness of the rim, the screw should he long enough to allow about V4 inch penetration into the bead. There will still be at least Vs to ‘A inch of rubber between the screw tip and the inner tube. Depending upon the bike's usage, six screws per rim side should suffice.
FOUL 500
I own a Kawasaki H1F500 that has fouled the spark plugs three times in 900 miles. I spoke with the dealer who sold me the bike, and he said this was normal. I can hardly believe this, especially since an earlier model H 1 I owned ran perfectly. What do you suggest?
RM3 Anthony Bald FPO New York
We suggest you first check the Injecto lube oiling system. If it is improperly adjusted, excess oil, especially at low rpm, could be fouling the plugs.
Also check the ignition timing and carburetion settings. Judging from the dealer's reply to your question, “dealer prep " might not have been very thorough.
HONDA 550 SUSPENSION
I have been looking for a Ceriani kit for my 1974 Honda 550 forks, but have been unable to locate a distributor. Specifically, I need springs, damper tubes, and teflon seals. Any information you can offer would be appreciated.
Chris Horan Vancouver, Canada
We have heard mention of such a kit, but were unable to locate one. In lieu of the Ceriani, we recommend that you use the Number One Products Kit, # H550-18.
Number One will soon be offering a teflon-impregnated fork bearing as an accessory for most popular forks. It requires no special tools for installation, and the kit will yield a decrease in fork friction for a smoother ride, while increasing rigidity for additional control.
PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE
A friend of ours, expressing more than a little discouragement after futilely tuning his Yamaha TT500, asked for some help. We gave it, and thought you might be interested in sharing the experience.
The problems encountered and the solutions affected could be typical of nearly any bike, not just a TT500. In fact, we'd venture to say most ill-running machines would respond to the treatment to be prescribed.
The bike's owner related that a standard Mikuni carburetor was installed in place of the original push-pull model, and since the installation, the engine was nearly impossible to start. Tow speed operation was atrocious, and the normal idle adjustments seemed to have no effect whatsoever.
We attempted to start the engine. It wouldn't fire. A quick check revealed the total absence of spark at the plug. The fix involved several simple but often neglected checks.
All of the external ignition wire connections were loose, and the connectors were covered with a coating of fine silt-like powder (from a recent desert ride). The effect was much like that of corrosion, and the cure the same. The connectors were cleaned with contact cleaner, crimped slightly to tighten, and wrapped with tape. Besides sealing against dust and moisture, the tape will prevent accidental disconnection of the plugs.
A nearly burned-through wire was routed away from the exhaust pipe, averting probable future ignition failure.
An inspection of the points revealed a coating of the same powder (nasty stuff!). We cleaned the point surface with some #600 abrasive paper and contact cleaner, then reset the point gap and timing. The dry point cam and felt wick were lubed, and after checking for tight electrical connections, we replaced the point cover.
The fouled spark plug was replaced with a properly gapped new one.
A few more swift kicks again failed to ignite the beast. There were, however, several explosive gasps which showed we were on the right track.
To gain access to the carb, the seat and gas tank were removed. Our initial inspection found these faults:
A plastic float bowl vent hose, resting on the exhaust pipe, was melted closed.
The throttle cable was improperly adjusted, preventing the slide from closing fully.
The throttle cable was also improperly routed, causing it to bind.
The carb-to-engine rubber connector tube was improperly clamped, allowing a slight air leak.
The idle mixture screw was adjusted fully closed, no doubt because of the above conditions.
The foam air filter was improperly oiled.
All these faults were discovered by a simple, common sense visual check and were easily corrected.
With the idle mixture screw set at l /2 turns, this beast-turned-beauty fired on the second kick. We allowed it to warm up for several minutes, then adjusted the idle mixture speed.
A quick road test confirmed our original suspicions. There was nothing originally wrong with this motorcycle that a little attention couldn't cure. We used no exotic tools, or replaced any parts other than the spark plug. Had the owner taken the bike to an honest, competent shop, the bill would have been substantial—and a total waste of money! (The man was duly reprimanded!)
The lesson to be learned is obvious: Although you can 7 always do everything, always do everything you can. More often than not it will be enough to keep you rolling happily, rather than leave you raving madly.
TURN SIGNAL BUZZER FOR BMWS
I recently bought a 1976 BMW R90/6 and think it’s the finest piece of machinery I have ever owned. I happen to be one of those guys who can never remember to put on my turn signal and, for that matter, always forget to turn it off. Many Japanese mounts have buzzers integrated into the flasher systems, and I wanted one for my bike. So I simply bought an $8, 12-volt buzzer from a local supply house, followed the instructions carefully, and installed it.
Electrical connections in the headlight of the BM are easy because the light housing is very large. I drove the machine around for a day to test the system and all seemed OK. But suddenly-blewey! The buzzer quit, my nacelle turn signal indicator pilot light went out, and neither the left nor right turn indicator would work. A careful investigation of the electrics and a talk with the dealer revealed that in the past several years BMW has replaced the standard signal-stat flasher common to most motorcycles with a complicated DOT-approved electronic box. Supposedly, this box has a built-in safety feature that permits the turn signal system to work even if a bulb burns out or a fuse blows. But, in no way will it accommodate a buzzer.
I found that a standard Honda 750 12volt buzzer draws the least amount of current of all, so I did the following:
1. Removed the ridiculous box (which costs $28 to replace, by the way).
2. Substituted a heavy duty #550 three-terminal 12-volt flasher with X, L, and P terminals (cost $2.00).
3. Bought the Honda 12-volt buzzer and wired it in parallel to the X and L leads of the flasher.
4. Connected the nacelle repeater light to the P terminal and, lo and behold, it all works just great.
I will be happy to supply the exact wiring diagram to anyone interested.
David M. Winters, M.D.
19231 Victory Blvd., Suite 255 Reseda, Calif. 91335
Your prescription, while electrically correct, is somewhat excessive in both labor and cost. For $6-$7, the same result can be obtained without altering the original system.
Use a Mallory Sonalert, which is available from most electronic supply houses. It draws far less current than even the Honda buzzer, and will not overload the bike's electronics. For most motorcycles, hookup is simple: There are two terminals on the Sonalert. Connect one terminal to the movable contact on the turn signal switch. (On the bike's wiring diagram, three wires will be shown: left, right, and common. Use the common wire.) The remaining Sondiert terminal is connected to ground.
For most negative ground motorcycle systems, the negative (—) terminal of the Sonalert will be grounded. The opposite should be true of positive ground systems. If after a brief test (2-5 seconds maximum,) the Sonalert does not work, simply reverse the connection at its terminals.
Use a scrap of aluminum or steel to mount the device. I§1
