Cycle World Service
CYCLE WORLD SERVICE
Engine finish
As the owner of a new 1982 KZ1000, I have a question regarding engine finish. How do you keep that nice, new, black engine looking nice, new, and black? Also, to occasionally clean off road grime and insects, is it acceptable to use commercial
engine cleaners such as Gunk, or will they harm the finish?
Joseph Bradley
Gosnell, Ark.
The easiest way to keep an engine looking bright and shiny is to spray it with oil after washing it. We like LPS #/ for this because it drys in a clear, shiny film that makes the engine easier to clean the next time. LPS products can be difficult to find, but other oils like WD40 or Bel-Ray 6-1 will work nearly as well.
For engine cleaning, one of the kerosene based solvents like Gunk works well with no damage to engine paint.
Avoid oven cleaning sprays because they will remove the paint as well as the grime.
Cold starting blues
My 1982 650 Nighthawk won’t start if the outside temperature is below 40° F. It will turn over fine, plenty of cranking power just no starting. The strange part of this is that an increase of two or three degrees will let it start immediately. To compound the problem, if I ride the bike for quite a stretch and shut it off, it is difficult to start again even though it’s warmed up and was just running smoothly.
I have explained this problem to my dealer, and the only thing he can offer is that since the oil is SAE 50, “it gets thick when cold and hard to start.” If that’s the case, I seem to be the only bike owner using SAE 50 oil as other bikes seem to start at even colder temperatures.
Am I restricted to fair weather riding because of a quirk in the bike or is there something I can do?
Orv Limbert
Kettering, Ohio
You can change over to lOw 40 oil for cold weather use. Honda recommends the use of multi-grade oil, and you may actually be doing more harm than good by using SAE 50. The thicker oil takes longer to reach bearing surfaces, and may actually be too thick in cold weather to properly lubricate all bearings. It’s certainly too thick to allow easy starts, and in 40° weather it may stay that way even after you’ve run the engine for awhile.
If that doesn’t do it, check the battery and the carburetion. The battery has to be in good shape for cold weather starts, and the choke butterfiys have to engage completely. As a last resort, you might try enrichening the pilot circuit of the carbs either with one size larger pilot jets or by taking another turn out on the pilot screws. To make this last adjustment, you have to remove the EPA-mandated travel limiters from the pilot screws.
Enduro bike voltage regulator
Several people here have enduro bikes which haven’t had their batteries replaced after the originals retired because batteries aren’t required to run the bikes. But without the battery, we have problems with headlight bulbs burning out from too
much current. Could you tell me what size and type of current limiter or voltage regulator we could use to protect the six volt, 25 or 35 watt bulbs?
John Chistensen
Saudi Arabia
A recent Yamaha Competition Support Report had the answer to your problem. Yamaha offers a six-volt voltage regulator (P/N 4F4-81910-60-00) that they recommend for use on the IT250K, but the regulator will work on other 6v bikes as well. One lead of the voltage regulator should be spliced into the headlight hot wire, and the other lead should be grounded. (The regulator is wired in parallel, not series, with the headlight.) That’s all you have to do to keep your headlight bulbs from burning out.
Suzuki cams
I own a 1982 GSI 100E with a street Kerker exhaust. It’s been rejetted and the airbox lid removed. I was planning to trade up to a 1983 GSI 100E but Reagan’s tariff increase cancelled that idea. As far as I can tell all that Suzuki did was install different camshafts in the 1983 model for the performance increase. Will those camshafts fit into my 1982? Why buy the cow when all you need is the milk?
Brian Nesius
Wells, Minn.
We don’t know what your local dealer has been telling
you, but 1983 GS 1100s weren’t affected by the tariff increase, and at least in Southern California, the 1100E model has been selling at a hefty discount from list. In any case, the slight increase in performance for the 1983 model came from the cam change and a less restrictive airbox. Your airbox modification has effectively duplicated the factory’s airbox change for 1983. The main difference in the cams is the intake cam timing and a .020 in. increase in lift for both cams. The intake valve now closes 8° earlier than before, and this improves the already impressive mid-range power of the 1100 Suzuki. You could duplicate most of this effect by just using the 1983 intake cam sprocket without using the 1983 cams. Some rejetting might be required afterwards, and the slight improvement in performance probably isn’t worth the work. It’s not as if the 1982 GSl 100 is a slow motorcycle
Stiffer spring
In February, 1981, I bought a Honda XR200R. My problem is that I bottom out the rear shock, with the preload and damping set at max. I weigh 178 lb. and have had the shock checked by Honda dealers.
In your test of the bike in March, 1981, you said that Honda would offer a heavier accessory spring. After two letters to Honda explaining my problem. I’ve received no satisfaction. They say they offer no such spring.
Is there another preload spring I can interchange to get the desired results.
R. Fazenbaker
Elizabethtown, Penn
We’re slightly confused; we didn’t test a 1981 XR200R in any issue, and in our test of the 1982 model, we found the suspension stiff if anything.
At least there’s a reason why your bike was soft and ours a bit stiff: the 1982 rear shock spring is 10 percent stiffer than the springs used on either the 1981 or 1983 XR200Rs. The springs are interchangeable, and for $49.74 suggested retail, you could stiffen your rear 'suspension with the 1982 spring (PN 52401-KA2-681 ).
Alternatively, you could send your current spring to Works Performance (8730 Shirley Ave., Northridge, Calif. 91324, phone (213) 701-1010), and have the spring modified to raise the rate. The modification consists of shortening the spring (shorter springs are stiffer than longer springs, everything else being equal) and supplying a spacer to make up for the missing length. Works Performance charges $25 for this service.
Long shocks and U-joint wear
Recently I acquired some new rear suspension units for my GS850GN. The units I bought were 13.5 inches long, about one half inch longer than stock. I’ve become slightly paranoid since installing these, because the increased length of the shocks has angled the swing arm down slightly from horizontal. I don’t know whether the increased angularity at the U-joint will cause premature wear, or possible failure. Any information you might supply would be a great relief, since I keep getting conflicting opinions from the local sources.
Alan Martini
Albuquerque, N.M.
We discussed the possibility of faster U-joint wear with a Suzuki technical representative, and there seems to be little reason to worry. The half in. longer shocks don’t increase angularity that much, and any slight decrease in U-joint life (if any) has to be put in perspective with the long life of the component: run the shocks, forget your paranoia, and the U-joint is likely to outlast the rest of the motorcycle.
XR350 pilot jet
In your Honda XR350 test in the May. 1983, issue, you state, “we replaced the number 45 pilot jet with a number 48 and completely eliminated the stumbling.” Where did you get the number 48 jet? The Honda dealers I’ve asked said there is no such part, never was and never will be. So what gives?
Kurt C. Staufenberg
Santa Barbara, Calif.
The off-idle stumble that standard XR350s suff er from is reduced by the number 48 jet, which is available from Honda (HC 155444). The confusion comes because the jet wasn’t available through the Honda parts network when our test first appeared. We received ours from our contact in Honda’s Product Research group, and we didn’t realize the jet wasn’t available until after the test was published.
We’ve put more miles on the XR350 since then, and we know now that while the 48 pilot jet improves XR350 carburetion, it’s not the complete answer. The jet change corrects the lean spot just above idle by overrichening the idle mixture. Honda is aware of this as well, and will have completely different carburetor settings for the 1984 XR350. The final solution for the 1983 XR350 carburetion fault may well be to update the carbs with 1984 slides and needles when parts become available. In the meanwhile, the 48 pilot jet helps.
More electronic ignitions
i n your July 1983 issue, you state that you couldn’t find anyone who currently imports one of the European breakerless ignitions for the RD400. You guessed it! We are the current importer/distributor of the Piranha line of motorcycle electronic equipment, which includes two different model ignition units for the Yamaha RD series. Our company is Robot Technical Imports, 30 Bonnie Drive, Westbury,
N.Y. 11590. Phone (516) 333-1228.
Robert Sacklow Westbury, N.Y. 3
