Author Topic: It finally happened to me  (Read 6995 times)

Offline timsatx

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It finally happened to me
« on: June 22, 2017, 10:24:18 PM »
I haven't ridden my bike a lot lately and was trying to get back into it even in this heat. I went for a 86 mile ride on Tuesday. I got about 2/3 thru when I had to get gas. I made two stops after that before I got home. At each stop I felt like I was noticing a gas smell. By the time I got home it started to run ever so slightly rough at low speed/low rpm.

The next morning when I left it was the same. By the time I got to work it was definitely running rougher. When I left work, when I started the bike it blew some smoke out the exhaust and definitely smelled fuel. I stopped by AutoZone on the way home and picked up some seafoam and added it.  Later that night when I went to put the bike up I tried to start it and I heard the dreaded "tink" and that was it, HYDROLOCK.

What I don't understand is that I replaced the fuel petcock 1-2 years ago with an original purchased at Murphs so not sure why it would be leaking. I am going to check it for any bent rods. If I don't find any I will start making plans to send the cards to SISF. If I do then I will see about either selling or parting out the bike and get ready for my next purchase.

Offline DC Concours

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #1 on: June 22, 2017, 10:32:41 PM »
Sorry to hear this. Hopefully you lucked out.

the floats were not closing so the carbs were filling up during the ride.

What did you mean by tink? It's usually a loud metal thud.

Offline timsatx

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #2 on: June 22, 2017, 11:04:25 PM »
It almost sounded like a hammer hitting an anvil.  Not quite that way, a little deeper on tone, but definitely no thud.

Offline DC Concours

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #3 on: June 22, 2017, 11:43:00 PM »
Oh ****. That was a hydro lock. I hope you come out of it unscathed. Let us know after the piston ht check.

Offline timsatx

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #4 on: June 24, 2017, 05:41:10 PM »
It looks like I lucked out. My check indicates that I do not have a bent rod. Now I have to get prepared to send my carbs off to be done.

Offline Mettler1

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #5 on: July 02, 2017, 08:21:29 PM »
  Get the full spa treatment!!  ;D  You WILL be glad you did!!! :banana
'94 Concours 112,000 miles-- 7th gear,2MM,KB fork brace,Over flowtubes,Stick coils,Tcro shifter,GPS,Torque cams,SPOOKFAK,block off plates, SS brake & clutch lines,KB risers, FENDA EXTENDA, emulators,etc

Offline timsatx

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #6 on: July 28, 2017, 10:07:10 PM »
I am getting ready to send my carbs in to get the full SISF treatment and am looking at the hoses to see which I want to replace. If you look at the attached pic, there is a hose going from left to right from carb 1 to carb 4 with a hose adapter in between. Do you know what the hose is? I can only see one hose setup in the microfiche that looks close but the hose isn't the correct size and it has a "T" adapter on it.

Offline Steve in Sunny Fla

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #7 on: July 30, 2017, 04:50:23 AM »
I am getting ready to send my carbs in to get the full SISF treatment and am looking at the hoses to see which I want to replace. If you look at the attached pic, there is a hose going from left to right from carb 1 to carb 4 with a hose adapter in between. Do you know what the hose is? I can only see one hose setup in the microfiche that looks close but the hose isn't the correct size and it has a "T" adapter on it.

  that's the signal hose for the PAIR valve. Just omit that, and the whole system. Steve

Offline timsatx

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #8 on: July 30, 2017, 01:10:55 PM »
So I remove the hose and block the ports?

Offline Steve in Sunny Fla

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #9 on: July 30, 2017, 06:32:21 PM »
So I remove the hose and block the ports?

yes, when you're putting it back together. Steve

Offline timsatx

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #10 on: July 30, 2017, 07:01:34 PM »
Muy bueno.

Offline timsatx

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #11 on: August 19, 2017, 08:29:03 PM »
I got the carbs back and then I went to Ron Ayers to order a few parts for the carbs to replace some old stuff. Little did I realize that while it saved me a couple of bucks, the shipping time is ridiculous. I ordered them on 8/17 and they won't be here until at least 8/28-8/30, so I have to wait till then to install them. Sucks. At the very least I want to get them installed and then start it and balance the carbs.

Unfortunately it will still be awhile before I ride as I need to clean the gas tank. I emptied it out and you can see the rust in the fuel. Steve said he saw a lot of rust in the float bowls. I can't see inside just a little bit but I think the rust is pretty much at the low end of the tank. So I am going to use some Evaporust in it, then use something to seal the metal before I coat the tank. I think I am going to use Caswells tank coating, but not the dragons blood as it will hide the rust. I'll use the light blue they have.

Offline Daytona_Mike

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #12 on: August 20, 2017, 07:19:27 PM »
I would get rid of the rust but would not seal the tank unless you actually have holes in the tank.
If you still have fuel in the tank, you are not lost yet
Most motorcycle problems are caused by the nut that connects the handlebars to the saddle

Offline timsatx

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #13 on: August 22, 2017, 02:42:17 PM »
Why wouldn't you want to coat the tank? If it has started rusting it is only going to start quicker than before.

Offline DC Concours

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #14 on: August 22, 2017, 05:00:13 PM »
Those coating causes more problems than not. They may flake off, turn into goo etc.

Offline Mettler1

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #15 on: August 26, 2017, 10:23:07 PM »
'94 Concours 112,000 miles-- 7th gear,2MM,KB fork brace,Over flowtubes,Stick coils,Tcro shifter,GPS,Torque cams,SPOOKFAK,block off plates, SS brake & clutch lines,KB risers, FENDA EXTENDA, emulators,etc

Offline timsatx

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #16 on: August 27, 2017, 06:56:45 AM »
Steve mentioned that to me also. If it weren't for the weather I had planned on putting my carbs in this weekend. Then come to find out that Kawasaki had changed the part number for one of the replacement springs to another existing part number. The problem is that the other part number is for a spring that is for a 6.5mm OD hose. The hose it is supposed to go on is 9mm OD. The part numbers for the hoses were also changed but that change is only to a longer hose

Offline timsatx

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #17 on: September 04, 2017, 12:28:34 PM »
I finally got the carbs in, built a auxiliary tank to see if it would run. Fired it up and it ran. the goal now is to finish getting everything back together next weekend. I have to get the rest of the rust out of the tank and change the oil. Also have to see about checking the sync on the carbs.

Offline timsatx

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #18 on: September 14, 2017, 10:02:41 PM »
Feeling good. I finally got my bike back together and took it out for a short drive on Sunday to verify all was working. I did have a little coolant leak so I tightened it down, wait for the engine to cool and refill it. The second time there were no leaks.

So I have rebuilt carbs and synced them, oil and filter change, coolant drain and fill, cleaned and oiled my air filter. I also cleaned my bike under all the plastic. I wasn't really sure how I wanted to tackle it so I did some reading. I ended up picking up a bottle of LA's Totally Awesome degreaser. Sprayed it all over, let it dwell for a minute then took a brush to it as it needed agitation after sitting like that for a long time. It's much better now.

I also topped off my gas tank and drove it to work on Monday. One of the things I still want to do is change my clutch oil. Maybe even my brake fluid. Eventually I will replace my brake lines with braided steel lines. The front is a split system with one line going to a splitter and into two lines. I want to change them to a straight two lines, one to each caliper.

I do still have the issue of my water temp. gauge not working. I thought the new sensor would work but no go. On Saturday I will test the gauge to see if it is busted.

Offline turbojoe78

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Re: It finally happened to me
« Reply #19 on: September 15, 2017, 06:03:55 AM »

I do still have the issue of my water temp. gauge not working. I thought the new sensor would work but no go. On Saturday I will test the gauge to see if it is busted.

Also check the connection at the thermostat housing, they have been known to get loose and be a problem.
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