So, I’ve spent the day working on the bike, now how shall I put this, it looked like a fuel problem, smelt like a fuel problem, and felt like a fuel problem. But I’m forever blaming fuel, and it seemed to be more odd than that, what with there being a specific rev-related issue too.
So, I’ve:
– Changed the coil
– Checked and retorqued the head bolts (they were fine)
– Checked the banjo bolt on the oil pump (‘cos oil is definately escaping from somewhere)
– Retightened the exhaust o-ring (just ‘cos it needed doing)
– Changed the spark plug
– Drained the gearbox oil (which smells of petrol again, and has gone runny – there was also too much of it).
What did I not actually check, the petrol. When I finally did, I tipped the fuel out of the dirt trap and went ‘no, it looks clean’; then I thought, hrm, and looked inside the trap; there at the bottom was a layer of crap. It was a fuel problem. A honking great one. Finally I took the base off the carb and there in the carb was half an ounce of finest wiltshire quarry. Arse, I thought.
Well, at least I knew what it was, so I cleaned it all out and put it all back together which, it turns out, is harder with the Bing carb. Having got it all nice and clean I took ‘er out for a run – all seemed fine (I even did my civic duty and told the guys doing the roadworks that their sign at the beginning showed the wrong lane as being closed (to quote the guy there “Bloody Morons!… Cheers”)) and then the problem came back, futher tests revealed that it was comprehensively back, so I got home and… it turns out the tank is full of this petrol that’s full of shite. I need a fuel filter, which is a pig ‘cos I’m meant to be visiting a friend tomorrow… and shan’t be unless I can get a filter. Poot.
