'84 FJ 1100 fuel hoses, filter and petcock question.

[Storleer]

Hey guys!
My name is Daniel and i am from Norway. I'm new at the forum, and i just bought my first bike. A red/white 1984 FJ 1100 with 88k km on the clock.
I have little to no experience when it comes to fixing motorcycles, but i do know the basics, and i am able to carry out minor repairs and maintenance. In some time i hope to be able to contribute to this forum as well, instead of just asking about all kinds of things about my old bike. 

The previous owner of the bike has had it for 10 years. It has been sitting a lot in recent years. The bike do seem to have been neglected a bit so the first things i did was oil service, air filter and replacing the spark plugs. Now it is in the garage for the winter, and i have some things to do.

When i replaced the spark plugs i noticed that it might be a good idea to replace the fuel hoses. They are old and mushy, and the hose that connects to the petcock is also too short to adhere to the stamped fuel hose route. Also i noticed that there is no fuel filter. I also do not trust the clips/fasteners as they seemed to be weak in my opinion.
I have done some research and i found out that a petcock leak on this bike also can cause a major fire. Maybe i should replace that one too with a new wired one from rpmparts? Anyway, my question is where do i find all the parts? I am wishing to replace all fuel and vacuum hoses, as well as the "T-connections" between the fuel hoses, and the fuel clips and petcock with all  associated parts (gasket etc.) as well. I want those parts the way they are supposed to be, and i hope that any of you have some tips regarding what to order/where to find it.

2 pictures will be added to this post. Thanks in advance!

[FJmonkey]

Welcome Daniel, you came to the right place for your FJ. Sounds like you have the basics under control including finding some of the wealth of information here. One of the things you will need to do before you ride it will be a a very through cleaning of the carbs and if possible a full rebuild. The 84 to 87 FJ do not use fuel filters as they are gravity feed. This also means that fuel line routing is critical so keep that in mind when replacing the lines. There are some good posts on tips and alternate routings. How old are the tires?

[Storleer]

Front tire is 7 years old and worn, will be replaced immediately in May when the season starts. Rear tire is 4 years old and will be replaced sometime next year.

Regarding the carbs, you are definitely into something. The bike starts fine when cold with choke, and runs by itself the first seconds, then slowly bogs down and dies. For the first minute i have to baby it with the throttle to keep it running. When warm the engine idles at just slightly above 1000 rpm according to tacho. Also when starting it warm/hot it starts right up iF i blip the throttle, otherwise it slooowly gets up to idle speed with the starter cranking.

[FJmonkey]

Classic signs of plugged pilot jets, many of us have experienced it. It is worse here in USA with our crappy fuel.

[balky1]

Hi from Croatia!

Regarding the rubber lines, you can buy them probably in your local automotive store. Just bring the pieces of your old ones with you for correct dimension. The clips do seem too weak, but they are good. I tried with other clamps, but those originals proved to be the best. I don't know if you could buy something like that in any store, I think only Yamaha makes them. The only plastic link in fuel line is a Y-part that you can see. I don't think you need to replace it. There are also plastic links between carbs 1-2 and 3-4. Probably only O-rings should be replaced.
RPM is a good source for FJ parts, but you will have the same problem like me - customs. Because of that, I would suggest that you check one German seller: https://www.biketeile-service.de/
The question is, how much money you can spend on the bike. If you have some spare, buy the carb kit wit O-rings, etc. from Randy at RPM (banner ad on this forum). Even better, send him your carbs for a rebuild.
As I can see, your petcock has already been "safety-wired" if you can call it like that. That plastic strap could break because of the heat. Better to use the wire. You can find the posts on "how-to" here on the forum. If that elbow part on the petcock is not falling out and your diaphragm is OK (suction test), there is no need to buy the whole new petcock, just the repair kit. Again, new petcock can be found at RPM. I don't think RPM has a repair kit for the petcock. I bought mine from NRP carbs UK. Beware, I did have problems with the O-ring on the plunger. It leaked. I bought one in the local automotive store and you could probably do the same. The kit does not include diaphragms.
I see your fuel petcock is on PRI position. If the previous owner left it like that it could be the sign of some problems. It should be in ON position.

[Charlie-brm]

Welcome Daniel. I have a 1984 too.

The first thing I noticed because you are concerned with doing everything correctly for the fuel system - the hose routing in your photo is incorrect.
If you are running the bike in a garage with a separate fuel tank it will be OK. But with the FJ tank lowered in to place, you will run out of gas in less than a kilometer. Don't ask me how I know.
That last section of hose going to the petcock should be UNDER the loop. Look at the label on the air box again. It says "Pass under pipe fuel 1"

Problems - 1) the tank will crush the hose if it is over the loop, and 2) the fuel will be trying to rise up from the petcock outlet instead of having a downward path to the carburetors.

You said the bike runs for a short while then coughs and dies, this would be the first thing to correct if you are starting it with the tank bolted down in place. Good luck.
Don't blame the carburetors until you have good cause to, in my experience.

[Storleer]

Yes i know the routing is incorrect. The hose that connects to the tank is too short to go under the hose 1. That's why its all sitting on top. Still the engine runs great when hot.

Also i switched the valve to prime when i drained the tank in an attempt to remove some crud. However that attempt failed because i was not able to get all the gas out. I guess i need to remove the petcock if i want to drain the tank completely. But i do not know what more there is between the petcock and the tank other than the 2 screws for the petcock. Are there gaskets on both sides of it? If there is, i guess i need to replace the gaskets if i undo the 2 screws due to the age of the bike. Anyway, the main thing at that time was replacing the spark plugs.

When it comes to the carburetors, i have absolutely no experience with them. I dont know how difficult it will be to clean and rebuild them.

I have only had the bike for a couple of days and i have ridden it appx. 100 miles before i put it away for the winter.
Other then that, the bike has the following issues that i know of:

- Fuel gauge is on the wrong side of the pin, when ignition is switched on it bumps up to the resting pin (on the wrong side of the pin, it hits under the pin.) i have tried to move it around the right way with a powerful magnet, but i was not able to do so.

- Fork adjuster is leaking on one of the sides.

- Chain adjuster is broken and will be replaced.

- Clutch slip at high rpm and WOT in 2nd gear. However the previous owner claimed that the 2nd gear was repaired a long time ago.
I do believe that some of the reason for the slip is because of the oil. When i tested the bike it was running on 10w-40 fully synthetic oil. Also the oil was 3 years old. Very little used, but still 3 years old. First thing i did was changing the oil to 15w-40 semi synthetic motorcycle oil. But i have not tested the bike running the engine full-out because i'd like to get the chain and sprockets replaced before i do that. (Replace with X-rint chain?)

- When put in 1. Gear the trans do clunk a bit too harsh for my liking. Especially when cold. Also first-second and second-third is a little notchy i think. On my last ride before parking the bike for the winter something happened to the clutch lever. It suddenly felt like it wouldn't go all the way in. It didn't happen in every shift but often. I have no idea what the cause is.

- Oil pan drain threads are torn. Will order new pan and gasket from rpm, as well as exhaust gaskets. Hope i'll be able to remove the exhaust without breaking any bolts. At the same time i will buy the oil filter rebuild kit.

- I am also considering replacing all the brake hoses.

When it comes to budgeting i don't want to spend too much. I will sort out the essential things first. I am not a very active rider, at least not yet.

[FJmonkey]

Yes i know the routing is incorrect. The hose that connects to the tank is too short to go under the hose 1. That's why its all sitting on top. Still the engine runs great when hot.

Also i switched the valve to prime when i drained the tank in an attempt to remove some crud. However that attempt failed because i was not able to get all the gas out. I guess i need to remove the petcock if i want to drain the tank completely. But i do not know what more there is between the petcock and the tank other than the 2 screws for the petcock. Are there gaskets on both sides of it? If there is, i guess i need to replace the gaskets if i undo the 2 screws due to the age of the bike. Anyway, the main thing at that time was replacing the spark plugs.

The petcock has a screen type filter on it, good idea to remove it and flush out any junk still in the tank.

When it comes to the carburetors, i have absolutely no experience with them. I dont know how difficult it will be to clean and rebuild them.

Get the carb kit from RPM and have them professionally rebuilt.

I have only had the bike for a couple of days and i have ridden it appx. 100 miles before i put it away for the winter.
Other then that, the bike has the following issues that i know of:

- Fuel gauge is on the wrong side of the pin, when ignition is switched on it bumps up to the resting pin (on the wrong side of the pin, it hits under the pin.) i have tried to move it around the right way with a powerful magnet, but i was not able to do so.

To fix the fuel gauge you will need to open the dash cluster. The old gauge has lost its damping fluid and will forever bounce around. Some have added new fluid with mixed results, some good some not. Any replacements will be just as old so if you like to gamble, give that a try. Others like myself have added an over travel pin to the face of the gauge (this has been posted a few times so make a quick search). It does not fix the bouncing problem. I prefer to use the trip meter and know that I can travel a given distance before needing to fill up.

- Fork adjuster is leaking on one of the sides.

Top of forks or bottom?

- Chain adjuster is broken and will be replaced.

- Clutch slip at high rpm and WOT in 2nd gear. However the previous owner claimed that the 2nd gear was repaired a long time ago.
I do believe that some of the reason for the slip is because of the oil. When i tested the bike it was running on 10w-40 fully synthetic oil. Also the oil was 3 years old. Very little used, but still 3 years old. First thing i did was changing the oil to 15w-40 semi synthetic motorcycle oil. But i have not tested the bike running the engine full-out because i'd like to get the chain and sprockets replaced before i do that. (Replace with X-rint chain?)

Is the clutch slip a rise in revs with no speed gain? Or is it surging like a rev limiter?

- When put in 1. Gear the trans do clunk a bit too harsh for my liking. Especially when cold. Also first-second and second-third is a little notchy i think. On my last ride before parking the bike for the winter something happened to the clutch lever. It suddenly felt like it wouldn't go all the way in. It didn't happen in every shift but often. I have no idea what the cause is.

The clunk is normal, more pronounced when cold. Check the clutch fluid level and pull the slave and check for leaks. A leak will let air in and the lever gets a mushy feel and less than proper disengagement.

- Oil pan drain threads are torn. Will order new pan and gasket from rpm, as well as exhaust gaskets. Hope i'll be able to remove the exhaust without breaking any bolts. At the same time i will buy the oil filter rebuild kit.

If you are going to remove the pan then just get it fixed by a local shop. Save your budget money for other goodies from RPM.

- I am also considering replacing all the brake hoses.

Really good idea, they are likely over 30 years old.

When it comes to budgeting i don't want to spend too much. I will sort out the essential things first. I am not a very active rider, at least not yet.

[Storleer]

One of the adjusters at the bottom is leaking. I suppose it's the anti-dive adjuster?

[FJmonkey]

One of the adjusters at the bottom is leaking. I suppose it's the anti-dive adjuster?

That narrows it down to a fork oil leak or a brake fluid leak. Most likely fork oil. Sounds like a good time to pull the forks and inspect the bushings. If worn, then rebuild them. If you rebuild them then its a good time to change to straight rate springs and bypass the AD units. Not the best for one on a budget but you can eliminate two extra brake lines and improve the front end over stock.

[red]

One of the adjusters at the bottom is leaking. I suppose it's the anti-dive adjuster?

Daniel,

I have a 1985 FJ1100, also.  You can just eliminate the anti-dive units, functionally.  Run the brake line that went to the AD unit straight to the brake caliper instead.  If the AD unit is leaking fork oil, then the O-rings may have failed, and they are easy to replace with ordinary O-rings, or with dealer stock items (if you are a fanatic  :-).  You can also remove the AD units, and cap off the AD unit location, but you will need cap plates with an oil passage inside.  You can find these typically for ~US$80~$100 per pair on eBay, new.  At the bottom of this page I link, there are two pictures of AD block-off plates.  The cheaper flat plate would need to be installed with a gasket-making compound, to seal properly.  These are just pictures, to help you.  You will need to find the AD plates made to fit the FJ1100.

http://racetech.com/page/title/DRod%205-1

Replacing the AD units with covers is not necessary, but will only be done for a better appearance.  You can just disconnect and disregard the AD units where they are, provided that they are not leaking.

I would not be in a rush to rebuild your carburetors.  I would try a good "gasoline additive" carburetor cleaner for a tank or two of gasoline, first.  In the USA, I have had good success with SeaFoam, and I expect that you will have equal or better cleaners there.  It takes a few days for the cleaner to work its' magic, but for the money, it is a very good bet.

The right mechanic may be able to drill and tap your oil pan for a larger drain plug, which should cost less than a new oil pan.  If the pan remains on the bike for this operation, you catch the metal splinters from this job by packing heavy grease into the drill and the tap first, and frequently cleaning the tools during the work, with fresh grease.  Install oil drain plugs only to a reasonable torque value, using RTV (Room Temperature Vulcanizing) sealant on the head and threads of the plug.  Wait at least forty minutes for the RTV to cure, before adding oil.  For any oil plug, I recommend using safety wire, not some insane torque values, to keep it in place.

Tires can make or break your FJ, in terms of your riding pleasure.  Tire sizes will limit your choices, but I run on Pirelli Sport Demons, and they are very good for the FJ.  Avon makes a radial tire that may be somewhat better, but either tire would be good for you.

There is a lot of experience available here.  We are happy to help.

Cheers,
Red

[Storleer]

Thanks for the tips
Bypassing the AD units sounds interesting, I will definitely look into it. When it comes to leaking i've also found that either the forks themselves or one of the hoses are leaking.

I think i will just order a brand new oil pan and replace. Labour costs in Norway are very high, so it pays off to just replace parts instead of having them repaired. The threads were already torn when i bought the bike. Some kind of sealer was already applied to the bolt.

[red]

Thanks for the tips   Bypassing the AD units sounds interesting, I will definitely look into it.

Daniel,

If you bypass the AD units and leave them in place, the job is easy.  You will need the banjo bolt from the AD unit, to attach the brake hose to the caliper.  Any old bolt can be installed (even glued) into the empty hole on the AD unit.  If the sealing washers are still good, you can re-use them with the old (shorter) banjo bolt.  If the washers are bent or pitted, almost any brake shops (or a motorcycle shop) will have the right type of washer for you.

Cheers,
Red

[Storleer]

Red,

Thank you very much for the info.
http://rpmracingca.com/proddetail.asp?prod=S-YA0131&cat=39

I guess this are the lines to order for the front brakes then. But it says that this is for the US models. I have no idea if there is any difference between US and EU Models when it comes to brake line length. Any idea??

[FJmonkey]

They are the same for all countries.