'86 FJ1200, Just the Beginning

[iWant2RideMyBike]

When I bought my 86 back in 2005, first oil change had sizable chunks of metal in the out going murkiness. Oh well, I thought, this wasn't a good buy, looks like I've been had. Might as well just ride it until it self destructs.
That was 15 years and over 100,000 miles ago.
These are amazing bikes.

This gives me hope, lol. When I wrote that update last night, I was feeling pessimistic from my ongoing battle with the FJ. However, I have confidence that if I can just get this beast to fully behave, it'll be absolutely worth it. Every time I've gotten on the highway and rolled on the throttle, I forget all the frustration and remember why I love this bike. Never quite felt effortless power like that before!

[Motofun]

I grenaded the transmission on my '05 GSXR 750 track bike.  I pulled a handful of metal out of the oil pan.  I ran that bike (after fixing the transmission) for 3 years.  I mean all this was at high revs full tilt.  Never gave me another problem.  That metal mesh screen on the bottom of the oil pump pick-up is there for a reason. 

[iWant2RideMyBike]

I grenaded the transmission on my '05 GSXR 750 track bike.  I pulled a handful of metal out of the oil pan.  I ran that bike (after fixing the transmission) for 3 years.  I mean all this was at high revs full tilt.  Never gave me another problem.  That metal mesh screen on the bottom of the oil pump pick-up is there for a reason. 

Well then I'll lay my concern to rest when it comes to that.

Now if I could just get this idle down so I can lay that to rest too, that would be great. lol

[iWant2RideMyBike]

Update 05/28/20
Last night after I recognized that having the tank off was causing the bike to backfire, I decided that to truly check the effects of adjusting the mixture screws, I'd have to adjust them and then put the tank back on. And then repeat this as many times as necessary.

Fast forward: 1 full turn back on all 4 screws, some idle adjusting, and some fuel line shortening/careful routing....The bike is no longer dying when the choke is in. It also seems to be ready to ride much quicker than ever before! I just went for a quick 17 mile ride. I hit the highway (70 to 80mph), some back roads (45 to 65mph), some city streets (25 to 30mph) and then intentionally hit some stoplight areas. The bike had no screw ups what so ever! It was phenomenal!

There was a very slight backfire on deceleration, but I put stress on slight! Last week it sounded like someone was firing a gun at me while decelerating at 70mph down to 15 mph. Today though, it barely backfired at all and only at speeds around/underneath 40mph. And at stoplights/stop signs, the RPM gauge sat humming right at the 1k mark. I'm very happy.


It also feels like the bike is cooling better than before, after I changed the oil, oil filter, and then cleaned out the oil that was caked in the cooling fins. I'm going for a much longer ride after work today to put her to the test.

[Old Rider]

I grenaded the transmission on my '05 GSXR 750 track bike.  I pulled a handful of metal out of the oil pan.  I ran that bike (after fixing the transmission) for 3 years.  I mean all this was at high revs full tilt.  Never gave me another problem.  That metal mesh screen on the bottom of the oil pump pick-up is there for a reason.  

But you got the splash effect also from crank throwing unfiltered oil up on the cylinderwalls....

[Dads_FJ]

Hoo boy...

And the eternal classic"

- Watch where the holes are when spraying carb cleaner so it doesn't hit you in the eye

Oh hell yea, take your carb spray and spray down that brass tube on the side of the float bowl, and it comes out a hole in the bottom....right into your eye!

Carb cleaner in your eye....so much fun!

Sorry for the thread drift Gabe....I'll separate out all these "stupid shit" posts into a new topic after everyone is done....

Here's one I learned from this forum:  When filling the crankcase with fresh oil be sure to have the drain-plug installed.  Really, I swear I had never made that mistake until reading it, and it was the very next oil change that I got burned.

[iWant2RideMyBike]

Well everyone, my last update with enthusiasm was squashed pretty quickly. I've been busy lately with work so I kept forgetting to update.

So I'm cruising down the highway at 65 to 70mph when I come up on a big utility truck, so I switch lanes and speed up to about 80mph to pass him quickly. Well, the bike backfired a few times coming down from 80mph back to 70mph and then I noticed I was losing power. I gave it throttle and I was not goin anywhere. Just made a weird noise like it was running out of fuel, so I coasted down and pulled to the side of the road. Bike idled fine but when I gave it throttle, it would make that weird noise like she was out of gas or somethin. I had half a tank but I flipped on the reserve switch anyway. Let her idle for about 2 minutes, bliped the throttle and she was responding normally again.

I hoped on and turned around about 500 feet down the road. I sped up and was cruising at the 65 to 70mph range again. I got probably 2 or 3 miles max and the same damn thing started happening! Acting like it was running out of gas, gave it throttle and zero power delivery. Just the noise. This time the bike died shortly after pulling off to the side of the road. I started it up, jumped right to life. Let her idle for 2 mins, then she was responding normally to throttle again. Rode her the rest of the way home, speeds of 60 to 30 mph without any issues.

I waited a day, then tried turning the mixture screws back in 1/2 a turn to see if it helped. All that seemed to change was that the bike hard a harder time trying to maintain idle and it backfired more at lower speeds. Going to try turning them a full turn out today, making my total adjustment from where I got the bike to 1.5 turns out. Just to see if that helps more or if the problem persists.

sigh.

[big r]

If that happens again, try opening your gas cap and listen for an influx of air. Sounds like your gas cap is not breathing. I had a similar problem on my 86

[iWant2RideMyBike]

If that happens again, try opening your gas cap and listen for an influx of air. Sounds like your gas cap is not breathing. I had a similar problem on my 86

I'll tell you what. I just went and fully seated all the fuel mixture screws, then backed them out 2 and 1/2 turns just to make sure they're all "even" at the least. I put the tank put back on to see how it affected the running condition. I let it idle high for maybe 2 minutes max (1.5k rpm) to warm up, then set her down to idle for probably another 2 minutes if that.

Seems pretty healthy but once I killed the motor the fuel tank started whistling. I've read that this is relatively normal, but that seems kind of quick to already be whistling. Also, around 2 weeks ago I came back from a test run, and the thing was whistling like nuts. I put my key into the tank keyhole to try and release pressure and gasoline started spewing like a mini-geyser from the keyhole around my key. I immediately took the key out and it just whistled. I started recording video on my phone to capture it and tried again, with the same result. Gas spewing.

Sounds like this could be a related?

[big r]

I think so.Not getting enough air into the tank. This will starve the carbs, I have had this happen to me. Check the files section and look for the flapectomy file

[iWant2RideMyBike]

I think so.Not getting enough air into the tank. This will starve the carbs, I have had this happen to me. Check the files section and look for the flapectomy file

I will certainly take a look. Thanks!

[iWant2RideMyBike]

Update 06/04/20
Green highlights = Newly completed. I'll post some pics of the work later.

Work Completed

• Fixed damaged wiring
• Performed Transpo Voltage Regulator Mod
• Replaced damaged o-rings on all float needle seats
• Fully cleaned carbs
• Replaced blown valve cover gasket
• Valve clearances adjusted to spec
• All light bulbs replaced
• removed snapped bolts from gas tank and valve cover
• Replaced warped valve cove with "new" valve cover
• Carbs (speed) cleaned again
• Changed engine oil
• Replaced oil filter
• Repaired cylinder 4 spark plug hole with thread chaser
• Replaced spark plugs
• Carbs fuel mixture screws adjusted
• Performed "Flapectomy" on fuel tank (removed plastic breather assembly)

Work In Progress

• None

Next Possible Work

• Change fork oil
• Replace front brake rotors
• Replace worn rear tire
• Change brake fluid
• Repack Vance & Hines suppressor

Hello again, folks. Great news! First off, I decided to stop fearing Cylinder #4's spark plug hole. I was warned that the thread chaser I bought to repair the threads might not work, but I decided to try and use it on all the plug holes, ending on 4. It helped tremendously! I had a hard time getting all 4 in last time, and after using the thread chaser, all the new plugs went in smooth as butter! I was careful to not to let any shards fall into the cylinder while using it. Cylinder #4 hole had a decent amount of chewed up metal, but after working the chaser through several times, I found success. Also, I got cheap this time, and just installed standards plugs instead of iridium like I planned, lol. Maybe next time.

Secondly, I decided to seat all the fuel mixture screws and back them out 2.5 turns like suggested here. It helped, big time, but it felt a little too rich. So I turned them in 1/2 a turn, but then it started backfiring more (at least it sure seemed like it). So then I turned them out 1/4 a turn and the bike seems to be very happy here.

Right after I did that, and carefully routed the fuel line back, I decided to perform the "Flapectomy" on my fuel tank as it was suggested to me. I want to note that I did not remove the screw with the tiny spring and ball, but the damn thing still jettisoned when I moved the key hole. I used a magnet on the floor for a minute and was able to find the spring, but that bearing is long gone. Whatever.

I reinstalled the tank lock and assembly, pulled the clutch in and started the motor. She hopped to life instantly, sitting at about 1.5k rpm. I let her sit there about 1 min, then I pushed the choke halfway in. She settled down a bit, livin between 1,250 and 1.5k rpm for about another minute or so. I then pushed the choke all the way in, nearly holding my breath to see what would happen... She settled down to just under 1k rpm and just happily chugged away there. I was blown away. I used to have let her sit for almost 10 minutes before she'd be ready to hold idle, and even then she'd die if I didn't ride away within a minute or two of closing the choke.

That wasn't enough evidence. I had to take her out for a spin. Lets fast forward 90 miles of testing at all types of speeds. The old girl hasn't missed a beat! She's running so well! Never has the bike run like this for me, and it's so phenomenal. I took her out again this morning and it didn't event take 3 minutes before I could shut the choke off and she was ready to go. For the first time ever, I feel confident enough in my FJ to take her on a real run. Hell, I used to rev her a little at a stop light after 20 minutes of riding and she would almost die. I feel so good, man.

She still does "cackle" a bit on the way down, but I'm not really willing to mess with it any further. My FJ is finally performing like a beast and I'm so happy! However, most of my major issues have now been solved. I'm not in the middle of doing any work to her, so now I need to come up with the next bit to address. I've listed some of the things I'm contemplating. Let me know if you guys have any suggestions! But for now, I'm gonna ride.

[Millietant]

Apologies that I haven't gone back the history of the thread to check exactly how your FJ sits today, but if you're still running OE rubber brake hoses, get your credit card out and order a new set of braided ones from RPM.

After that, if all service items are done and good, just ride 

[Waiex191]

Apologies that I haven't gone back the history of the thread to check exactly how your FJ sits today, but if you're still running OE rubber brake hoses, get your credit card out and order a new set of braided ones from RPM.

After that, if all service items are done and good, just ride 

This sounds like what I need to do!

[iWant2RideMyBike]

Apologies that I haven't gone back the history of the thread to check exactly how your FJ sits today, but if you're still running OE rubber brake hoses, get your credit card out and order a new set of braided ones from RPM.

After that, if all service items are done and good, just ride 

No problem at all! Luckily my FJ does have stainless braided brake lines.