Just bought an FJ that needs some work..

[PolskiFJ]

Hey Everyone,

I just purchased a 1984 FJ1100 for $500. It runs but it definitely needs some work. Starts right up but will not idle, and runs on only two cylinders. Two carbs are not getting gas so i know i have to go in and either clean and or rebuild them. Could someone point me towards a DIY to disassemble and clean the FJ carbs? The two cylinders that are not firing are #'s 2 and 3, which also makes me think it could be a coil. Upon startup the bike smokes until it gets warm and then miraculously vanishes altogether. I am on a budget and I do need to also buy tires. The brakes have plenty of life left in them, and the clutch is in good shape. I would like to get the bike to a ride-able condition for about $700. Can I please have some advice? this is the first time i'm tinkering with a motorcycle and any suggestions/ tips would be greatly appreciated!

[Dan Filetti]

Hey Everyone,

I just purchased a 1984 FJ1100 for $500. It runs but it definitely needs some work. Starts right up but will not idle, and runs on only two cylinders. Two carbs are not getting gas so i know i have to go in and either clean and or rebuild them. Could someone point me towards a DIY to disassemble and clean the FJ carbs? The two cylinders that are not firing are #'s 2 and 3, which also makes me think it could be a coil. Upon startup the bike smokes until it gets warm and then miraculously vanishes altogether. I am on a budget and I do need to also buy tires. The brakes have plenty of life left in them, and the clutch is in good shape. I would like to get the bike to a ride-able condition for about $700. Can I please have some advice? this is the first time i'm tinkering with a motorcycle and any suggestions/ tips would be greatly appreciated!

Welcome.

Lots of great information here:

http://www.fjowners.com/index.php?board=21.0

Dan

[FJmonkey]

Where in the world are you? maybe some members can help.....

[PolskiFJ]

I live in Stamford CT. I will be working on the bike In Broad Brook CT, in Northern Hartford county. Thanks for the welcome!

[PolskiFJ]

I was also looking for some recommendations regarding tires, was hoping to get and mount both front and rear for around $250 to leave me 450 to deal with the motor!

[soundmindryan]

Upon startup the bike smokes until it gets warm and then miraculously vanishes altogether.

Wow! Does it reappear when it cools off? That would be scary if you were riding it.
You may need to get some of that cool reflective tape. 

[FJTillDeath]

With regards to the smoking on startup..

It sounds like your valve stem seals are worn, possibly time to replace them.

Randy from RPM on this site sells advanced ones(better than the OEM ones)

herehttp://www.rpmracingca.com/proddetail.asp?prod=Head%3AVSS

More enlightened members should shed more light if youre still stuck after reading the stuff davidR gave you.

[PolskiFJ]

Is there a step by step guide with pictures for the carb cleaning?? What about the tuning and sync??

[FJTillDeath]

There is somethin, or something really similar in the files section. Was written up by AndyB(correct me if wrong) where he completely disassembled the carbs. I made a pdf copy of the page

[FJTillDeath]

Sorry not the files section, i was under the troubleshooting under "the illustrated carb guide"

http://www.fjowners.com/index.php?topic=4281.new#new

above is the link to it

[andyb]

This is a better link, it'll take you to the first post even if you've read it before. 

It's also meant to go with these instructions, but you can put pictures to the names so you know what you're looking at as you go.

[andyb]

Sorry about the double post, but I reread and realized that I didn't see an answer to your second-ish question.

Tires are frequently a very personal choice around here, so you'll get often very strange responses.  If you just want to get back on the road with minimal effort and expense, yet have a good, safe, reasonable grip and life, then I personally would suggest Avon AV45/46's (like this...but that's a horrible price for them).

If you don't mind putting a little more money and effort into things immediately, and then have the ability to get vastly better rubber on it for cheap later, you'll want to look into converting it to different wheels.  The easiest bolt-on conversion for the front is to simply replace everything (wheel, tire, rotors, brakes, axle, etc) from the sliders down with that from a later FJ1200 from 1988 or later (89 in the US).  That'd give you the option of a 120/70-17 tire in the front.  In the rear, the GSXR or YZF conversions will give you a 17" wheel in 4.5, 5.0, or 5.5 widths, and that'll mount anything from a 160 to a 180 width 17" tire.  Seems like most people have good results even with a 180 tire, but some apparently have to jump through hoops to get the chain to clear.  The YZF gives you a 160 or 170, lots of clearance, and works very nicely with minimal hassle with the brake and such, but you need a machinist friend to mill/lathe a few parts down.  The GSXR conversion requires no machine work, but you'll need to screw with the brake a bit more.

I went with a 5.0x17" YZF wheel, and the entire conversion's cost was recouped within two tire changes for me.  With today's sport-touring tires having such incredible life for the amount of grip they provide, I'd guess you could get your money's worth in 5 to 10 thousand miles very easily.

The smoking sounds like valvestem seals possibly.  If it also blows smoke from the exhaust when you're at high revs and closed throttle (slowing down from decent speeds), then it's certain to be the issue.  Though I also wonder if it could be so rich that it's not burning oil, but soot!!  Get your carbs figured out and the bike hitting on all four, and see if it still does it.

[PolskiFJ]

that sounds exactly like the pattern with the smoking. is there a tutorial anywhere on here on replacing valve stem seals? Thanks everyone for all the great responses!

[FJTillDeath]

You should download one of the online server manuals - will help you infinitely - the stem seals really arent that hard to replace, just make sure you dont lose something like a cotter when replacong the stem seals

Again - get a manual it will answer your questions and give you illustrated guides to help you learn the FJ

And thanks Andy for a better link

[PolskiFJ]

Can anyone point me toward a guide that show me how to replace dash lights?? also, I have a bouncing fuel Gauge  that i would like to stabilize. Any suggestions?? thanks everyone! bike should be registered in the next week and a half or so!