|
I bought a 1985 Honda CB450 a little over a month ago and it runs beautifully except for two small problems: 1. When it is idling (regardless of how long it has been running) it seems to idle somewhat low. It'll idle fine and then suddenly lose the RPMs for a second and cause the bike to quake, and then immediately return to idling at an appropriate RPM. It's never stalled and it doesn't seem to affect the bike in any other way, though. Is this something I should worry about? 2. The choke knob won't actually stay out when I pull it out. It seems to slowly slip back to the "closed" position with the vibrations of the bike idling. Basically this just means that I have to sit there like a goof for 1-2 minutes and hold the choke knob out until the bike is warm. Is there anything in particular that could cause this / any way to fix it? EDIT: This is my first bike, so I'm sorry if these are stupid questions.
|
#
¿
Jun 2, 2010 15:36
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 25, 2024 07:27 |
|
|
Z3n posted:How much gas have you run through the tank? I'd give a bit of seafoam a shot, it can usually clear up intermittant idle issues like that. You can also turn up the idle a little bit and see if that fixes it. Besides that, has basic maintenance been done? Stuff like spark plugs? How's the battery? Thanks for the quick response, Z3n. I've run about 3 tanks of gas through the bike since I bought it, and none of them have had seafoam in it. I've been meaning to pick some up, but I'll go do that this afternoon. Basic maintenance has been kept up on the bike and it has a brand new battery (I'm not sure about the plugs). I'll try the seafoam and see if that fixes it, and if not move from there.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 2, 2010 16:36
|
|
|
Well, I'm back! I haven't had a chance to pick up any seafoam yet, but I did run into an interesting problem on my commute last night. I was on the tail end of about an hour-long commute (90% of which was spent in stop and go traffic on varying graded hills) when suddenly the clutch stopped engaging. If I pulled the lever in all the way, the foot pedal would slightly depress but not actually move into a new gear. When I relaxed my grip slightly on the lever, I could hear the "chunk" sound as the bike moved into the new gear I had tried to put it into earlier. After about 3 minutes of freaking out while this was going on, I pulled off and turned off the bike. I played with the clutch lever and foot pedal for a bit, and turned the bike back on. It was still stuck in 2nd gear, and I rocked it back and forth a little bit and after trying to shift down into first it finally worked. I ran through all of the gears 3-4 times and it worked flawlessly, just like normal. I finished up my commute to the office, let the bike sit for a few hours, and then drove about an hour home in no traffic (but shifting as much as possible to see if the problem came back). The problem never surfaced again. Any ideas? Freak accident? I've never done ANY mechanical work before, so if there is anything I should check out you might have to dumb it down for me, but I'm ordering a shop manual for my bike (1985 CB450, from the last page) next week.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 3, 2010 18:37
|
|
|
I took my bike in to my mechanic for some the fork seals to be replaced and had the oil changed (I'm a scrub  ) about a month ago and today I noticed that on the bottom side of the engine it is dripping a little bit of oil. If I let it sit for 1-2 minutes it only drips about 2-3 drops or so. Does anyone know what this might be? The bike is an '86 Honda CB450SC.
|
|
#
¿
May 19, 2011 22:13
|
|
|
I finally figured out my previous oil leak problem, but a bout of idiocy consumed me shortly after. I went out on a nice ride, and when I got home I got distracted by a neighbor when I was getting off my bike. Cue me forgetting to cut the lights and walking inside. By the time I had the gut-wrenching realization that I had left the keys in the bike and lights on all night, I came out and the bike was dead. I bought a 1amp trickle charger and charged the battery for the suggested time (it is a 12A-A and told me to charge it for 9 hours and let it sit for one) and hooked it up but when I turned the key the headlights and gauge lights didn't come on. I knew the battery was at least a year old, but didn't know how long the previous owner had kept it, so I went out and bought a replacement battery. I filled all of the chambers of it and charged it for 9 hours again, let it sit for an hour and installed it. Same thing: the bike is still completely dead. At this point I'm guessing it's not the battery (unless I'm doing something completely wrong during the charging process) and it could be something else--could the alternator or something get fried from a complete drain on the battery? EDIT: Bike is a 1985 Honda CB450sc.
|
|
#
¿
May 28, 2011 16:36
|
|
|
Z3n posted:Do you have a multimeter? What's the sitting voltage of the battery? I don't have a multimeter, but I'm guessing I should pick one up. I figured I wouldn't need one since I was testing it out with a new battery; I just used the (probably wildly inaccurate and foolish) alternate method listed on the battery instructions that said to charge for the recommended time and then listen for bubbling to know it was charged. EDIT: I'm picking up a multimeter tomorrow morning (local shop was out and are getting one in on the morning truck), but in the meantime I checked the ground wire and it doesn't look like there is a short there. The service manual says that a potential cause for this is a blown Main Fuse. Is it at all probable that the main fuse would blow from leaving the lights on all night? Agrias120 fucked around with this message at 21:58 on May 28, 2011 |
|
#
¿
May 28, 2011 18:54
|
|
|
orthod0ks posted:My club's colors will just be the rainbow. That way members can wear whatever colors they want, and cops can't use colors as probable cause. I would like to apply. Once I stole a pog from a giant bin of 10cent pogs. Needless to say I'm pretty much a hardass. Also, my idea of ATGATT is a bandanna and shades  .
|
|
#
¿
Jun 16, 2011 20:09
|
|
|
slidebite posted:To those of you that have sold a bike to a stranger: Cash in hand and a valid license is the way I've always done it. That way if they drop it, I have the cash already and they just bought it.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 19, 2011 01:53
|
|
|
I've got a conundrum that I'm hoping I can get a little bit of input on. I posted in the SV650 thread, but thought I'd doublepost here for a little bit more exposure. I bought a used 1999 SV650 not too long ago and ended up getting the raw end of the deal. Either I was purposefully given the run around on its condition, or the previous owner just didn't know how to maintain it. At first some smaller problems cropped up (the negative wire wasn't completely attached to the battery and melted the terminal mid-ride), handlebars were torqued from an old drop so I had to replace them, etc. All of those more minor issues were groan-inducing but fine, because they let me get my hands dirty. Then, suddenly, it died on me and produced a loud slapping sound and wouldn't rev above about 4k. Mechanic said that the engine showed shines of abuse and running for prolonged periods of time with low oil (the oil level was fine when I purchased it). It apparently destroyed the camshaft rod and, thus, the engine is done. I found an engine local with 8k miles on it for $800, and the mechanic is quoting me at another $800 to install it. With that $1600, I'd be about $3900 into the bike total. Is it better to just walk away and sell off the bike to someone as-is? I don't want to get into a money-pit situation but, at the same time, I'm not sure what else that is major could go wrong with the bike if I swap out the engine.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 16, 2011 02:01
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 25, 2024 07:27 |
|
|
JP Money posted:I agree with this. Since you are merely plugging an engine back in - provided that it works - it shouldn't be a lot of hassle. It's a matter of taking the old one out, and placing the new one back in. If you are methodical and keep track of things it won't be that terribly difficult to swap them. I'm not very mechanically inclined at all, unfortunately. I'm just starting to cut my teeth with this stuff and, while I have the haynes manual for the bike, I don't have any tools or a garage (hurray for an apartment with street parking). I'll try to call around some more to find a better price on the engine, but originally $800 was the best price I could find, which was disappointing. Am I correct in assuming that there's not much else major that could really poo poo the bed on the bike if I go ahead and swap in a new engine? bladesamurai posted:A co-worker is selling a 1981 Honda CM400T with 7,000 miles for around 400 dollars, with lots of spares including an extra exhaust, fender, signals, and other miscellaneous stuff. The is in running condition as far as I know but I don't know when that was. I haven't really found information on the bikes online. It looks like they have a stance in between a cruiser and a standard bike, pretty relaxed riding position. I'm assuming the twin engine has decent power to get out of it's own way. Would this be a decent bike as a learner for friends? How highway capable is it? My first bike was a 1985 CB450--and as far as I am concerned it was the King of Bikes. Buy that poo poo ASAP; if it rides anything similar to my CB, it's an extremely comfortable riding position.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 16, 2011 02:55
|
|