Starter clutch... new caps... still wont fire...

[dj]

that's a good looking V there dj... glad you haven't given up on her...

Yup, she is a pretty thing aint she.  Need to polish the engine up a bit and fix the paint.  remount the fairing, mount the backrest/rack, and do a few odds and ends still and then she will be looking great.

there seems to be some sticky rollers on the formum lately... hopefully that's all thats wrong with yours.

Hopefully it is just the sticky rollers problem that has been going around.  Still going to replace the bolts to make sure I don't have problems with them latter on.

make sure you don't screw them in too far.

FINGER TIGHT!!!  I read that in the Haynes manual.  Printed it out and plan on highlighting it so I don't forget it.

and you don't have to measure nut-in. 

BAD PUN, no cookie for you.

[dj]

okay, I am trying to get the bolt out of the flywheel to be able to put the puller on, but I can't get the darn thing to budge.  Is this thing reverse thread or am I just a wimp?

[YellowJacket!]

DJ,

If you are having trouble adjusting your pictures and uploading them, try something like I use called photobucket.  Its free and its web based so you don't have to download any programs to do it.  www.photobucket.com
You can also email them to me at xz550rj (AT) gmail.com and I'll be glad to upload them for you if you don't want to mess with photobucket.

David

[Tiger]

okay, I am trying to get the bolt out of the flywheel to be able to put the puller on, but I can't get the darn thing to budge.  Is this thing reverse thread or am I just a wimp?

...WIMP... ... Not really, this will be in real tight. first, make sure the flywheel will not turn...give the bolt a decent whack with a hammer to shock it, then try and loosen it. (I used an impact wrench, makes the job much easier).

                            .......TIGER.......

[Night Vision]

I've got an "impact" wrench. it's called a 4 foot chain link fence post that's pinched on the end so a 1/2" ratchet fits snug.... 

[dj]

I got the bolt out.  My father stopped by on his way back to his place and lent me his BFBB (read BIG F@#KING BREAKER BAR).   

One good turn with it and it came loose.  The center bolt is out and tomorrow I'll be putting the puller on it to get the flywheel off.

I'll be looking through Don's thread to see what length bolts I'll need for the puller and have my wife pick them up tomorrow while I am at work.  So hopefully my updates wednesday night (or thursday morning) will be that the flywheel and starter clutch is off the bike.

Still have a few days work left to do before things will be totally off the bike to diagnose the problem as I have limited day light after I get home.  I work 4 ten hour days (but I get a three day weekend).

[dj]

Okay, here is another question.  The bolts that I have are 3.5 inches in length.  The ones that Don used were around 4 inches in length.  Are the 3.5 inch bolts going to be long enough or do I need to get the 4 inch bolts?

[Night Vision]

If the 3.5" bolts are long enough to reach the holes in the flywheel and still get the puller on, then use them, if not... get longer ones. The reason I gave Don the longer bolts is because I also gave him a bolt to put in the end of the crank to put the puller on instead of pushing directly on the end of the crank. without the bolt, shorter bolts might work. without the bolt, you may risk damaging the threads in the crank. I don't know what your puller looks like. It may have a flat foot, pointed foot, or no foot on the end of the large threaded rod

[dj]

NV - the puller that I have has a tappered point on the end, so that it fits into the hole that the bolt goes in, but doesn't touch the threads.

I'll check everything out tonight and see if they are long enough.  Didn't have enough light left to see if things were the right length or not.  I didn't get the center bolt off until around 2200.  I'll be spending time tonight getting the flywheel off and hopefully finally seeing what is going on with my starter clutch.

Another question, there seems to be a few problems with people having sticky rollers in the starter clutch.  How do you "unstick" the rollers?  Spray a little luberications spray (PB Blaster/WD 40) on it and move them by hand?

[Lucky]

Sticky rollers are not really an issue, it was a poor way to describe it. the problem is more of worn springs & flat spots on the rollers, & that's probably not all that common either unless the clutch has been abused.

--Lucky

[dj]

Sticky rollers are not really an issue, it was a poor way to describe it. the problem is more of worn springs & flat spots on the rollers, & that's probably not all that common either unless the clutch has been abused.

--Lucky

Okay, so how do I tell if the springs are weak?  Would it be a good idea just to replace the springs and rollers to know for a fact that they are good?

[Lucky]

not sure if there is a spring hight spec somewhere..if they are aval then replacing them would be a good idea.  you'll know if the rollers are flatspotted, you'll see it, but unless the clutch was slipping before i wouldn't worry about it...

[dj]

Well the first good news is that my supervisor let me out early today so I was syched about getting a few extra hours of daylight to work on the bike.

Bad news, my wife had the car and she was online (dialup) and it took me half an hour to get ahold of her to come pick me up... then she has 3-4 errands that she needs to run before going home, so I get home only 10 minutes earlier then I would have if I left work on time>   

Bad news, the bolts on the puller were to short, so HOME DEPOT bound I go.

Good news - I find the bolts right away and only spend like 3 bucks on them and the washers.

Good news - I fit everything up and start working on taking the flywheel off.

BAD NEWS - can't get the flywheel off, and the end of the puller (that my father-in-law said wouldn't get in towards the threads) gets stuck in the flywheel.  I take the puller off and there is the end staring me in the face from the thread hole of the flywheel.

Good news - I got out the vise grips and yanked it out.

Slightly good news - didn't damage the threads, but the bolt goes in tighter then before.

Bad news - I am stumped on how to get the flywheel off. So I start looking at things more closely.

Good news - I notice that there are dents on the sides of the bolts for the starter clutch and that they are pretty much flush with the outter part of the threads.  THEY ARE ALREADY PEENED!!  It is amazing what you can notice when you are actually working in the daylight.

Bad news - I go to put everything back together for further testing and the gasket got ripped.  I left it in the house in an area that the kids don't play in and it still got F@#KED UP So I need to order a new gasket before I can do anything else.

Questions - So since the bolts are already peened over that is a pretty good indication that the fix has already been done.  So what else could be going on to make the bike not start?  Hear are the specs from the last testing:

     battery charged to around 12 volts (jumping it from the car)
     rebuilt starter with new guts and seal (no oil in it)
     turn the ignition over and it wont engage the engine.  (Starter is whirring away)

 

So what is going on with my bike?!?  If my hair was longer (clipper cut (military)) then I would be pulling it out!

[comatt]

That sucks that you are having such a hard time with the starter clutch.  When I did mine it took a while a a couple of nice words to get it off. 

About the gasket, when I did mine I just used a big piece of gasket paper from the auto store and cut my own out.  It maynoe be the best idea, but it is still holding after a year.  I scaned the old gasket on my printer and printed a copy of it and used that to trace and cut out the new one.  Seems a lot of people use the reuseable ones, maybe someday I will get one.

Good Luck!

comatt

[Night Vision]

dj, the factory bolts were peened to begin with... the little dimples you see on the edges of the bolts were made by a little ole Japanese lady with a sprained wrist and a LFH.

they may be ok now, but won't last forever.
can you reach behind the flywheel and move the starter clutch?
one way?
both ways?

[dj]

Comatt - I'll have to check where the tear is in the gasket.  If it is at the top I my just put it back on for testing purposes.  It'll take a few (4-5) days for the gasket to come in from the dealer when I order it.

NV - I'll go check and let you know.  The starter clutch is directly behind the flywheel correct? (that'll be a tight fit to get my big meaty fingers)

[dj]

NV - no, I can't get to the starter clutch.  the gear right behind the flywheel/startclutch doesn't give enough clearance to be able to get my fingers on it.  there is only about a 1/4 inch gap between the gear and the starter clutch.

[Lucky]

NV is right you gotta pull that puppy off..    sorry...

[dj]

NV is right you gotta pull that puppy off..    sorry...

I've got the center bolt out again and I am trying the puller with out the tip on it.  with out the tip it is a flat end.  I'll see how that works.  I'm just having a problem with geting the three bolts to set it properly.

[dj]

okay the puller is back on the flywheel.  How much do I have to crank down on it before I whack it with the hammer?  I have never done this before and I don't want to mess anything up.  Please help.