bike took long time to start

[gsxr pete]

hav not started the fmx for more than 6 weeks as its stored for the winter in my garage , would it be normal for it to take along time for it to start [ several attemps over 10min] , my gixxer started 1st turn of the key also the garage is heated to about room temp ,

[Treadtrader]

The usual suspect is modern unleaded fuel going "off" in the carb. Does'nt seem to cause such a problem with injection systems.
After a longish lay up i drain the carb then let fresh fuel flow in, easy fix.
There's been a few posts on here lately about shelf life of fuel.
If i'm not using a bike or mower etc, i put some fuel stabiliser in the tank, very effective.
Briggs & Stratton do a good one cheaply.

[AIRWOLF]

any longer than a week and i drain the carb before starting my XR600.

though it is better if i use shell optimax.

[jasonbc]

hav not started the fmx for more than 6 weeks as its stored for the winter in my garage , would it be normal for it to take along time for it to start [ several attemps over 10min] , my gixxer started 1st turn of the key also the garage is heated to about room temp ,

The simple solution her is don't lay your bikes up use them all the time then it won't happen. the weather we get here isn't cold enough or bad enough normally to stop using the bikes. We did have that mild dusting of snow after xmas and a bit of ice and that wasn't enough to keep a lot of us off the bikes that was just more fun

[twistgrip]

My FX650 can be a pig to start if laid up for only a week or so. I'll try the carb draining trick. I have been resorting to the old trick of pre heating the plug on the gas stove but even this does not provide a foolproof cure. Basically the motor floods so I'm now looking at a plug that's weak under compression or the stale petrol theory. Supermarket petrol again? Once running it's fine, really good, but it's a pain when it won't wake up when I want it to.

[Loomesy]

Yup I had this problem on my first dommie, kicking it over for what seemed like hours and using the electric start too..

If you've got an early dommie with a kickstart, it may be worth kicking it over a few times without the ignition on....

also if you can, try bump starting it down a hill, the engine turning over will get rid of off fuel in the carb and suck in fresh stuff in no time.

[afk40]

i usually let it tick over on fuel off till it conks out , if i know am gonna be leaving it more that a few weeks, I started mine the other day there an it started first few turns thats after 3 months in the garage,, drain the bowl an swirl the gas about in the tank before lettin the bowl fill again or syphone it out an put fresh stuff in..........

[Rubberchicken]

Yep, draining the carb makes all the difference in starting it after a mere week.

Might consider fitting an iridium plug as well, mine tends to start easier on those, and they last longer too.

[Mervinh]

i usually let it tick over on fuel off till it conks out , if i know am gonna be leaving it more that a few weeks, I started mine the other day there an it started first few turns thats after 3 months in the garage,, drain the bowl an swirl the gas about in the tank before lettin the bowl fill again or syphone it out an put fresh stuff in..........

I run the Vigor dry every time i go out now, saves a lot of cranking if it does not get used for a few days

[Rubberchicken]

With a bit of practice you can learn where on the final street before home you have to turn off the tap and still be able to make it in.