Motorcycle Repair: no power, quick snap, water in the fuel

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Hi falcon i have a 1985 Honda VF1000R my problem is it is it making any power it will barly pull itself along and bogs at lower rpm's when you give it a quick snap but revs normally at high rpm's also it idles perfectly and even in or out of gear.Thanks for ant input u may have.
Answer -
Hi Curtis.
 Does the bike spend the winters in storage?  If it does, then the problem is most likely related to the carbs needing a good, thorough cleaning.

Alternatively, they could have something sticking internally or you could have water in the fuel.

Check those and let me know what you find.  We can proceed from there.

Good luck.
FALCON

hey falcon the bike is stored winters but the carbs were just cleaned and it was ruunning great but now bogd really bad any more ideas?

Answer -
Hi Curtis.
 Did you remove the fuel and burn off what was in the carbs before storage?
 If you are using the old fuel or used it initially after cleaning the carbs, then you have contamination that just ruined the nice cleaning job that was done on the carbs.

 Now if the carbs were not completely removed and disassembled to clean them (except for the mixture screws, don't tamper with those), then they could still be the problem.

How about the air filter?  Is it in need of changing?

How about the ignition coils?  Are they within specs?  You need the repair manual and a multimeter to check those.

There could also be an intermittent short in the ignition wiring.  The wiring diagram is in the repair manual.  Check that with a multimeter as well.

How about the needle valves?  Are those worn down too far?  The do wear out.  Most people don't know that.  The manual has those specs as well.

Try that and let me know what you find.
Good luck.
FALCON


I found my problem. Believe it or not it was my wife. I sent her to get gas and she bought regular.So I drained the tank and filled it with super and she works like a charm again thanks for the help. I also have anther question for u my bike has a tick because the exhaust is leaking between the header and the head any ideas on how to make this go away?


Answer -
Hi Curtis.
 Glad to hear that it was only a fuel grade problem.

Now, as far as your other problem; are you certain that this tick is because of the exhaust leak.  Most every time anyone has described a tick in the engine, it has been because the valves needed adjustment or some other moving part was faulty or out of adjustment (i.e. the cam chain tensioner).

As far as fixing an exhaust leak at the header, that has a couple of possible solutions.

1)  The graphite bushings around the end of the pipe need replacement.

2)  The header is a little loose and needs to be reset and tightened down.

3)  Both #1 and #2 decided to join forces and happen at once.

Try those solutions and see what happens.
Good luck.
FALCON

i'm positive it's the exhaust; but there is no gasket between it's a machined suface meet and the guy that owned the bike before me broke the flange and either the header distorted os banged againt the head ruining the mateing suracei had it sealed with asbestos wrap and muffler cement but it blew it out after only a couple of seconds

Answer
Hi Curtis.
 Well, armed with that knowledge, I can tell you that the only viable option is to find a cycle salvage yard and take a replacement off of a wrecked bike there, or order a new one.

The graphite gasket that I had previously mentioned always looks like it is a part of the header pipe.  It is that thick flange/sleeve that goes around the end of the pipe.

It sounds, from your description that the previous owner ruined it and, rather than fix the problem right, did a "that should hold it" fix.

Good luck.
FALCON