Elffie Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 So .. as some of you may be aware I aquired a little SR125 for £120 (lol) as a non runner that had been stood for 6 months Anyhow I managed to get him running on Thursday, enough to ride him to my local car mechanic and show him, seeing as I had been pestering him all day for advice... When I got him to the garage, turned him off and left him for about 15 mins to chat.. went to restart and he struggled to fire up..! Eventually got him going again and drove it round the ind estate to try and get the squeak out of the rear brakes. So JOY! I was happy, went home and booked him in for an MOT just to see what it would need... Went to start him yesterday morning to take him for his MOT, started fine... then stalled as I pushed him out of the garden.. wouldnt start up again at all Sooo thinking it might be the battery as it dies quite quickly went searching for one... the books that tell ye the parts show a different battery to the one I have in it, as too big. This is because, I'm assuming, that the engine is not a 1992 (doesn't match the V5) and is an earlier engine. Anyhow the shop looked it up and got the right one, luckily I had taken old battery with me. Haven't got the battery yet, will be picking it up on Monday I bought a new plug and put that in, even though the old one sparked.. Now I'm at a loss, being a complete newbie to the whole mechanical side of it, but damn determined to get him on the road as he is a lovely comfy bike Any ideas and help ? Pretty please Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2 Wheels Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Lying up for 6 months,,,,,, this is on the border line of your carb needing a clean,,,,,, not hard to do,,,,take your time,,,,,clean out all the little holes so you can see daylight through them,,,,,,, try not to adjust any of the settings on some of the screws, but if you have to, count how many turns it takes to get it out and then when reasembling screw them back in the same amount. Its better to screw them in first while counting and then out but i wont confuse you. However, i am thinking, although the bike is starting and running you might just get away with giving the bike a good hard run, for say an hour. This may get the fuel flowing through the carb enough to disolve away anything that might be a bit gumed up from lying for 6 months. Although this probbly wont disolve the starter jet or the chooke but it might just do enough to get your bike ideling good and then you can tell more wheather it needs carb cleaned or not. It would be a good idea to clean the carb anyway, especially as the weather MIGHT pick up a bit and it seems you are going to use the bike a fair bit so ya might as well get it going as good as possible. Nothing worse than having to push your bike along a main road. Whats this about the engine not matching the V5 ????? Will she fail MOT because of this ???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elffie Posted March 4, 2012 Author Share Posted March 4, 2012 hmmm being a complete newb I will look into having a go with trying to clean the carb. Does it have to be dismantled completely ? Its quite frustrating as it rode lovely and felt ok (to a newb) so gutted it didnt start again lol But Im not giving up... Is a can of carb cleaner any good or a waste of money ? As for the V5 engine. I have no idea the VIN and engine number on the v5 are the same yet the engine number on the bike is different. Is that a problem.? As I don't have a clue lol. I just assumed that a previous owner changed the engine out and didnt report it for the V5 I have also just noticed that the bike hasn't got a brake fluid cylinder... Guess that was knocked off the same time as the brake lever, which I have replaced.! So good job it didn't make it to the MOT Im guessing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neversaydie Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 hmmm being a complete newb I will look into having a go with trying to clean the carb. Does it have to be dismantled completely ? Its quite frustrating as it rode lovely and felt ok (to a newb) so gutted it didnt start again lol But Im not giving up... Is a can of carb cleaner any good or a waste of money ? As for the V5 engine. I have no idea the VIN and engine number on the v5 are the same yet the engine number on the bike is different. Is that a problem.? As I don't have a clue lol. I just assumed that a previous owner changed the engine out and didnt report it for the V5 I have also just noticed that the bike hasn't got a brake fluid cylinder... Guess that was knocked off the same time as the brake lever, which I have replaced.! So good job it didn't make it to the MOT Im guessing The existence of the brake fluide reservior looks like it depends upon the age of the bike, some of the photos on the net show drum front brake, some show disc front brake. It seems from your description that it must be a drum front brake Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elffie Posted March 4, 2012 Author Share Posted March 4, 2012 Okay so this thicko asks, which one should have a reservoir ? did tell ye I was a newb lol And fingers crossed it is the one that doesn't need it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator DirtyDT Posted March 4, 2012 Moderator Share Posted March 4, 2012 Taking the carb off and cleaning it is the best option. You can try carb cleaner but wear gloves and don't breath the fumes. It is dangerous stuff. If the bike frame and the V5 are the same. Good. If the engine number is different you can change this using the V5 and sending it off with the engine change number. Are you sure about the brake reservoir being mission? What is the brake lever connected to? there should be a hose from the front brake up to the right of the handlebars. Where does this hose go? If you have ridden the bike you would have found it very hard to strop without a front brake!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator DirtyDT Posted March 4, 2012 Moderator Share Posted March 4, 2012 Drum front brake - look at the front wheel. Cable and no reservoir. Disk front brake - again, look at the front wheel - with disk brake Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elffie Posted March 4, 2012 Author Share Posted March 4, 2012 AHA you are a star Dirty its a drum... which means there's nothing missing. Also the brakes work fine other than the back squeaking a bit. Wasnt sure as every picture I have seen has had a reservoir on it. Now another question, being an old bike and looking at the pipes to the carb they are all yellow and Im guessing very brittle. Should I get new piping and replace after I sort the carb? Im assuming I have to take them off to jet the holes ? Is that a mammoth task for me to do ? OR can a fumble fingers manage it ? Brain picking over.....for now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator DirtyDT Posted March 4, 2012 Moderator Share Posted March 4, 2012 Most/all of the yellow pipes should be vent/overflows. just make sure they are not blocked. The main fuel pipe should be black and go from the tank to the carb. That is the important one. If you are using carb cleaner. take out the air filter, start the bike and squirt some of the cleaner into where the filter should go. Make sure you have new fuel as it does go off. Remember to put the filter back on when you have finished. use the carb cleaner in little squirts. There should be a change in the speed of the revs when you do this. To much squirt and the engine will stop. Personally I would have the carb off and clean it. (Get someone to do it for you if you are unsure. The manual will show you how. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elffie Posted March 4, 2012 Author Share Posted March 4, 2012 Right, I do recall turning the overflow when I put fresh fuel in, to drain the old out and drain a bit of the new through, thinking it might clear anything old in there.. I will have a go myself tomorrow I think , seen a few vids that show how to do it, the air filter is a square one above the battery, so I'm assuming, not having looked, I take the filter components out and spray in there ? I shall let you know how I get on. Will put the new battery on tomorrow first though lol Thanks for your time and expertise, I'll let you go and regrow the bits I have picked lol . No doubt Ill be back for more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elffie Posted March 8, 2012 Author Share Posted March 8, 2012 Soo after a week of work and no time to do anything with Burt.. I have now attached a new battery to him and fired him up....again He started up fine with a little choke and I left him to tick over for 15 mins or so., turned him off for an hour or so while I went in and de numbed my fingers Went back out a few mins ago and tried again, he struggled to turn over but eventually he did.. I haven't touched the carb, tbh not sure if I want to even though people keep saying its pretty easy to do So I have rebooked him into the MOT tomorrow lunch, now Im just hoping he starts up again... I have also noticed after putting this battery in that when I turn the indicators on the engine gently revs in tune to the indicators! What gives there ? I am not expecting him to pass the MOT but at least I will know what is needed and essentially how much he is going to cost me to sort out. Then we can see if he is worth it or now Fingers crossed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neversaydie Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Remember that the bike is air cooled, i.e. that it relies upon the flow of air passing over the engine as the bike is moving to keep it from overheating. Long periods of engine running with no cooling flow may result in engine failure, particularly in hot weather. May also mean insufficient oil flow to engine components for proper lubrication. Long peroids on tickover could result in battery drain, hence tickover slowing in time with indicators. If I were you, Id charge the battery up tonight Good luck tomorrow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elffie Posted March 9, 2012 Author Share Posted March 9, 2012 Woohoo he passed his MOT ! No advisories either, thought the mechanic was taking the piss tbh. But nope he's all road legal now Still got a starting problem but he does bump start, which I don't want to be doing every time I have to get back on the bike. Sooo Is that a carb issue ? Seeing as I haven't touched the carb yet, and don't really want to lol New battery and spark plug installed. AND there's an oil leak that's going up the back wheel, only just spotted it. But seeing as we weren't sure how much oil it had in it, maybe an overfill ? So tomorrow Im going to drain the oil and put in the right amount, then I know its right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator DirtyDT Posted March 9, 2012 Moderator Share Posted March 9, 2012 Well done Burt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2 Wheels Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Fair play to "Burt" on his test ! Elffie,, How do you attempt to start your bike ? There is a nack to starting nearly every bike,,,,,you have to find what yours is. If you leave the bike stopped for 20mins then you will prob need choke to start her up again. So,,, full choke on,,,,,, no throttle,,,,,try an start. If the bike can idle for 15 mins then pilot jet in carb sounds ok. If the bike can take throttle full and fast when your out for a spin then main jet is ok. You might not need carb cleaned ! Do you know if the choke is working correctly ? Does the revs of the bike come down as you turn off the choke ? Leaving bike ticking over for long is not good for any bike,,,,things get suited up and bike starts to struggle,,,,,, not to mention the overheating like Tasky has said. Another Question for ya is,,,,, why is the battery going flat so fast ? When you have the bike running next time, turn on the headlight, then give the bike a little rev,,,,, Does the headlight get brighter ?? Answers on a postcard please Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elffie Posted March 9, 2012 Author Share Posted March 9, 2012 Thanks guys Yeah pretty pleased he's through but still in shock lol Hmmm how do i start the bike, little choke and press button lol. He does struggle every time, but seems to be worse to restart when he's been running and then turned off and left for more than a few minutes I did stall him today after riding him for about 5 minutes...forgot which gear and ppfft off he went I then tried restarting him and he wasn't having any of it, it took a good 5 - 10 mins of trying before he eventually played ball No idea why battery is dying, probably all the trying to get him started... Ill try the headlights tomorrow when I get him out and kick him...I mean start him I'm just impressed he is alive and has a certificate to prove it. have to sort out the oil tomorrow anyway Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator DirtyDT Posted March 10, 2012 Moderator Share Posted March 10, 2012 "So,,, full choke on,,,,,, no throttle,,,,,try an start" Good advice from 2wheels. Always a good place to start. Especially the part about " no throttle". Unusually, the SV likes a little throttle to start when cold but none when warm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wild foamy Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 this sounds very similar to the problem i had with my DT running weak, would be a pain in the ass to start when warm... is everything on the bike standard? i.e. you havent been chavving it up with loud exhausts, speecial high performance air filters and big bore kits? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyloo Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 Hi Elffie, thanks for your reply on my topic, of course I carnt offer any advise being a newbie myself, but can sympathise from a distance Yes, give me a shout if you make it up to yorkshire, we can see who rattles the loudest! Haha Liz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elffie Posted March 10, 2012 Author Share Posted March 10, 2012 Thanks guys and gals Put the full charged battery on this morning and its fired up no problem with no choke. Haven't tried again yet as got sidetracked Foamy ~ It has no mod con's lol, just a bog standard SR125 with an older engine apparently. I'm sure the poor guy would fall to pieces in shock if I tried to pimp him ! Was going to sort the oil out but can't get the damn nut off lol...weakling alert.! Cuppa and try again ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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