The last straw.. charging? HELP!

SCARE

SCARE

Scareous XS650
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So I have an XS650 Special SG

Nothing but trouble, shes in good condition, but f me, I haven't had much riding time

I got her out after winter, got her legal again
I was having troubles (which I thought were due to the new Uni Filters)
I took it to the XS650 expert round my ways (not much to choose from)

He looked at carbs, tuned, did the timing, it has new oil, spark plugs, brushes
He assures me it is tuned

I got it home, had a good days riding.. at the end of the day as I was getting home, it starting revving up, idling high, I thought it was a cable issue, but no..
Unexplained

Shut her down

Few days later, go to start her, and although she starts, its coughing, spluttering, backfiring, and will cut out once I rev her up a bit and try and take off

Charged the battery. Tested the battery under load, still has 10V under load

Checked the plugs, the right was slightly oily, nothing too bad..
The left was really oily and sooty..
The left side is sputtering, banging and seems to be the problem..
Cleaned the plugs, still bang bang cut out under revs..

Where to from here. I am sure the engine side of things are fine
Is this the charging problem ala get a PMA?

I was so f'd off I missed a big fundraiser ride on Sunday I had been prepping her up for, that I resisted setting her on fire, and instead put her up for sale..

If I can find out how to have an XS that will bloody run, I will keep her..
Otherwise I'm jumping ship, I just can't handle no riding..
 
Here she is..

ohu4w9.jpg
 
If I couldn't do the work myself, I'd take it back to my "expert" and tell him what happened. It's hard to diagnose without having it on hand, so...

People will tell you what might cause this or that thing you're seeing but somebody will have to do the work. And everything you describe, there's a dozen things that could cause it so there will be a lot of work unless you get lucky. For somebody who really knows it, or once you get to know it, it would take about an hour to line out, unless there's a major problem, which is unlikely since it was doing ok for awhile.

If you can't work on it yourself, and if there's nobody there to work on it for you, it's not the bike for you. I think it's cool looking, btw. Somebody got a certain look without doing some real unnecessary stuff.
 
Also, abandoning it out of frustration is the opposite mindset of fixing it. It will hate you all the worse for that.
 
I went through the charging diagnostic article
I checked every wire connection and ground on the bike
I changed the bushes
I read the carb how to article and couldnt get my head around it
I tested the battery
I took it to the expert as I needed it tuned asap for the ride
It was a last resort
He has checked all he can, as have I
I am asking for further advice
I work on my little Hondas
Im keen to learn and attempt things myself
Hence asking..
 
One of the most common and easy to remedy faults is the loose or dirty connections, particularly your earth/ground. They may look clean, but after so many years you will be surprised what gets under there.

Anlaf
 
SCARE said:
Im keen to learn and attempt things myself
Click to expand...

If you fix the charging chances are the rest of it will go away. 10V is too low to run right. The tuner probably charged your battery and it ran ok for awhile. Find curley's charging guide and let us know what it showed you. The revving up might be a separate problem but fix the charging first or you're wasting your time.
 
That bike is a 78SE or a 79SF The blue one you have/had is an 80SG.

The carbs changed from BS38's on the 78/79 to BS34's on the 80SG and the Australasian/Oceania 80SG come out with the Canadian Needles and Needle jets.Here are some links that may help you with your problems, Could be an electrical or carb problem that is causing this.

A new fully charged battery is a must before attempting to diagnose any problems

Electrical
HERE;
1;
2;
3;
Carbs
4;
5;
6;
7;

I'm sure others will drop in and give you advice. With the info posted in these threads it may help you to solve your problem without going through the whole question and answer routine

Just make sure you identify which model carbs/bike you are working on. The BS34's have chrome tops and the BS38's have alloy tops
 
TwoManyXS1Bs said:
Interesting conclusion.
Click to expand...
LOL and my thought exactly.

But they will often run with some oil consumption and oil use sometimes goes away once a "sitter" has been a runner for a while.
Agree with above, #1 charge the battery, see how it runs, then go through the charging guide again doing the rest of the tests. Most are simple VOM checking of components and wiring.
Further advice on charging requires we know which voltage regulator rectifier your bike has.
 
10 volts is to low. check how many volts the battery has at rest. don't charge it. let it sit for 8 hours.Dont start it. check what volt you get, If you don't have at least 12.5. you need a new battery. since you said you had new brushes added.. but check all connections. they might look fine. but may need cleaning..these bikes do have very weak charging systems..
 
1 did you test the rotor?
2 did you check the mechanical advance? it may be sticking week springs no lube
3 did you test the battry for a bad cell?
 

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