Bad start

[Dcrosby13]

Ok so one of my 3TJ's refuses to start and run, when I picked the bike up it fired up fine and ticked over a little lumpy so I chucked it in the back of the van and I had not touched it until last night. I went to start it and It was just cranking and cranking but not firing. I took the tank off and there is fuel in the filter although the tank is very low on fuel, I put the tank back on and tried again playing with the throttle and choke and eventually it fired but sounded pretty rough. I have noticed that when I turn it over and it doesn't fire that the cooling fans kick in after a few seconds. I am assuming that this is not normal behaviour as the other bike doesn't do this. Any ideas?

[Evilchicken0]

How to start them from cold
Turn the ignition on and listen for the weep weep of the exup and ticking from the fuel pump. Let the pump finish priming, if it doesn't turn the engine cut out to off /on and the pump should slow and stop.
Choke on
no throttle
Hit the button.

Bad starting can be, exup stuck, low battery, dirty carbs, old sparkplugs, old fuel .... or the valve tolerances have closed up. First thing I'd do is clean the carbs.
Not sure about the fan cutting in although you can generate heat from trying to start it, if you've been at it for a while before it catches then it could well be the valves. Check the other stuff first though because it's cheaper and easier to do.

[willandrip]

Rather that keep taking the tank on and off,rig up a temp fuel supply.

A washing up bottle fits the supply hose nicely .

They can be very stubborn starters if left for a length of time.
I have now begun to use Shell V power due to the lower ethanol content, it appears to aid the prevention of jet blockages when left for long periods.

A large battery and jumper leads makes a big difference to reluctant starters.

There is a wiring/sender fault if the fan comes on.
Water temp should be up in the 90deg. C region before fan activation
I wonder if you have disturbed the harness when removing the tank and the sensor wire is earthing out ?

Once started, keep it running till the temp gauge goes right up.
Keep starting it regularly for a few days.... sometimes,just sometimes they do clear themselves without resorting to carb strips.
Valve clearances are a major item with continually poor starters.

As the man states; it takes a few ignition cycles for the carbs to fully prime....the pump has a 5 second run time if the motor is not going and that is NOT long enough to fill the float bowls after they have stood for a week or so..

I too ,watched the bike you are on with ... the colourscheme is very attractive.
As for Chris' 3TJ... I would have bought that the day it was offered for sale if the garage and house was not overflowing already .

[Dcrosby13]

Well I have the benefit of Chris's old bike running nicely to compare the behaviour, its the red and white one that isnt running right. I will get over to the Shell garage and get some vpower. how will I know if the exup valve is stuck? and are there any manuals relating to cleaning the carbs? Oddly I expected the pink bike to be the tidiest one but cosmetically its the red and white bike thats the cleanest.

[willandrip]

You should hear the exup servo motor cycle from closed to open to closed again at ignition on pre starter use.
There is a chrome cover on the valve itself that may take some removing...the bolts seize... but you will need a mirror to view it and turn the ignition at the same time without a helper....unless you have arms like Clyde the orang-utan or a giraffes neck.

Don't diss Chris' bike....he used it AND lives by the seaside,perhaps the other was a garage queen or never ran right .

The nearest manual that deals with carbs is the Clymer FZR 600. (Boris might correct me on this He's the 3TJ man.)

[Dcrosby13]

No I do not mean any disrespect to Chris its a lovely bike and I am very happy to have it, I think what I am trying to say is the other bike is extremely clean but as you say its not running right . I will have a look at the exup valve, get the missus to give me a hand.

[Evilchicken0]

Go to the top of the page ^^^^ and go into the Documents file there's an SP set up manual there which should help. The carbs are similar to the 600 as far as cleaning goes.
Get a large piece of white paper or stick a few sheets together. Work on one carb at a time so yuo don't mix the parts up. When you unscrew the screws try to use a screw bit on a ratchet make sure the bit fits and push down hard then turn the screw. They're soft and can round out.

[Dcrosby13]

Thanks for the advice and I will be very careful!

[Dcrosby13]

Ok so I grabbed a can full of the high octaine fuel from the Shell Garage, I ran a peice of hose down to the can and turned the ignition on. With the tank off I could see the exup servo sweeping left and right and hear the fuel pump fluttering. Choke fully on I flicked the started and after a couple of turns it fired up, I have to hold the throttle open to keep it going. the whole time it sounded as if it was running on three cylinders so I tried to get at the plugs to check them and they are a bit of a pig to get to. Any advice on extracting the plugs? I will have a look at cleaning the carbs this weekend but could this potentialy be an ignition issue?

[Drunkn Munky]

Mis behaving 3TJ's My advice run a mile lol

As for the plugs there accessible with the lowers and airbox removed with the aid of a universal joint