Getting an XJ550 Running Again

you can hook that ground wire to the ignition coil mounting bolt.

could be dirty starter button. dirty battery connections. dirty solinoid connections dirty motor ground connection from battery.
or a dirty starter wire connection. starter may be dirty inside or needing to be rebuilt.

do a voltage drop test to battery when pressing starter button voltage before and during test.

and a new battery can be bad too.

 

Should the oil light turn on every time I press the starter button?

 

yes it is a test for the bulb. it goes out when you release the button correct?

when you change the oil after draining you should turn on key to test oil level sensor light should come on.

 

It's been a while... and I finally got my bike running. Well kind of. This bike has been little work here and alittle work there.

The other day, I hung a small gas tank with a filter and put the carbs back in then pushed the button... and it started up and revved. I was so excited. The idler was too high, so I turned it down. I was all over the place on the choke. After a number of starts and stops it was getting more difficult to start. Added some oil because the light was on.

Now the starter turns the engine over but it won't start. It flirts with starting but just won't start.

It just ran the other day and got up to some 4k rpm several times. Given that the only thing that's really changed is a number of starts, some oil, tweaking the choke\idler... I'm asking myself what's changed.

I've checked the battery and have checked the fuel line. Wondering if fuel is getting into the carbs. Wondering if the spark plugs are now fouled. Wondering if the air\fuel ratio is off.

What are your thoughts?

 

Last night, I walked out and pushed the button and it started right up..... hmm...

 

Keep your battery on a battery tender. Multiple starts without running the bike is draining your battery. Next time you go to start the bike hook a multimeter voltmeter to the battery and see what the voltage drops to when you press the starter button if it is going below 10 volts the bike will not start. It just sounds like you have a good battery but you wear it down.

 

I noticed that I could not start the bike in quick succession. I had to give the battery time to recover. I've been leaving it on the tender. Glad to hear your feedback.

 

Hey XJ550H, what does the oil light represent? When should I pay attention to it or ignore it? I've got the bike running in gear, no chain is connected, and the oil light turns on.

 

oil light is low oil situation
never ignore oil light bad things happen.

the light comes on when starter button is pressed to test bulb.
when you change oil turn key on the light should light this is a test for the oil switch in motor..

when running the light comes on to tell you you are low on oil.

oil level is checked with bike on center stand . the clutch cover has a glass sight you will see 2 lines top is full.
when oil is at lower line add oil slowley like a few ounces at a time .
when oil gets to next line add at 1 ounce . you always want an air bubble at the top of the glass sight.

if you have no center stand get a small level about 12 inch size put it across frame or carbs to level bike.

never ignore oil light bad things happen.

if oil light stays on at proper level the switch may be stuck . add some seafoam to oil per directions on can about a hundred miles before oil change it will clean out switch

 

My oil light started coming on occasionally. I ended up taking mine out and "cleaning" it. It was a few years ago, so I forget exactly what I used, but I would imagine spraying some carb cleaner in and working it back and forth to flush any gunk out. Hasn't given me any problems since. (heh, maybe it's busted, but I doubt it)

 

Probably not as likely - but I got faked out once by a sticky start switch. The start switch would stick, then after the bike was running and the start switch was still stuck, the oil light would be on - in other words, bike running + start switch pressed = oil light on. I had to clean and lube the start switch to work properly, then no more false oil light.

 

Because that’s the direction you turn it

 

It will turn but you have to turn much slower and carefully

 

CCW the way the wheel and motor turns when running and rolling.

clockwise you are fighting against the cam chain tensioner

 

SUCCESS!!! I'm up and running. Cruising around the neighborhood.

Big thank you goes to each of you @XJ550H, @hogfiddles, @Dan Gardner, @dkavanagh, @Timbox, @Ryengoth, @Simmy, @Hillsy!

 

Now that I've got gas in the tank, the leak in the petcock has been discovered. I've got parts in the mail to rebuild it.

When I got back from my first few rides, I kept on noticing that there is a a wetspot on the floor under the left fork. While I was on it at a stop sign I noticed bubbling at the seal. I'm seeing others talk about replacing seals. I'm still investigating the minimal work needed to stop the leak. Any "go to" threads?

 

of course

Rebuilding the Yamaha Vacuum Fuel Valve w/pics

 

Thanks for sharing that link. Looking to use that tonight when the parts get in.

Any good links or pointers on the fork?

 

Petcock rebuilt. We'll see if the leak stops.

Is there a troubleshooting guide for leaking forks?

 

Step 1 - rebuild them
Step 2 - go ride