2 questions

Hey guys, (probably Rick, the resident carb guru, but anyone that know the answer is more than welcome to chime in) in the top half of one of my carburetors (not in the bowl) the needle separated from my slide. I have both pieces out and they look intact, just separated. I took the spring out of the slide as well as the little plastic thing that appears to hold the needle in. Question is, can I reattach? And if so, how would I do so? Thanks in advance =)

Question 2 is this. My maxim sat for about 14 years and as I was working on it tonight one of my neighbors comes in and advises me that it may be a good idea to fill the cylinders with oil until I am ready to try to start it up. Reason being, the pistons don't have a layer of oil on them and it is better to have a layer of oil on them when I try to fire it up. It makes sense to me, based on what I know about engines (no oil=bad thing). Just wanted to see what you folks think? does the oil get circulated quickly enough that I do not have to worry about it or should I do what he said and just make sure I drain all of the oil and re-fill it like I am doing an oil change?

 

For question number 2 a couple of drops would in the combustion chamber will be ok, to fill them up with oil will bend your bottom end, Hydrolic lock is not a good thing for your wallet. Piston at bottom of stroke, you fill it up with oil, where is all of that oil going to go? It can not compress and will bend your connecting rods. If the bike has set for along period of time, drain the oil and refill with fresh oil to the middle sight glass as the bike sits on the centerstand.

Question number 1 seems like the needle came out of the slide?? if so there is a stamped steel cover along with a white plastic shim then your needle. Put the needle in the slide with the white plastic spacer, donut or whatever you want to call it then put the stamped steel piece over it to cover it all up. Now line up the two screw holes and install two screws in there and you should be done assembling the slide. Be careful its easy to crossthread the tiny screws.

Sean

 

1) You can re-attach the Needle -- It presses into its plastic base. Just be sure its the same length as the other three when you press it back in.

2) Shoot some WD-40 in each Spark Plug hole. Definitely DON'T fill them.

It you can rotate the Engine by using the Flats on the Ignition Rotor ... Put a half-ounce of Marvel Mystery Oil in each hole and turn-over the Engine by hand to spread the MMO on the Cylinder walls.

14-Years, huh?
Keep your fingers crossed.
If the Engine turns-over by hand you stand a chance of not having to do some rather extensive Engine work.

That Mil had to have at least 2 Valves open on a pair of Cylinders.
14 years couldn't have been kind.

If you can ...
As soon as you can ...

Do a Compression Check on the 4 Cylinders.
Let's see how it survived 14 years in hibernation!

 

I dont have a way to do a compression check (at least not that I am aware of). But will try the hand cranking to see if the pistons at least move.

oh yeah.....half ounce, basically half of a shot glass?

 

take a quart of oil remove the cap fill the cap that is about all you want down in there for this purpose. 14yrs!! was it at least inside or was it set out to pasture? Definetly change the oil before you start it up then I woudl only let it run 5-10 min very minimal stress( not high rpms) then change again. You may even have to remove and clean the clutch components but you won't know till you get it running.

 

it was under a tarp beside my dads house. He bought it back in 84, almost hit someone doing 80 once and parked in 94. Only put 7590 miles on it in the 10 years he had it. When he moved he said I could have it if I got it out from beside the place before they sold the old house. =) Next day I was there with a pickup truck and a really strong friend, lemme tell ya, pushing that thing with flat tires into a chevy 1500 4x4 with a 3 inch lift was NOT easy. lol Lotsa memories on that machine. Makes it pretty important to me to get it running again. Just on a shoestring budget

 

I have no idea how long my Maxim stayed sitting outside beneath a Pine tree before the PO gave it to me.
I had a heck of a time just cleaning the bike from exposure to the elements.
Initially, I thought it was going to be a Parts Bike. But, after some Cleaning and Oiling the holes it turned-over and I spent some time, every day, while working on bringing it back ... just jacking-over the Engine by hand.

I had feared that it was going to show symptoms of needing Valve and possible Ring work ... but, neither turned-out to be the case.

I have to think that the Bike spent more than 10-years leaning up against a Pine tree ... outside; in New England! I had insect cocoons and Pine tree sap all over it. Just cleaning it was several weeks of work.

Today, after two years of restoration, it's my main ride. The once proud Midnight Maxim had to be converted to just a regular Maxim, because all the fancy fake gold plating was heavily flaking off. So, I had to grind-off all that plating right down to the aluminum.

After stripping all the black paint off the Body Parts and Engine, I spent a whole Winter just getting it ready for the Parts to be painted after polishing all the aluminum on the whole bike.

I hope its not going to be a two year ordeal for you. I hope the Engine's OK and you don't suffer a set-back having to pop the Head and pull the Jugs to correct some problem that neglect allowed to happen.

Some of us get pretty lucky finding these old bikes owned by people who couldn't take care of them and wouldn't pay others to do the work for them.
They let some problem we could deal with in a day causue them to park the bike and forget about them.

Then, we hear the stories about one or two that have been sitting for more than a decade waiting for somebody to come to the rescue!

I hope the Motorcycle God's are looking down upon you favorably.
14 years is a long time.
Good Luck with it!

 

There is hope! Mine has been sitting for 20 + years, and now runs like a top. Carb cleaning is the real key in it all. I put about two tablespoons of oil in my cylinders before turning it over. I put it in 6th gear (is a 550, and pushed it around for a little while before even attenpting to start it. Worked really well too!!!

 

I never ceases to amaze me how these engines can handle not being rotated a single degree for more than a decade and spring-back to life like they were on-the-road, yesterday!

Congratulations on getting your bike running!
I know it has to be a good feeling.

 

expand a little bit - my bike hasn't run in a loooong time... why the putting it in gear and pushing it around?? that get all parts lubed up again or something?? (remember.. there are no dumb questions... just dumb people ;-P )

 

you are correct. It gets all the oil in the rings and on the cylinder walls. Just gets things moving freely again.

 

Pull the plugs to make it easier to turn the motor over. Put a little lube in through the spark plug holes as mentioned... MMO, WD-40, a squirt of motor oil, etc. Let it sit a day or so. Put the bike on the center stand and put it in hi gear. Now grasp rear wheel twixt opposing hands and rotate in normal direction of travel. Give it another little squirt of good stuff and rotate it again. Do this a few times over the course of a few days.

Then, when you have good battery power, leave the plugs out and put some rags over the plug holes. Spin it with the battery to blow out excess oil.

Now... you are ready to start!

Mine's been sitting since 88, inside, but still has issues. I just got done with rebuilding the carbs. Still need to finish cleaning and coat the tank, get a new battery and check the valves prior to attempting ignition. However, the motor does roll over just fine.

Best of luck with your project!!!

 

Mine sat for 8-10 years uncovered in someones back yard in the Nevada desert before I rescued it and got it running again for a daily rider. Then I got married and had kids, now I am in the process of rescuing it from my own back yard after another 8 year sit. After a little oil in the plug holes just to be safe, it actually started up with the old gas, can't remember if I ever put stabilizer in it. Now the carbs are just about done, brakes next maybe paint soon. It's all part of the journey!