Problems with the clutch!!!

[TrystaEC]

two days ago i was getting ready to leave work. i turned the bike on . the keys were in, the kill switch was set to on, the choke was pulled all the way out and the bike was in neurtral. while i was getting ready for some reason my bike went into first gear all by itself and took off. does anyone know why that happened?

[bonehead]

Are you sure you did'nt hit the shifter by accident? (just a thought)

[TrystaEC]

no. i wasnt even on the bike yet

[Sarris]

It's called a false neutral. You had the shifter midway between first and neutral and the engine vibration popped it into gear. Sometimes motorcycles will show neutral light but be in first.

You might check the clutch adjustment, but other than that, there really is not much to fix other than a worn-out gear set or bad synchros (??).

I would tell you to not leave her running on the stand unless you have been in the saddle and have let her run for a few. Don't put it in neutral with you right foot standing off the bike. That's a sure way to get a false neutral.

Good luck and keep us informed.

:)

[Easy Rider]

I would tell you to not leave her running on the stand unless you have been in the saddle and have let her run for a few.

And I have to ask, "Why was the choke on all the way??"

With mine, that would have made it race unbearably fast after about 20 seconds or so and would made me nervous even if nothing bad really happened.

If you really need the choke all the way operated to get it started, you probably have other issues that need to be addressed. Mine never required more than about half (except the first start in the spring) and even that for only about 20 seconds or so. After that, it did require a tad bit to keep the idle speed up for the first 5 minutes or 5 miles or so.

So, my advice: Don't choke it so much and don't let the idle speed race while it is warming up.

[TrystaEC]

k. thanks

[Water Warrior 2]

Did the bike shut down when the tranny went into gear ?? It should have done so with the side stand down. Hope there wasn't any damage, I am asumming the bike fell over if it lurched off the side stand.

[alanmcorcoran]

I'm a relative newb, but I'd be interested in hearing from the old timers on the wisdom of starting up the bike and getting off of it. I never do this. (BTW, the "run away bike" scenario described above has been posted here before.) I see other riders do this to "warm up the bike" but, my experience in CA is that bikes don't need much "warming up." I guess the main reason I don't do it, is it feels like leaving a car running with no one in it, which I am also uncomfortable doing. There are some other reasons that are less of a motivation, but they include:

1)The unnecessary noise factor. Bikes are loud, and, trust me, no one but the owner is "impressed" with the noise. I think it is especially annoying when people start a bike up and leave it running unattended.
2) The burn factor. If you mount the bike cold, there is less chance that you or you passenger will get burned. Also, less chance that a kid or curious adult will get too close to something VERY hot before you can warn them to stay back.
3) potential thievery or just vandalism. Obviously, if you are standing right there, it's not likely, but suppose, you got to pop back inside to get your gloves or helmet or something. If a neighbor kid knocks it over, or burns himself, or rides it into traffic, you could be partly liable.

I always pack my stuff, put on whatever gear I'm going to use, and am fully ready to go when I mount the bike. I don't even start my bike until I have rolled it backwards down the driveway in between my cars and out onto the street. On both the GZ and the Strat I rarely let it idle more than about 20-30 seconds before I take off. With the Strat, it's pretty much start and go. I let the GZ run a bit longer cause of the carb and choke and such.

I haven't seen much posted on this, other than I think Hough or someone recommended a warmup. Not sure if that applies to fuel injected, air cooled 1850+ V twins (they warm up damn fast.)

Thoughts?

[VTXorcist]

Do you need to let it run for a while to let the oil distribute throughout the engine before taking off? Honest question from a dumb unmechanically-inclined newb.

[mrlmd1]

No.
And hard to answer correctly.
How long is a while? There are short whiles and longer whiles.
But the answer is still no.

[alanmcorcoran]

I think the oil distribution thing was the reason that was given when I saw the "warm-up" recommendation. I figure in an engine the size of the GZ (or even the Strat for that matter) at a 1000 RPM idle, how long does it really take for the oil to get distributed? I'd say pretty effing quick. (Assuming there is nothing wrong with the oil filter and the stuff is circulating properly.) I don't think either one needs to be at full temperature to run well, although the GZ can be a little sketchy for the first few minutes if the carb/valves and choke are not setup or used properly. Mine had some trouble (probably caused by me) but, once cleared up, it runs very smoothly right from the get go.

I also benefit from the fact that 50% of my trips start out with a two mile descent from my house, so, it really doesn't matter if the bike is warm or not. I could almost ride down with the engine off.

[Easy Rider]

Do you need to let it run for a while to let the oil distribute throughout the engine before taking off? Honest question from a dumb unmechanically-inclined newb.

Yes.....about 30 seconds at most.
That's all any of my bikes have needed.....except the GZ and the Eliminator......both of which were very "cold blooded".
I must admit that I do it "off the seat" but would not really recommend that to anyone else.
Once I'm out and about, I never start it without being in the saddle.

[mrlmd1]

The oil gets distributed, pumped, as soon as the engine turns over. The hardest part on any engine is the first few revolutions as it starts, when there is little lubrication. This is cold or hot.
The only thing sitting does while running, is let it get warmer, and the best way to warm up an engine is to run it at slower speed under load, like driving down the street,
The recommendation for a car engine too is to start it, then drive it at reasonable speed, rather than let it sit in the driveway to "warm up" first.
If it's really cold, you may want to "warm up" the engine sitting, to get the carb and fuel warmer, for better fuel combustion, (and as a by product the oil gets warmer), but with multi-viscosity oils, there is still lubrication from as soon as the engine rotates.
Obviously, with really cold temps, the oil is "thicker" (higher viscosity) when cold and requires more effort to turn the engine over, but the oil is circulating as soon as the engine rotates and does provide lubrication.

[music man]

I start mine off of it, from time to time, but I don't ever wander away from it, because I am scared of it vibrating off the kickstand, and I agree with Alan that especially on a bike like the GZ, it probably only takes a matter of a few seconds to get all the oil circulated in the engine, on a really cold day I might warm my bike up for 3-4 minutes at most, but that is when it is below freezing outside, when its hot, it is more likely to be in between 30 seconds and a minute, depending on how big a hurry I am in and how long it takes me to get all my stuff situated.

[theram]

I bought my GZ at the Mid-Ohio swap meet in late July. The pipes were already blued pretty bad, the owner started it up and let it run with full choke while we were talking. He was telling me how cold natured it was, I have found that to not be the case as it only takes a few seconds of full choke to have it running smooth. Could his habit of leaving it on full choke contribuited to the blued pipes?

[Sarris]

Blueing comes from high heat. Leaving the choke on for extended period may contribute to it, but normally it is caused by lean carb settings.

I leave my choke on for about 2 minutes, which BTW is an enrichener circuit not a true choke.

My 2005 ran like shit when I got it. I brought it back to the dealer, and after much bitching and complaining, they popped the mixture caps and enriched the fuel/air mixture.

They said what they did was against the EPA regs (read illegal), but mine now runs like a champ.

I've got over 13k miles, and no blueing yet. I will tell you that I use my HD for any riding over about 50 miles or so, so the GeeZer only gets jaunts of 50 miles or less.

Welcome to our world.

:)