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Proper engine storage advice?

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Cursed

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
I use my z50-r as a toy around the neighbor hood and as a pit bike at the local track.

Last time I ran the bike for an hour or so straight with perfect running, idling and so on, really a perfect experience. Went out of town for a week and now the bike starts well but struggles to idle. It will run and ride but when giving it full throttle it struggles to overcome the roll on of the throttle which it will do after a few seconds of hesitation.. Carbs dont gum up over a week, do they? I just realized there may not be enough gas in the tank, I'll check that first thing!

When you guys park you bike what steps do you take to ensure the bike will run well when you return to ride it? Is there a way to drain the carb post riding so it will be free of possible gumming up issues from old gas?

Adam
 
#2 ·
Ive been told if parking the bike for a fair while (months) its a good idea to drain the carbi or just use up the fuel in the carbi bowl by turning off the fuel tap and running the bike til it stops.. Fuel will go off after a month or less , but it wont get real bad to the point of gummy glue in that time that takes many months if not a year..

you might have just had some sediment in the tank that possibly blocked a jet..

In bikes i dont use often i use a fuel additive to stop the gas going bad on me..
 
#4 ·
1. Avoid using E-10 (10% ethanol) pump fuel. There are still a few places left that sell true gasoline, but they are few and far between.

2. If the bike is going to sit for more than a week, drain the float bowl.

3. If the bike has a steel tank, keep the tank full to prevent corrosion.

4. If the bike has a plastic tank, drain the tank if it's going to sit for longer than a month.

5. If the bike has a fiberglass tank, drain immediately after use.

6. Burn unused fuel in wife's minivan.
 
#5 ·
I ride mine too often for it to really be a problem, just cut off the petcock when I'm approaching the garage. My Harley sat for 6-8 months back when I was so sick and it never even hiccupped but it's wise to use Stabil in something that may sit a while. In my boat I drain the tank every fall and refresh it come spring, the 2 stroke oil has a stabilizer built in it but I still drain. Fuel is definitely not what it used to be and I do by non ethanol gas for the mini, mower, weedeater, chainsaw, generator, etc.
 
#6 ·
T Smith said:
I ride mine too often for it to really be a problem, just cut off the petcock when I'm approaching the garage. My Harley sat for 6-8 months back when I was so sick and it never even hiccupped but it's wise to use Stabil in something that may sit a while. In my boat I drain the tank every fall and refresh it come spring, the 2 stroke oil has a stabilizer built in it but I still drain. Fuel is definitely not what it used to be and I do by non ethanol gas for the mini, mower, weedeater, chainsaw, generator, etc.
Click to expand...
Smaller carburetors, and smaller passages, are more susceptible to dirt contamination and/or ethanol corrosion. Running them out of gas doesn't completely drain the float bowl. I've also got a few 2-strokes and no gas = no oil, so I prefer to drain it. Avoiding ethanol is the smartest option.
 
#9 ·
I've never had a problem even with the new ethanol gas sitting all winter. But the high compression motors I do not take a chance with them. Run the old race gas in a garden tractor that gets ran once a year to plow the garden and that gas is going on nearly 2 years and it starts first pull everytime.
 
#10 ·
No alcohol and don't let it sit dry for a long time. Opened my '87 trx250x carb for the first time ever last winter with absolutely no deposits with Stabil. Gasket dried out from sitting dry for to long though.
 
#11 · (Edited)
I found this to be a typical Honda problem. No idea why though, but all the way from my XBR500 to the VFR750, XL250 to my minis - even the one with the Daytona engine. Park'em too long and they don't want to start. None of my Beemers ever exhibitet anything the like :rolleyes:
The only thing that helps is shutting off the gas at the beginning of my street and parking the as "dry" as possible. My guess is that the fuel wont gum up within a few weeks, but the little that is left in the float bowl turns stale pretty fast refusing to burn properly. And I have the feeling that this problem got worse over the past few years since they started adding alcohol and other "green" stuff even to the regular non-E10 gas...
 
#12 ·
Ya you don't have to worry about it sitting for a week just turn the fuel off before parking it my brother has a z50 and it sits four 2 weeks all the time then gets ridden for 2 full days so I don't think u should have any problems with it sitting just drain it when it sits for a long time.
 
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BlackBeard
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