Post rebuild starting help?

[e3steve]

Hey Guys,

So I am nearing (in the next 3 weeks) the point when I will be able to reassemble the bike fully and install the motor to see if she fires up... It was really tempermental before and I have adjusted the points & timing (with the light technique) so I am anxious to see if she runs. It was running last seasons but starting was always the issue. Once it warmed up, it was never a problem to start but when it was cold it was REALLLY trickey. Im wondering if you guys have a technique you follow to start your 305 dreams? I am about to move into the world of tuning the carb, that should also help quite a bit... Anyways, I hope to get your starting "steps/methods" so I can get a better sense of what I should consider when starting... Thanks!

Sascha

S'not rocket salad, Sascha.

Basics: the 4-stroke Otto cycle -- suck, squeeze, bang, blow -- demands an air/fuel ratio of 14:1; because the inlet tract is cold when the motor is cold, minute droplets of condensation form within. Condensation = higher oxygen content -- oxygen = air, therefore more fuel (or less air) is needed before the motor is warmed through (once the motor, therefore the inlet tract, is warmed then the condensation gets instantly evaporated).

So, assuming the float height is adjusted correctly (carb off, laid on its side, pic 1 below) and you have a healthy, fully charged battery:

1. Follow Honda's (and Ed's) Recipe of turning out the carb's air screw 1⅛-turn from bottom (fully c/w) -- see corrected manual page, pic 2 below
2. Turn the idle screw out until it no longer touches the carb slide
3. Adjust the throttle cable so that the slide bottoms-out in the carb throat and there's a bit of twist-slack in the throttle
4. Turn the idle screw in until it just touches the carb slide, then two more turns
5. Turn on the petcock and wait 30-secs, or so, for the float bowl to fill
6. Close the choke fully (up)
7. Ign ON, press the starter and gradually open the choke a little until the motor fires -- you may need to give it a little throttle, or you may not -- and stop at about ¾-closed. You should be able to fully open the the choke after about 30-60 seconds of running (depending on the ambient temperature).

Warm the motor up and gradually tweak the idle screw to obtain a smooth 600-800RPM idle.

[brewsky]

Excellent write-up, Steve

One additional trick I use, especially if the bike hasn't been started in a while, is to lean the bike over sideways as far as I can for a few seconds before starting.

Seems to aid in filling the float bowl faster.

[Hotshoe]

Well written and composed Steve.... interesting tidbit about the intake passage getting up to op temp, it certainly makes sense.
One question though, is rocket salad something you have during launch?

[e3steve]

You guys! Thanks for the compliments (although it wasn't posted for that reason). That's another good 'play on words', Hotshoe; I'll remember that one! Where'd the handle come from, btw?

I meant to append the post with a warm-up procedure that I use -- although I'm probably not the only one:

Once the final carb mixture, with the plugs checked for colour (after a long idle and after a ride), and ignition timing full advance, with a timing light, have been properly established, and the idle is satisfactory -
a) Turn on the gas
b) Close the choke fully
c) Turn the idle screw(s) in 1½-turns
d) Start, using the preferred device, whilst gradually opening the choke to ¾-closed
e) Allow to fast idle for 15-secs (my ambient riding temperature here doesn't drop much below 16ºC -- 60ºF) then fully open the choke
f) As the idle rises, along with motor temp, turn the idle screw(s) out ¼-turn at a time

Once I can snap-open the throttle to about ½, and the motor doesn't hesitate in doing so, it's ready to ride. My idle screws are usually back to where I started at my second traffic light (within a mile or so); at the first light (¼-mile away) I'm down to ¼-turn out.

EDIT: I mean ¼-turn in!

Works for me every time.

[48lesco]

The Dreams have an ignition switch position for priming, its all the way counter-clockwise, one click below "off" (position I). It allows the starter to crank without the ignition being on. The procedure is described in the owners manual pg 14. If its cold or if the bike has been sitting for a while, turn the key forward to this position, close the choke, open the throttle all the way and crank it for about 2-3 seconds. Then turn the key back 2 clicks to the "on" position, leave the choke closed and set the throttle to about 1/4 open. Has always worked for me. This assumes everything else is adjusted right and your battery is in good shape.

[Hotshoe]

Hotshoe is a knickname the owner of the local Honda shop gave me where I used to get parts for my 305's in the 60's.
He was always very friendly to me, I think mainly because my engines were fast but also had pretty short fuses so I was a regular customer.
A hotshoe is a metal shoe we used to get from a guy named Ken Maely that you strapped on your left boot so it would slide when you put it down for balance when sliding the left handers on a flattrack or TT track.

[klp]

The Dreams have an ignition switch position for priming, its all the way counter-clockwise, one click below "off" (position I). It allows the starter to crank without the ignition being on. The procedure is described in the owners manual pg 14. If its cold or if the bike has been sitting for a while, turn the key forward to this position, close the choke, open the throttle all the way and crank it for about 2-3 seconds. Then turn the key back 2 clicks to the "on" position, leave the choke closed and set the throttle to about 1/4 open. Has always worked for me. This assumes everything else is adjusted right and your battery is in good shape.

+1

I don't have a lot of experience with these bikes in particular but I use a variation of this technique to start all my small Hondas when they are cold.

Choke closed, throttle open, ignition off - kick several times. Then key on and kick - usually starts first time.

If you think about it this really makes sense as these smaller motors don't have a chance to get much fuel into the cylinder and this allows some in before trying to start.