my Hardly Davidson is done

I finally finished my latest cruiser. Well, not quite finished yet....still waiting for my local decal guy to make me some "Hardly Davidson" decals for the chainguards. This one has a Power King 80 engine, but I engraved 48cc on the clutch cover to keep the cops happy.....and from what I've been hearing in here, it sounds like 48cc is a bit closer to the truth than 80cc on these Power King engines anyways. I haven't tried it out yet, but I plan on taking it for a run tonight. I hope it runs as well as my Dax 70.

Pete

 

[lotsa_mpg]

I am getting anxious to ride this bike, so today I played around with the carb some more and changed the plug.......but no improvement at all. I was starting to suspect a bad bearing in the ouput shaft, so I removed the sprocket and the clutch to inspect the bearings.....doesn't seem to be any probs in there as the shaft spins nice and smoothly. I finally pulled the head to inspect the cylinder. There seems to be some minor wear lines in the bore. I know you have to expect to see some, but I'm wondering if these are causing probs. The lines might look severe in the pic, but they are so shallow that I can't really feel them when I run my fingernail across them. Yet, still it bothers me to see them on an engine that likely has less than 2 miles on it. They seem more prevalent on the intake side. I did not think I had any leakage on my intake manifold gasket, but there may have been a very slight amount of air getting past it. I just spent some time planing my intake flange and will make a new gasket. Should I be concerned about the wear lines in the bore?

Pete

PS: This is the engine that had the piston installed backwards from the factory, but I did install it correctly before I ran it.

 

[Egor]

That cylinder looks OK. I have three engines and they are all different. One has the piston in different than the others, but it doesn't make it backwards. the wrist pin is in the center, and the pins keep the rings out of the ports. I take all my engines apart at least twice as they break in. I hone the high spots off the piston, I guess you could wait and break them in but with a chrome cylinder it will take a long time. One thing I do to all my engines is port them. The exhaust is the worst, It is one way to keep the HP down, but it makes the engine run hot. You can safely raise it 3/16. I have more, but I do all the ports. I match the cases and get the transfer port webbing out of the way. My bike will out pull the Whizzes but it will tear up the spokes too. I have never winged it up all the way, I think it will fly apart, it was never made to run that much HP. The port needs to be smoothed over on the inside to keep the chrome from tearing. I leave the port rounded at the top also to help the rings transfer. The engine that would not run well was fixed as soon as I did the port. Also I am not using the stock carb, you can't tune it correctly. To smooth over the new port on the inside, just take a round rod 1/4 in diameter and rub it at a 45 degree angle to the port all around that should get the edge smooth. Have fun, Dave
PS: Let me know what you try, I will keep looking, this is a great Forum.

 

[lotsa_mpg]

Thanks for the tips, Egor......I might attempt some mods if I ever get this thing to run. I'm a patient guy, but I'm getting really frustrated with this PK engine. I've been messing with it since seven this morning and I still haven't got it running worth a hoot. The highway that runs past my lane has a very very slight downhill towards town. If I run towards town, it'll pull maybe 12 mph....coming back, I have to pedal cause it just won't pull itself. I've been thru the carb (even swapped carbs with a good running bike). I've checked the engine for air leaks (intake gasket, base gasket, crank seals). I've tried several different spark plugs. I've ruled out any excessive drag on the crank bearings and the output shaft bearings. I've had the clutch completely apart and found nothing wrong that I can see. There doesn't seem to be any undue drag in the wheels or chain because this bicycle is easier to pedal than my other good running cruiser (same make and model of bicycle). The plug always looks a very light shade indicating a lean condition. But with no air leaks, no probs in the fuel line, tank or filter....what's causing this? Man, this is really eating at me! I think I'll try swapping CDI's with my good running Dax engine....I don't know what else to try. Anybody have a suggestion?

Pete

 

[Guest]

That bore doesn't look too good to me.....never saw one in good shape that looked like that one. These nikasil lined jugs are too tolerant of that kind of scoring. You may try to hone it, but be carefull they don't take much to go through the "chrome" (nikasil)

 

[Egor]

Did the engine ever run good? Sounds like you have tried just about everything. I wont even use the carbs these engines come with, the two I have are from 55cc Yamaha's, what a difference. You might have to break down and get a Dremel tool and start carving on the exhaust. If you think it is lean as you ride try adding a little choke and see if it gets better. these carbs if they were a little larger, I could use it to keep the car from rolling down the driveway, I guess you can tell I don't think they are worth anything. I noticed that on one of my engines all the ports were timed about the same, that will not work. (No air out, no air in) Also with the piston at TDC look down the intake and see how much of the piston is still covering the port, I carved that away also. Let us know, and Hove fun, Dave

 

[lotsa_mpg]

Did the engine ever run good?

No Dave, it's never run good. I worked on it til midnite last night and finally have it running a bit better. Here's what improved it. I temporarilly installed the CDI from my good running Dax engine (just zip tied it to the frame and didn't bother hooking up the kill switch wire). I took it for a ride like that and I was able to hit about 22 mph on the level and it actually pulled itself up the slight hill I mentioned. So, not a real ball of fire, but I guess acceptable for an engine that isn't broken in. I then installed the dax CDI in a more permanent way and hooked up the kill switch wire. Wouldn't you know it? It was back to running like crap again. It seemed obvious that the kill switch has something to do with it, so I snipped the wire to the kill switch and it ran better again. However, it's still not running nearly as strong as my Dax engine or my other PK engine (they'd both pull me at close to 30mph even when brand new).....and the plug continues to show a lean condition (I've tried running it with the c-clip on the stock groove of the jet needle as well as on the lower (richer) grooves with no noticable difference). I'm just going to keep riding this thing until it either breaks in and improves, or blows up...whatever comes first. I'm going to order some gaskets and a new top end from King Power today just in case. Wish me luck.

Pete

 

[OldPete]

At this point, I would start looking for any blockage in the fuel system before the main jet that is restricting fuel delivery. Like a flashing of metal in a fuel passage or maybe the main jet or needle jet are wrong or maybe the needle itself is too large. Swap out the carb for one that works well if you can. Is there water in the fuel filter? That can restrict fuel flow.

A point about ignition. A weak/lean mixture is hard to ignight, so a stronger spark might improve things a little but the real issue remains.

 

[lotsa_mpg]

Thanks Pete....I already swapped the carb with my Dax and checked the fuel line, and fuel filters ( I actually ripped the little plastic one out of the tank fitting). Gas flows out of the line in a nice stream. I drained the fuel that I first had put in it and poured it into a clear container to look for evidence of water...I didn't see any, but I put some new fuel in just in case. I'm really stumped.

Pete

 

[MotorbikeMike]

Lean

Lean almost never means no fuel flow, if that were true it would run fine but never run "wide open". Loof for blown intake gasket, snug all the bolts in the engine cases, and finally, spray wd-40 or equivelent on it while it is running (and not too hot) to locate the vacuum leak, Mike

 

[OldPete]

WD-40 works good. The engine will clack when it burns burned.
Starting fluid is just a little too volitile.

Thanks Mike. Crankshaft seals can leak and let the engine suck air.