Buffalo not running too good - ideas please

[MikeH1A]

1) Just been out on the J Buffalo. When I start her she smokes a lot everytime but this dies to a whisper once she has warmed up a bit. Today she sounded and performed like it was running on two cylinders - going ok but no pep and heading up hills was a bit laboured. After 20 minutes she started to die, so I flicked her on to reserve (though there is petrol in the tank) and she picked up for a bit. Started to die again and I flicked her to prime and she ran sweeter and sounded a little bit crisper. I went all the way home on prime and she ran ok but still felt like only two cyclinders were working. At the end of the ride there is smoke continuing to come out of the top two pipes even though the motor is off - looks a bit like Billy the Kid has just fired his six guns and the barrels are smoking. This lasts about 3 minutes or so. The motor feels really hot when riding i.e. you can feel the heat coming off the motor and once stopped it is too hot to touch. The temperature gauge needle didn't move on today's ride but it usually gets up to around the middle of the gauge. Any thoughts?

2) The rear brakes don't perform too good. But the biggest issue is that the whole hub today was also really hot - you can't leave a finger on it or you'd get burned. The wheel turns freely enough when on the stand so the shoes aren't binding. Any thoughts here as well?

Many thanks, Mike

[pearljam724]

They all smoke for a few minutes after shutting them off. So, that issue i wouldn't be alarmed about. I know you'll laugh about this. But, put a volt meter on your battery to make sure it is fully charged. A less than fully charged battery will cause the same symptoms. If that's ok, unplug each coil wire one at a time. Putting your hand over the exhaust to verify that cylinder is firing. Or spay water on each cylinder header pipe. If it sizzles, it's firing on that cylinder. Check the obvious things first. With the brakes. It could be bad bearings. People often assume you will hear bad bearings. That's not always the case. Stay off of the rear brakes for a while checking for heat. Put the bike on the center stand. Spin and wiggle wheel side to side listening and feeling for slop.

[pearljam724]

Watch the pipes at the very beginning of the vid. Bike had been sitting over 10 minutes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8pQHJiJ ... ata_player" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[MikeH1A]

Yep, that looks like my pipes!

[MikeH1A]

Pearljam, I put the battery on my charger and that indicated that it needed some more juice. Also found a loose connection to the battery which I tightened. My classic jap group went for our monthly ride today and after charging the battery she ran really, really well!! On the way home she seemed to drop a bit in terms of performance and when I put my charger on again - it indicated that she needed some charge. So, it looks like the old girl isn't charging for some reason. It did run nice when fully charged though Thoroughly enjoyed the ride - we had 5 Buffalos out of a total of 12 bikes (2 Js, 2 Ls and an A).

I was listening closely whilst riding and I do think the bearings are indeed making a bit of a noise. Looks like it is time to replace them. Are there any thoughts on what's best to replace them with i.e. standard ones or is something else recommended?

Thanks, Mike

[oldjapanesebikes]

Looks like it is time to replace them. Are there any thoughts on what's best to replace them with i.e. standard ones or is something else recommended?

For bearings, I just visit my local jobber and buy the generic sizes I need. They supply transmission and oil field repair shops and so tend to be name brands (SKF etc.). I admit I do tend to avoid the really cheap no-name ones, but on the other hand all bearing manufacturers appear to be making them in China so I'm not 100% sure it makes a lot of difference. For the number of miles I put on I suspect even the cheapest bearing that was the right size would be fine but I'm sure others will have their own views.

[tz375]

No reading on a water temp gauge usually means the water lever is so low that the sender is sitting in a pocket of air. Or there is an electrical break.

Running better on prime than any other setting sounds like a crack in the vacuum connection or maybe it split and fell off.

Check the pipe temps when you fire it up. Is one significantly colder than the others? Start your investigation there

[oldjapanesebikes]

No reading on a water temp gauge usually means the water lever is so low that the sender is sitting in a pocket of air. Or there is an electrical break.

And just to cover all the bases - the tach is working OK ?

[MikeH1A]

Yep the tach is working fine. I shall check the water level - though haven't noticed any leaks from anywhere.

[oldjapanesebikes]

Yep the tach is working fine. I shall check the water level - though haven't noticed any leaks from anywhere.

In that case, then +1 to what Richard (TZ375) said.

[pearljam724]

Good to hear mike. You have to start with verifying the battery is fully charged and holds a charge. If not, why? Is the battery in need of replacement or are the other items not allowing it to maintain that full charge. Those are some of the things you need to identify. Its easy to rule the battery by buying a new one. If that doesn't remedy the problem. Return it, because one of the other parts is causing it to lose charge. But, according to your diagnosis. I'd bet on the battery. Bad bearings, won't necessarily always cause slop. But, they sometimes do. So, you have to check for it. Sometimes they just wear or lack lubrication with no evident signs. Until you replace them. Id also advise against charging the battery still hooked up to the bike. Good way to fry a rectifier. Been there.

[MikeH1A]

Thanks for the replies guys. I shall work my way through things over the Christmas break - 3 weeks off work so will have some time to play around.

TZ - I checked the levels and there seems to be enough liquid in her. I wanted to check if the gauge is working so followed the process in my Haynes manual. I desconnected the sensor lead at the sender switch and then grounded it with the ignition on. This had the desired effect of moving the needle up through the gauge range immediately - suggesting the gauge is ok. So, possibly a problem with the sensor switch perhaps. I noticed that the connection of the sensor lead was pretty iffy so I have sorted that. Hopefully that is all that went wrong as it was working the day before. Process of elimination!

Ian - Why the question about the Tach in relation to my symptoms? What is the relationship you were thinking of?

Pearljam - the battery is less than a year old and is one of the new Motobatt, non-acid ones

Well gentlemen, it is now late Christmas eve here at the bottom of the world and I am off to await the arrival of Santa (must be some shiny motorcycle bits coming my way as a result of my exemplary behaviour all year ). I wish each of you a Merry Christmas and hope all is well with your loved ones. Many thanks for taking the time to answer my queries (today and throughout this year) - and I'm sure I shall be pestering you with more in 2013!

Mike

[oldjapanesebikes]

Ian - Why the question about the Tach in relation to my symptoms? What is the relationship you were thinking of?

Your comment about losing power and odd temperature readings made me think of partial seizure due to pump failure. If the plastic water pump gear should fail, the pump and the tach both stop working as they are driven off the same shaft - if the ambient air temp were low, then I suspect the engine would run OK for a while without the water pump as I think you'd get a bit of thermal syphon cooling - but if the tach is working fine that isn't the problem. As per TZ's comment - likely electrical for the gauge issue - if all the harness connections are good you should be able to test the sensor to see if it works with it removed, but connected to the harness and a hot water bath or perhaps carefully with a hot air gun ? Or remove it completely and with an ohm meter connected put it a hot water bath and see if the resistance changes as it is heated.

And very best Christmas wishes to you and yours Mike !

[MikeH1A]

Thanks for explaining that Ian. Always keen to learn more from you chaps that have lots of experience.

I went for a ride today after sorting the loose connection from the sensor lead. Happy to say the gauge was back functioning as normal. Darn connections - ya gotta keep an eye on every bit don't you

Am thinking the wheel bearings are on their way out as I'm getting some vibration through the left handle bar and my beloved mentioned she noticed vibrations through the left peg above a certain speed. So, I shall tuck her away now until I'm back from holiday and then will replace the rear bearings before I do any more riding.

I have to say the poor old MachIII is seeming quite unrefined and raw after riding this big girl.

Am loving my Buffalo

[Suzukidave]

If the exhaust pipes got hard mounted to the rear hangers you can get a lot of vibration through the frame .