Lt500r Kickin Back Hard

[dirtbike77]

i have a 1987 lt500r, the bike was just recently rebuilt..... had a port and polish job and a new flywheel and stator, basically just a redo of everything...


anyhow hurricane katrina came threw and dump alot of water in both of my machines 1986 atc250r and 1987 lt500r.... i got the atc runnin... but the quad isnt...

after turning the bike over and kickin and blowin out it seemed to be dry.... i kicked and kicked and kicked but no start... i checked for spark ''yes'' fuel ''yes''..

so i decided to dump a cap full of fuel and try it... the bike started to my suprise ran for a few minutes and shut off... everytime after i tried to kick it, it sounded like it wanted to start but didnt...

everytime i kicked down the kick start , it kicked back?

* can imagine the pain my foot is in... lt500r bored .120 :drool:

any help would be greatly appreciated

[MTS]

Did you drain the carb and fuel tank, chance's are thers tons of water in them and they dont like trying to run on water :D

[dirtbike77]

fresh fuel? in tank n carb

[MTS]

Dose not matter, unless you compleatly took the tank off and carb and compleatly draind it right out, water dose not mix with gasoline, so you can have pockets of it floating around in there, also go for a new spark plug, the old one is probly logged with water a fuel and very nasty looking :p..

[sblt500r]

pull off the stator cover and make sure theres no water in there. it can short out the electrical system if there is. also check the flywheel key now that its been kicking back, and while your in there check the timing.

[dirtbike77]

one quick question...


when i did get the bike runnin it ran pretty strong, but it was only when i poured a cap full of premix?

the eltrical stator and flywheel was ok

anyother ideas?

why she would kick back

[sblt500r]

did you do anything to the carb? like different size jets? especially the pilot jet. mine would kick back all the time after i rebuilt it. and its 100 over.

[Jason Hall]

If the bottom of the crank case is full of water then when the piston goes down it will push water up on top of the piston, & it could be liquid binding. I really can't see how it started with water in there, but anything is possible. I have seen times when you have alot of assembly oil in the cylinder, & that will seal the cylinder so tite the kick starter kicks rite back as soon as it fire's. Then the smash against your foot stops the engine before it can roll around & stay running. It takes a little time for the assembly oil to burn out. I found the easiest way to start any big dog is to roll Er around until you feel the compression start to build, then jump on Er once real good & get the weight off your foot as soon as you can. If you just kick it without rolling it around, you take the chance of the piston being all the way down. Then the cylinder fires rite when your leg has all your weight on it, then wham there goes your tender little foot. :Bounce :Bounce :Bounce

[dirtbike77]

what do * guys reccomend doing to try and get the water out of the cylinder? or the crancase area?


the bike has a brand new plug...........

i clean the carb out and fuel tank............

fresh engine oil..............

[dirtbike77]

im gonna go ahead and try to start it again when i get off from work today........


any ideas for things to try? :wondering

[sblt500r]

did you flipp the quad right over unto its seat, and then kick it over to make sure most of the water was out of the cylinder? also pull of the pipe, and check it for water. it would be easier if you have some one pull you around to try and start it. just watch out if it grabs on the street, it will jump forward!

[dirtbike77]

after tryin and tryin to start the bike... i finally pulled out the plug and noticed water beads on the tip.... i decided to go ahead and remove the cylnder and head to investigate... and when i did i ound the crankcase area full of water and fuel...


also some coolant... i think may have possibly blew the head gasket on te bike while tryin to start it like that...

so im gonna replace the head gasket... and let her dry out

[sblt500r]

you might have had too much compression and blew it. also should replace al of the top end gaskets while you have it apart.

[dirtbike77]

ok i got home today i drain the engine completly dry of all fluids, coolant, oil, and water in the crankcase area.... put new top end gaskets on and tried to start the bike... no longer than the third kick the kick starter kick back, bangin my knee against the handle bars :mad: .... dont know wat it could be... it backfired out of the exhuast one time and that was as about as close to gettin the bike started....

now something wierd was when i jus rested my foot on the kick starter and got ready to kick it the kick starter kicked back like i was tryin to start the bike....

could this be some type of ignition problem? the bike has a brandnew staor and flywheel? upon removin the flywheel nut i noticed the flywheel kinda wobbled back and forth.... i used a spare key and it stop wobblin...

wat would cause it spark so soon when barely touch the kick starter?

[sblt500r]

with all that kicking back you must have sheared the flywheel key. if its out of time it will cause it to kick back. are you sure the stator is timed right? it would kick back like that if there was still a charge of fuel in the cylinder and you were at just the right spot of the stroke when you kicked it.

[dirtbike77]

wat about fautly wiring

[SpeedBump]

Sounds to me like the Timing.....The kickback could very well be due to the ingintion firing JUST a wee BEFORE TDC. I had a BRAND NEW flywheel in one of my old T4s and couldn't get it figured out either. Heck, that T4 would actually START and run in REVERSE. Came to find out later it in fact was the NEW flywheel. The magnets were glued improperly. My Friend owns it now, different flywheel, no probs. Good luck.

[sblt500r]

yeah its got to be the timing. what type of stator and flywheel did you get?

[dirtbike77]

i finally figured the problem out i had wire cross that was runnin from the cdi unit into the main wire harness... when i finally put it back together she fired on the second kick....

she runs like a raped ape! :w00t:

now the other problem im having is that it shifts fine from first to second and when i shift from second to third, the bike seems to skip a bit.. when i shift into fourth she runs ok and into fifth she's ok... sometimes it doesnt go into first..

any suggestions.... did tyhe lt500's have any common problems with the transmissions?


any help is greatly appreciated...

[hrc85250r]

yes, advanced ignition will cause it to kick back like that, my R does once in a while cause its advanced 3 degrees....but, i think you should get a can of ether and get her running the redneck way, dont use too much! na dthat should get it going at least, if you had it running before everything should be ok...plus having a lot of top-end porting can make a big bike really hard to start...thats what happened to my cr500...needless to say i sold it.

[sblt500r]

i finally figured the problem out i had wire cross that was runnin from the cdi unit into the main wire harness... when i finally put it back together she fired on the second kick....

she runs like a raped ape! :w00t:

now the other problem im having is that it shifts fine from first to second and when i shift from second to third, the bike seems to skip a bit.. when i shift into fourth she runs ok and into fifth she's ok... sometimes it doesnt go into first..

any suggestions.... did tyhe lt500's have any common problems with the transmissions?


any help is greatly appreciated...

yes they do have problems with shifting. i can;t rember exactly what the cause was but it's either the shifting forks or the rear dogs themselfs are worn. time to split the cases!

[dirtbike77]

well i removed the engine from the frame today.... im going to take it with me to work today and start tearing it apart.... any suggestions or things i should look for ... with the shifting problem?

[sblt500r]

well first before you split the cases check to make sure the shifter is installed corectlly, and theres nothing holding it from moving fully. lt500r's are prone to clutch baskets fingers breaking and falling under the shifter.

if everything looks okay, then its something with the gears or a shift fork. when you get them out look at the gears and shift forks for wear.

[dirtbike77]

i began to split the cases today at work and found an extra bolt near the shifter behind the clutch basket.. i dont want to run the risk for puttin everything back together and the problem still exist.....?

[sblt500r]

well i don't know how far along you are, but you might as well finish tearing it all apart to make sure that none of the gears or forks are worn.

[dirtbike77]

i finished taking the bike apart last night and found the shift drum to look pretty normal... i also found an extra nut in the motor which would kinda explain why it wasnt going into first gear at times..... but it still doesnt explain why it wasnt fully going into third gear...


one of the gears that is on the counter shaft which have teeth on both sides of the gear is purple looking, maybe it over heated or something of that nature?

the shift drum and the grroves are find.... the shifts fork show a little bit of were on the fingers but nothing major, were there broken?

i was thinkin about maybe puttin the left halve of the engine together with the gears intcted and shift throught the gears and see if i can pin point the problem...'

at slow speeds its actually rides , but when reaching high speeds into third gear it jerks, a metal to metal sound is also heard?

any help is greatly appreciated

[sblt500r]

if you were to put it together on the bench it might shift fine but once theres a load on the tranny the gears would pop out. check the gear dogs for wear also check for wear where the dogs engage. you should mic the forks and the grooves where the forks ride.

and where did that extra nut come from?????

[brapp]

i will trasde you my tecate-4 for the lt500

[dirtbike77]

no thas ok... the lt500r has some amazing power... she's going to the grave with me

[brapp]

i know what kind of power they have, i had one thats killed over 5 years 3 of my friends then the police confiscated it from me and i couldnt get it back thats why i want another one.

[dirtbike77]

anyone know were ic an find a used transmission ,,mainshaft and countershaft, shift drum?

[sblt500r]

i have a shift drum for ya. but those shafts are gonna cost you some bucks, even used ones that i've seen go for a pretty nickel.
if your interested in the drum pm me.