GL1000 wont idol without choke

[LaGreca]

Evening all,
I am new to this board and new to riding in general. I learned on my dads 750 Triumph Speedmaster for about a year before I decided I liked riding and bought my own bike. I purchased a 1977 Goldwing for 800 bucks in decent condition. A few things that need to be fixed:
1. Speedometer isn't functional. I don't know a trick to see if its cable or gauge( do I replace both or one at a time or perhaps a way to test them)
2. It will only Idol when choke is engaged(I read first thing I need to check is fuel lines/filter)(saw a how to here to replace filter :p)
3. White smoke occasionally spits out from exhaust (always random, not specifically when I do something)

I know I need a manual, can someone point me in the direction of a manual to purchase? Also, what is a good parts web site? I have seen several and would like anyone's view on which are good and bad.

Thanks for your time! I will also post a pic of my bike!

P.S. My hope is to slim down the bike (remove saddle bags) and change handle bars to something lower and straight

[Fred Camper]

Search this site and I think you will find a link to a pdf of the shop manual. A very good thing to have, and one of us can help if you have trouble finding a link. Sounds like the idle circuit in one or more carbs may be plugged. Might be best to order a carb kit from Randall Washington (Randakk's Cycle Shakk) and get the video and then you will have carbs better than new. The 1977's have a lean idle circuit and the idle air jet can be reduced to solve that issue (link on Randakk's site).

The speedo is a cable, sometimes that just get stiff from sitting so you may want to tackle the other stuff first.

The white smoke could be a sign of coolant, but that too is something I would wait on until the carbs are solid.

[LaGreca]

Excellent! I will try the kit and will let you know! Thanks for your reply, I am really excited to get this going. ;b

Thanks

[trikerdave]

Does the bike rev ok when you open the throttle?
I ask this because on my 1976 GL1000 it would tick over on choke but die when I opened the throttle. The problem with mine was where someone had done a carb overhaul and one of the control arms was not reconnected. result was as it was revved 2 of the carbs opened, but it was killed by the other 2 carbs staying shut. Reconnected the arm and everything was good again.
Just a thought !

[LaGreca]

Yes, I am able to ride the bike. But even while riding if I close the choke she will die when I release the gas, it seems like its not getting enough fuel to the engine. After I check the fuel filter and lines the next step is to rebuild carb. I found some how to from the gentleman above and will do this as soon as I replace filter.
Side note, I can find tutorials on rebuilding for GL1100 but not for my 1000. Will this still work?

[trikerdave]

Have you tried setting the idle adjuster to increase the revs on tickover ? Screw is accessible from the right hand side of the bike and is where the throttle cables connect to the carbs. Turn it clockwise to increase the revs, anti-clockwise to decrease revs.

[LaGreca]

That occured to me, but I didn't adjust because last month it would idol fine. I have only rode her s couple times recently and it was idoling fine. I should have been more specific in my initial post. Is this something that can come loose? If so I should def check it and make sure.

[trikerdave]

It shouldn't come loose on its own as there is a spring on the screw that holds it firm (unless the spring's missing).

[Fred Camper]

Maybe the bike only has a stuck slider then. You can take the air cleaner off and peer in with a mirror and watch the sliders.

I just installed superbike bars on mine but you may want some that go lodwer yet depending on your riding needs.

[Fred Camper]

Sorry, that was lower, as in maybe Clubmans.

[LaGreca]

Okay, So Changed fuel filter, changed oil(it was leaking out of exhaust bolt but he had WAY too much oil in) and changed speedo cable. I just need to wait to buy the carb rebuild and go from there! Thanks guys!

[LaGreca]

How do you like your Superbike bars? Can you get a pic up?

[Fred Camper]

Here is my bike with the Bikemaster Euro Bars, also similar to Flanders Superbike bars. This far they are nice height for around town and much better on the highway.

Sorry, kind of far off topic here.

[LaGreca]

Thanks, That is what I want for my handle bars. So while waiting for carb rebuild I decided to tackle rear blinkers(no front blinkers) not working and not blinking. The Left on turns on but doesn't blink just stays solid. The right one doesn't work at all. I know the right fixture is fine because I tried the wires on the left and they turned solid, no blinking. Also my high beam didn't work.

I took out the light in front and found a whole ton of spliced wires, loose wires, and my high beam not connected. Am I correct to assume the only wires that should be in the light fixture are the 3 main wires to power the light and nothing else? There were connections and random wires so I back those out and now just have the 3 main.

I also have loose random grounds not attach to anything at all on the side.

and

I am not the best when it comes to wiring and the wiring diagram I have isn't simple enough for me to know what these grounds go to. I have read online that the Solid blinkers are because I am not grounded correctly. Any advice?

[Fred Camper]

Their are lots of connections in a stock light bucket. Do not be concerned with blinkers as they take 13 volts to blink fast.

[trikerdave]

On US models there are 2 orange wires and 2 light blue wires for each front indicator in the headlamp bucket. one will be for the indicator and the other one will be for the running light element. one will have a clear end on the connector and the other one will have a white end on it. One is for flashing and the other is permanently on when the ignition is on.

[seabee_]

I know I need a manual, can someone point me in the direction of a manual to purchase? Also, what is a good parts web site? I have seen several and would like anyone's view on which are good and bad.

Try these links.
http://www.goldwingworld.com/pages/Downloads.htm
http://myweb.midco.net/gl1100singlecarb ... anual.html

[JellyBelly]

I agree with Fred Camper.

Here is the link for manuals. /Manuals.asp ... &year=1977

Get the carb kit to sort out your idle and smoke problem (pay attention to the float setting. I had a 78 with a broken float seat which caused my idle problem.

[LaGreca]

I am back! Woohoo! I did not give up nor did I forget, I just simply didnt have the time I needed to rebuild. Update, I rebuilt my carbs using the Rebuild kit and video from Randakks. She started up better than ever but I still have the same problem and now she starts but wont idol above 1000RPM and when I open the throttle the bike dies. Choke doesnt change the idling at 1000RPM. I am super annoyed but determined not to give up, I have been trying to mess with the carb synch but since I cannot throttle it is hard to tell if my carbs are in synch. I rechecked my fuel hoses and they are fine, I think my fuel pump might have died becuase there is almost 0 gas in my fuel filter when I try and rev or even at idle. Any ideas?

[LaGreca]

Does the bike rev ok when you open the throttle?
I ask this because on my 1976 GL1000 it would tick over on choke but die when I opened the throttle. The problem with mine was where someone had done a carb overhaul and one of the control arms was not reconnected. result was as it was revved 2 of the carbs opened, but it was killed by the other 2 carbs staying shut. Reconnected the arm and everything was good again.
Just a thought !

I will check to make sure I hooked everything up correctly when I get home. I am hoping for something simple that I missed

[Fred Camper]

I would not give up, your fuel pump may be the primary issue based on your last post message.

[wjnfirearms]

I tend to agree with Fred. If the carbs have been rebuilt correctly, the fuel pump may be the culprit.

The Honda manual has good wiring diagrams so you can fix what was screwed up by the previous owner. Having the wiring in good stead is important for several reasons. Make sure you take care of it before you start riding the bike regularly.

I despise having to reverse engineer someone's Mickey Mousing of a vehicle. I consider myself very fortunate with my '77 that it was nearly non existent. Other than a couple of taped up Scotchlock connectors for rear lights that were long removed, nothing was done to molest my GL by any of the previous owners. Made refurbishing it that much less of a PITA.

[LaGreca]

So, My pump was working fine or at least it was pumping gas. I unhooked the gas line from the plenum and into a gas can and it pumped fine. With that out of the way I took the carbs back off and found that the Idle jet in the middle tower and my primary emulsion weren't cleaned correctly the first time as there was still some gunk in the jet and some of the emulsion holes were clogged at the bottom. So, Cleaned those and MADE sure that I could see a small opening in the idle jet and took a small wire and cleaned the emulsion. Hooked everything back up and she turned over with a high idle and will run without choke! Without choke she idles right around 3000 RPM. Just need some adjusting, Carb sync with gauges, and I believe she will be good to go! Whooohooooo! I think anything after this will be in a new thread, as my OP is now closed.

Thank you all for responding and helping this noob out!

[Fred Camper]

Good to hear progress. Sounds like your road to recovery just was shortened.