1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
-
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2020 4:24 pm
- Location: Toronto, ON, Canada
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
Hey guys!
This is my first time posting to this forum (been checking here since day one of GL ownership) so apologies for any lack of etiquette or proper form on my part. If this is in the wrong section - I apologize.
This story starts 4 months ago, I bought a 1976 Honda GL1000 that is in beautiful condition with just over 44,000 miles on the engine. My plan was to ride that beautiful bike across North America - 20,000 miles in total - to spread my dad's ashes in all the places he used to love. Paul Janisse - my dad - was a truck driver, really salt of the earth kind of guy. Any dollar he made went to the ones he loved and he worked himself to the bone to provide for me and mom. We didn't have a lot, but we had enough - he made sure of it.
When he died 3 years ago I promised myself I would honor his life and his sacrifice the only way I knew how. The problem is I kept telling myself I didn't have enough time. I had to keep working. Living in a big city like Toronto.. you work to live, and live to work. Life costs just slightly less than what you can make and that's just the way it works. I always told myself I didn't have enough time to do this.. how would I survive?
Well, it took me over three years to realize that - this reality I was stuck in wasn't good enough. That I refuse to work my life away wishing I had done the crazy thing, Paul worked his life to make sure I could even get this far and he deserves a tribute for his sacrifice. So I left at the end of November on my trusty GL1000 and began this journey.
Now just before leaving I had some non-permanent mods done to the bike to support the bags for the trip and got more load-friendly tires. During this checkup I began to notice that cylinder #4 (back left) wasn't up to par with the others and told myself I would rebuild the carbs at the halfway point when I park in California for a bit. That horizon may be a bit too far away at this point though.
I am currently in Mission, Texas - 5000 miles into the journey and I woke up this morning to a massive reduction in power and performance and cant figure out why. Yesterday I drove from Laredo to Del Rio and averaged 30mpg, today I am getting 15mpg and can barely bring the engine above 60mph. She is still running, but I am out in no-mans-land and gas stations are more than a tank away at 15mpg. If anyone has any advice or knowledge on what could be the issue from their experience I'd love to hear. Also if there are any known mechanics with experience working on classic Goldwings in West Texas I'd take those recommendations as well.
Thank you so much! I really appreciate all of you on this forum
This is my first time posting to this forum (been checking here since day one of GL ownership) so apologies for any lack of etiquette or proper form on my part. If this is in the wrong section - I apologize.
This story starts 4 months ago, I bought a 1976 Honda GL1000 that is in beautiful condition with just over 44,000 miles on the engine. My plan was to ride that beautiful bike across North America - 20,000 miles in total - to spread my dad's ashes in all the places he used to love. Paul Janisse - my dad - was a truck driver, really salt of the earth kind of guy. Any dollar he made went to the ones he loved and he worked himself to the bone to provide for me and mom. We didn't have a lot, but we had enough - he made sure of it.
When he died 3 years ago I promised myself I would honor his life and his sacrifice the only way I knew how. The problem is I kept telling myself I didn't have enough time. I had to keep working. Living in a big city like Toronto.. you work to live, and live to work. Life costs just slightly less than what you can make and that's just the way it works. I always told myself I didn't have enough time to do this.. how would I survive?
Well, it took me over three years to realize that - this reality I was stuck in wasn't good enough. That I refuse to work my life away wishing I had done the crazy thing, Paul worked his life to make sure I could even get this far and he deserves a tribute for his sacrifice. So I left at the end of November on my trusty GL1000 and began this journey.
Now just before leaving I had some non-permanent mods done to the bike to support the bags for the trip and got more load-friendly tires. During this checkup I began to notice that cylinder #4 (back left) wasn't up to par with the others and told myself I would rebuild the carbs at the halfway point when I park in California for a bit. That horizon may be a bit too far away at this point though.
I am currently in Mission, Texas - 5000 miles into the journey and I woke up this morning to a massive reduction in power and performance and cant figure out why. Yesterday I drove from Laredo to Del Rio and averaged 30mpg, today I am getting 15mpg and can barely bring the engine above 60mph. She is still running, but I am out in no-mans-land and gas stations are more than a tank away at 15mpg. If anyone has any advice or knowledge on what could be the issue from their experience I'd love to hear. Also if there are any known mechanics with experience working on classic Goldwings in West Texas I'd take those recommendations as well.
Thank you so much! I really appreciate all of you on this forum
- DenverWinger
- Posts: 2198
- Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2011 2:20 pm
- Location: Denver, CO
- Motorcycle: (s)
1980 GL1100 STD Vetter (2005-)
1993 GL1500 Aspencade (2017-)
1983 Trav-Lite Camper (2010-)
Past rides
1972 CL350 (1980-1988) sold
1978 Suzuki GS550 (1985-2005) sold
1977 GL1000 (2002-2006) sold
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
After 5000 miles one of the first things I'd look at is the points. Rubbing blocks can wear down, I used to have to re-adjust points every season (usually around 5000 miles) on my '77. The wear could get to where there was hardly any point gap at all....
For a roadside fix, check to see that you have a matchbook cover's gap in the points. Adjust accordingly if not. Won't be exact, but it would get you down the road again.
And if not an issue with points, would be helpful if you can identify which cylinders aren't firing. at only 15MPG I imagine it is running pretty ratty even at idle. should be able to easily identify mis-firing cylinders by pulling sparkplug wires, you should be able to snap a half-inch spark from the terminal inside the sparkplug cap to the top of the plug on a cylinder that's firing correctly .
For a roadside fix, check to see that you have a matchbook cover's gap in the points. Adjust accordingly if not. Won't be exact, but it would get you down the road again.
And if not an issue with points, would be helpful if you can identify which cylinders aren't firing. at only 15MPG I imagine it is running pretty ratty even at idle. should be able to easily identify mis-firing cylinders by pulling sparkplug wires, you should be able to snap a half-inch spark from the terminal inside the sparkplug cap to the top of the plug on a cylinder that's firing correctly .
There are 10 types of people in the world, those that understand binary numbers, and those that don't.
♫ 99 Little Bugs in the Code, ♪
♪ 99 Bugs in the Code. ♫
♫ Take one down, Patch it around, ♪
♫ 127 Little Bugs in the Code. ♫ ♪
~Mark

♫ 99 Little Bugs in the Code, ♪
♪ 99 Bugs in the Code. ♫

♫ Take one down, Patch it around, ♪
♫ 127 Little Bugs in the Code. ♫ ♪

~Mark
-
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Sun Dec 17, 2017 6:30 pm
- Location: Valencia, carabobo, Venezuela
- Motorcycle: Gl1000 1976
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
* Clean air and gas filterKarlJanisse wrote: ↑Tue Jan 28, 2020 4:47 pm Hey guys!
This is my first time posting to this forum (been checking here since day one of GL ownership) so apologies for any lack of etiquette or proper form on my part. If this is in the wrong section - I apologize.
2020-01-26 06.36.24 1.jpg
This story starts 4 months ago, I bought a 1976 Honda GL1000 that is in beautiful condition with just over 44,000 miles on the engine. My plan was to ride that beautiful bike across North America - 20,000 miles in total - to spread my dad's ashes in all the places he used to love. Paul Janisse - my dad - was a truck driver, really salt of the earth kind of guy. Any dollar he made went to the ones he loved and he worked himself to the bone to provide for me and mom. We didn't have a lot, but we had enough - he made sure of it.
When he died 3 years ago I promised myself I would honor his life and his sacrifice the only way I knew how. The problem is I kept telling myself I didn't have enough time. I had to keep working. Living in a big city like Toronto.. you work to live, and live to work. Life costs just slightly less than what you can make and that's just the way it works. I always told myself I didn't have enough time to do this.. how would I survive?
Well, it took me over three years to realize that - this reality I was stuck in wasn't good enough. That I refuse to work my life away wishing I had done the crazy thing, Paul worked his life to make sure I could even get this far and he deserves a tribute for his sacrifice. So I left at the end of November on my trusty GL1000 and began this journey.
Now just before leaving I had some non-permanent mods done to the bike to support the bags for the trip and got more load-friendly tires. During this checkup I began to notice that cylinder #4 (back left) wasn't up to par with the others and told myself I would rebuild the carbs at the halfway point when I park in California for a bit. That horizon may be a bit too far away at this point though.
I am currently in Mission, Texas - 5000 miles into the journey and I woke up this morning to a massive reduction in power and performance and cant figure out why. Yesterday I drove from Laredo to Del Rio and averaged 30mpg, today I am getting 15mpg and can barely bring the engine above 60mph. She is still running, but I am out in no-mans-land and gas stations are more than a tank away at 15mpg. If anyone has any advice or knowledge on what could be the issue from their experience I'd love to hear. Also if there are any known mechanics with experience working on classic Goldwings in West Texas I'd take those recommendations as well.
Thank you so much! I really appreciate all of you on this forum
* Put out the sparks and clean with a metal brush and regap from 0,6 until 0,8 (change is better)
* clean and regap point
* note if you have a gas leak in gas pump
- in2it
- Posts: 253
- Joined: Sun Oct 06, 2019 6:09 am
- Location: Waldo,Arkansas
- Motorcycle: 2000 GL 1500 Aspencade
1982 GL1100 (SOLD)
1980 GL1100 Bobber with Vance and Hines Mufflers (SOLD)
Past Rides in my youth
1965 Honda C102 50cc OHV Engine with 3spd Auto-Clutch
1972 CB 350
1975 CB 550 4 with Dunstall headers and mufflers
1978 GL 1000
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
If you make it to Texarkana, Arkansas.. your welcome to stay here till things get fixed (Sleep, Wash clothes, Fix Wing) any or all of the above your welcomed here
-
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2020 4:24 pm
- Location: Toronto, ON, Canada
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
Thank you! I checked the points, but to be honest I don't know exactly what I'm looking for as I'm not used inspecting them. How do you adjust the points?DenverWinger wrote: ↑Tue Jan 28, 2020 7:21 pm After 5000 miles one of the first things I'd look at is the points. Rubbing blocks can wear down, I used to have to re-adjust points every season (usually around 5000 miles) on my '77. The wear could get to where there was hardly any point gap at all....
For a roadside fix, check to see that you have a matchbook cover's gap in the points. Adjust accordingly if not. Won't be exact, but it would get you down the road again.
And if not an issue with points, would be helpful if you can identify which cylinders aren't firing. at only 15MPG I imagine it is running pretty ratty even at idle. should be able to easily identify mis-firing cylinders by pulling sparkplug wires, you should be able to snap a half-inch spark from the terminal inside the sparkplug cap to the top of the plug on a cylinder that's firing correctly .
-
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2020 4:24 pm
- Location: Toronto, ON, Canada
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
I've looked at all of this except the gas pump - where do I find that on the 76?Guerreroho wrote: ↑Tue Jan 28, 2020 9:56 pm* Clean air and gas filterKarlJanisse wrote: ↑Tue Jan 28, 2020 4:47 pm Hey guys!
This is my first time posting to this forum (been checking here since day one of GL ownership) so apologies for any lack of etiquette or proper form on my part. If this is in the wrong section - I apologize.
2020-01-26 06.36.24 1.jpg
This story starts 4 months ago, I bought a 1976 Honda GL1000 that is in beautiful condition with just over 44,000 miles on the engine. My plan was to ride that beautiful bike across North America - 20,000 miles in total - to spread my dad's ashes in all the places he used to love. Paul Janisse - my dad - was a truck driver, really salt of the earth kind of guy. Any dollar he made went to the ones he loved and he worked himself to the bone to provide for me and mom. We didn't have a lot, but we had enough - he made sure of it.
When he died 3 years ago I promised myself I would honor his life and his sacrifice the only way I knew how. The problem is I kept telling myself I didn't have enough time. I had to keep working. Living in a big city like Toronto.. you work to live, and live to work. Life costs just slightly less than what you can make and that's just the way it works. I always told myself I didn't have enough time to do this.. how would I survive?
Well, it took me over three years to realize that - this reality I was stuck in wasn't good enough. That I refuse to work my life away wishing I had done the crazy thing, Paul worked his life to make sure I could even get this far and he deserves a tribute for his sacrifice. So I left at the end of November on my trusty GL1000 and began this journey.
Now just before leaving I had some non-permanent mods done to the bike to support the bags for the trip and got more load-friendly tires. During this checkup I began to notice that cylinder #4 (back left) wasn't up to par with the others and told myself I would rebuild the carbs at the halfway point when I park in California for a bit. That horizon may be a bit too far away at this point though.
I am currently in Mission, Texas - 5000 miles into the journey and I woke up this morning to a massive reduction in power and performance and cant figure out why. Yesterday I drove from Laredo to Del Rio and averaged 30mpg, today I am getting 15mpg and can barely bring the engine above 60mph. She is still running, but I am out in no-mans-land and gas stations are more than a tank away at 15mpg. If anyone has any advice or knowledge on what could be the issue from their experience I'd love to hear. Also if there are any known mechanics with experience working on classic Goldwings in West Texas I'd take those recommendations as well.
Thank you so much! I really appreciate all of you on this forum
* Put out the sparks and clean with a metal brush and regap from 0,6 until 0,8 (change is better)
* clean and regap point
* note if you have a gas leak in gas pump
-
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2020 4:24 pm
- Location: Toronto, ON, Canada
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
Thank you so much for the generous offer! Im headed west almost to El Paso at this point, but I really appreciate the kindness!
- DenverWinger
- Posts: 2198
- Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2011 2:20 pm
- Location: Denver, CO
- Motorcycle: (s)
1980 GL1100 STD Vetter (2005-)
1993 GL1500 Aspencade (2017-)
1983 Trav-Lite Camper (2010-)
Past rides
1972 CL350 (1980-1988) sold
1978 Suzuki GS550 (1985-2005) sold
1977 GL1000 (2002-2006) sold
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
As the engine is turning you should see the contacts coming together and spreading apart. As things wear, that gap when the contacts are open gets smaller and smaller until the points no longer open at all and you lose spark to two cylinders. This also affects ignition timing. To adjust the points there's a screw you can loosen (closest to the contacts themselves) which will allow you to move the baseplate and inner contact closer to or further from the outer contact.KarlJanisse wrote: ↑Wed Jan 29, 2020 11:07 am Thank you! I checked the points, but to be honest I don't know exactly what I'm looking for as I'm not used inspecting them. How do you adjust the points?
When the contacts are at their maximum opening, there should be barely enough clearance to fit a matchbook cover between them. This is called the "Close Enough for Roadside Work" method. If the points are just barely opening or not at all and the engine runs bad, this will return it to running decent enough to go down the road nicely again.
This is common enough occurrence on the GL1000, but there are other things that can go wrong besides points...
Last edited by DenverWinger on Wed Jan 29, 2020 7:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
There are 10 types of people in the world, those that understand binary numbers, and those that don't.
♫ 99 Little Bugs in the Code, ♪
♪ 99 Bugs in the Code. ♫
♫ Take one down, Patch it around, ♪
♫ 127 Little Bugs in the Code. ♫ ♪
~Mark

♫ 99 Little Bugs in the Code, ♪
♪ 99 Bugs in the Code. ♫

♫ Take one down, Patch it around, ♪
♫ 127 Little Bugs in the Code. ♫ ♪

~Mark
- dingdong
- Posts: 4183
- Joined: Thu Apr 08, 2010 8:35 am
- Location: Oklahoma City
- Motorcycle: 1976 gl1000
1993 gl1500A
2004 NRX1800 Rune SOLD
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
https://www.manualslib.com/manual/16718 ... 000%201976
Here is a link to gl1000 shop manual. May be of some help. good luck!
Here is a link to gl1000 shop manual. May be of some help. good luck!
- dingdong
- Posts: 4183
- Joined: Thu Apr 08, 2010 8:35 am
- Location: Oklahoma City
- Motorcycle: 1976 gl1000
1993 gl1500A
2004 NRX1800 Rune SOLD
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
You couldn't have picked a more desolate area to break down. I suspect you have carb problems, if so it will be very hard to diagnose remotely. You might want to go over to ngw site for assistance on your gl1000. More people with them than here.
https://ngwclub.com/forum/
https://ngwclub.com/forum/
- landisr
- Posts: 924
- Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2009 12:18 pm
- Location: Gilbert, AZ
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
1976 GL1000LTD
1994 GL1500A
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
Your carburetor float(s) might be sticking, meaning that they don't "float" as fuel is needed. In laymen's terms, the carb is/are gummed up a little. Buy a bottle or can of good fuel system cleaner (Lucas is excellent) and add to the tank before filling up per instructions on the container. Do this for several tanks. There is a chance that your bike may gradually start running better before long.
Good luck and keep us posted.
Ron in AZ
Good luck and keep us posted.
Ron in AZ
I'm not so sure about an inner child, but I have an inner idiot that surfaces every now and then.. 

-
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2020 4:24 pm
- Location: Toronto, ON, Canada
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
Awesome - Does anyone recommend replacing the points with an electronic ignition system?DenverWinger wrote: ↑Wed Jan 29, 2020 6:53 pmAs the engine is turning you should see the contacts coming together and spreading apart. As things wear, that gap when the contacts are open gets smaller and smaller until the points no longer open at all and you lose spark to two cylinders. This also affects ignition timing. To adjust the points there's a screw you can loosen (closest to the contacts themselves) which will allow you to move the baseplate and inner contact closer to or further from the outer contact.KarlJanisse wrote: ↑Wed Jan 29, 2020 11:07 am Thank you! I checked the points, but to be honest I don't know exactly what I'm looking for as I'm not used inspecting them. How do you adjust the points?
When the contacts are at their maximum opening, there should be barely enough clearance to fit a matchbook cover between them. This is called the "Close Enough for Roadside Work" method. If the points are just barely opening or not at all and the engine runs bad, this will return it to running decent enough to go down the road nicely again.
This is common enough occurrence on the GL1000, but there are other things that can go wrong besides points...
-
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2020 4:24 pm
- Location: Toronto, ON, Canada
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
I was thinking as such, does Fuel cleaner do the trick alone? Im hoping to not do a carb rebuild in the middle of nowhere.landisr wrote: ↑Thu Jan 30, 2020 11:20 pm Your carburetor float(s) might be sticking, meaning that they don't "float" as fuel is needed. In laymen's terms, the carb is/are gummed up a little. Buy a bottle or can of good fuel system cleaner (Lucas is excellent) and add to the tank before filling up per instructions on the container. Do this for several tanks. There is a chance that your bike may gradually start running better before long.
Good luck and keep us posted.
Ron in AZ
-
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2020 4:24 pm
- Location: Toronto, ON, Canada
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
Awesome! Thanks for the tip and the manual. I left my hard copy in Canada and have been regretting it.dingdong wrote: ↑Thu Jan 30, 2020 2:52 pm You couldn't have picked a more desolate area to break down. I suspect you have carb problems, if so it will be very hard to diagnose remotely. You might want to go over to ngw site for assistance on your gl1000. More people with them than here.
https://ngwclub.com/forum/
- landisr
- Posts: 924
- Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2009 12:18 pm
- Location: Gilbert, AZ
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
1976 GL1000LTD
1994 GL1500A
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
Regarding the fuel cleaner, yes, if the carb or carbs are just gummed up, a lot of times treated gas flowing through can help. At least it could help some. It's a cheap and easy thing to try. But if the problem is elsewhere, that would be a different story.
Again, good luck.
Again, good luck.
I'm not so sure about an inner child, but I have an inner idiot that surfaces every now and then.. 

- DenverWinger
- Posts: 2198
- Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2011 2:20 pm
- Location: Denver, CO
- Motorcycle: (s)
1980 GL1100 STD Vetter (2005-)
1993 GL1500 Aspencade (2017-)
1983 Trav-Lite Camper (2010-)
Past rides
1972 CL350 (1980-1988) sold
1978 Suzuki GS550 (1985-2005) sold
1977 GL1000 (2002-2006) sold
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
Points are OK, but do need periodic maintenance... Electronic Ignition for the GL1000 might be hard to find these days....KarlJanisse wrote: ↑Fri Jan 31, 2020 12:02 am Awesome - Does anyone recommend replacing the points with an electronic ignition system?
There are 10 types of people in the world, those that understand binary numbers, and those that don't.
♫ 99 Little Bugs in the Code, ♪
♪ 99 Bugs in the Code. ♫
♫ Take one down, Patch it around, ♪
♫ 127 Little Bugs in the Code. ♫ ♪
~Mark

♫ 99 Little Bugs in the Code, ♪
♪ 99 Bugs in the Code. ♫

♫ Take one down, Patch it around, ♪
♫ 127 Little Bugs in the Code. ♫ ♪

~Mark
- WingAdmin
- Site Admin
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Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
Can you check to see if all four exhaust pipes are hot, and the same temperature? That will tell you if it is a systemic problem, or if just one cylinder is giving you problems.
- SlowTyper
- Posts: 131
- Joined: Fri Jun 25, 2010 7:37 am
- Location: Pierre, SD
- Motorcycle: 1985 GL1200 Aspencade
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
As Admin recommended, checking exhaust pipe temp is a good diagnostic tool. I found which cylinder was not pulling its weight on my bike by going up a steep hill at full throttle, and then checking the pipe temps with a IR temperature gauge at the top of the hill.
In my case, it was a sticking CV slide. Even more likely in your case might be a leak/crack in the CV diaphragm. You can check those diaphragms by pulling the cover off the top of the carbs.
In my case, it was a sticking CV slide. Even more likely in your case might be a leak/crack in the CV diaphragm. You can check those diaphragms by pulling the cover off the top of the carbs.
- pidjones
- Posts: 87
- Joined: Sun Jun 03, 2012 2:14 pm
- Location: Clinton, Tennessee
- Motorcycle: 2006 GL1800A
1978 GL1000 w/'75 engine (project)
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
GL1000 carbs have pistons, not diaphragms.SlowTyper wrote: ↑Sat Feb 01, 2020 1:29 am As Admin recommended, checking exhaust pipe temp is a good diagnostic tool. I found which cylinder was not pulling its weight on my bike by going up a steep hill at full throttle, and then checking the pipe temps with a IR temperature gauge at the top of the hill.
In my case, it was a sticking CV slide. Even more likely in your case might be a leak/crack in the CV diaphragm. You can check those diaphragms by pulling the cover off the top of the carbs.
>>The PO describes a problem of droping from 30 mpg (low) to 15 mpg (terrible) in one day.<<
The first thing that I would do is pull the plugs to see which cylinder(s) are off-line. I was having poor milage on my '75 engine with #2 cylinder running very rich. It turned out to be a severely worn needle jet that was allowing fuel to flow freely even with the slide down. That is something that would develop over a long time, however.
Also, you may be suffering from a non-engine problem such as a dragging brake.
Last edited by pidjones on Sat Feb 01, 2020 10:23 am, edited 1 time in total.
- dnehasert
- Posts: 183
- Joined: Sun Sep 27, 2009 11:25 pm
- Location: Mesa AZ.
- Motorcycle: 1982 GL1100 with Watsonian sidecar
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
I had similiar problem on my 82 GL1100. Found a a bad ignition coil. Affects 2 cylinders. If only one bad cylinder check ignition cable and cap.
- landisr
- Posts: 924
- Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2009 12:18 pm
- Location: Gilbert, AZ
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
1976 GL1000LTD
1994 GL1500A
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
KarlJanisse wrote: ↑Fri Jan 31, 2020 12:02 amI was thinking as such, does Fuel cleaner do the trick alone? Im hoping to not do a carb rebuild in the middle of nowhere.landisr wrote: ↑Thu Jan 30, 2020 11:20 pm Your carburetor float(s) might be sticking, meaning that they don't "float" as fuel is needed. In laymen's terms, the carb is/are gummed up a little. Buy a bottle or can of good fuel system cleaner (Lucas is excellent) and add to the tank before filling up per instructions on the container. Do this for several tanks. There is a chance that your bike may gradually start running better before long.
Good luck and keep us posted.
KJ, are you having any luck? Where are you today?
Ron
Ron in AZ
I'm not so sure about an inner child, but I have an inner idiot that surfaces every now and then.. 

- captdecker
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2006 GL1800HPN ABS
Kemp Kamp trailer
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
On a trip to California, (with an 1977 GL1000) on way back to Az. Started losing power too. Limped it home, found that the valve's on (yes the left rear) were not seating as that should. Has Wingman said have you checked temp on exhaust pipes ? IR sensors now very reasonable in price.
As for Electronic Ignition is the way to go. though was hard to find a unit 16 years ago.
I wish you well that this is NOT what is happening with your bike not an on road repair.
AS you have to pull the head,resurvice the valves and seats...gaskets and seals.
So once again wishing you well on this trip in remembrance of your Dad.
As for Electronic Ignition is the way to go. though was hard to find a unit 16 years ago.
I wish you well that this is NOT what is happening with your bike not an on road repair.
AS you have to pull the head,resurvice the valves and seats...gaskets and seals.
So once again wishing you well on this trip in remembrance of your Dad.
- landisr
- Posts: 924
- Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2009 12:18 pm
- Location: Gilbert, AZ
- Motorcycle: 1976 GL1000
1976 GL1000LTD
1994 GL1500A
Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
KarlJanisse: How is it going? Any progress?
Ron
Ron
I'm not so sure about an inner child, but I have an inner idiot that surfaces every now and then.. 

- wingingit2
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Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
If you can make it to Sierra Vista I can help, being a Wing Shop. Just google Falcon Services in Hereford AZ.
Lady Luck Prefers the Prepared
- grospetit
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Re: 1976 GL1000 - A Soul's Journey - Ride Across America
hello. check vent hole in gas cap...first think to do.