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V50 mk2 Running on 1 cylinder Please help please

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DronkBergie

Tuned and Synch'ed
Joined
Mar 29, 2022
Messages
68
Location
South Africa
Hi guys i really need help with my guzzi v50 mk2 please i have run out of options.

I am from South Africa and around here are not many people that can help me or give me advice regarding my bike.


So basically it has been fully restored to the T by my stepdad over the period of about a year and a half as waiting for parts from Germany and UK takes a looong time to get to South Africa.



Ok so the problem with the bike is that it is only running on the left cylinder and i mean ONLY! It starts quite easy and idles fine on the one cylinder and i know this because i can literally keep my hand on the right side header even after riding the bike around the block, Now and then it would shoot out a flame on the right side but thats it.

I have replaced the OEM coils with brand new ones from Gutzibits and the spark seems to be perfect and strong on both sides. It has Bosh OEM electric CDI ignition x2. I have swapped the two CDI boxes around and same problem the right side is not running. I have cleaned the carbs and adjusted float level probably 15 times. I am running out of idea's as i dont have much experience with these old bikes.

Everything Mechanical is new on this bike, pistons,rings,re sleaved,bushes,seals just to name a few.


Please if you have any suggestions or questions please get in touch. I am sad to see this pristine condition bike just sitting in the garage under a cover and need to get it running to show it off.


Any advice will be much appreciated.
 

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Since you have swapped the ignition boxes left and right, the only remaining option is fuel. If fuel runs out of the hose if you open the tank valve, I assume it will, and let it run into a glass jar. If there are any debris or water that means that your only problem can be the fuel screw and its circuit. The fuel filters in your tank are possibly torn and have let stuff through that clog your carb. Take your carb off and find the airpassage in the back that leads to your fuel adjustment screw, take the screw out and blow it through with brake clean. With brake clean you can really see if a passage is open, as opposed to using air. Also check the miniscule holes just down stream of the slide. Best of luck!
 
Hi.

In an otherwise competent cylinder (there are no mechanical issues), there are only 2 things which prevent running, fuel and spark.

You say that you have spark on the right side, You have confirmed this visually by removing the spark plug and grounding it against the engine block while cranking the engine?

If the answer is yes, you have spark, then you are not receiving fuel in that cylinder. Did you back out the idle needle at least 1.5 turns, to allow fuel to enter at startup? I've seen people forget to do this and then it will be completely fuel starved.
 
Hey man thanks alot for the reply, i will definitely be checking the carbs again but like i said carbs have been opened alot for cleaning and adjustments also had a rebuild kit so all the seals and orings are fresh and i have taken carbs completely apart and sprayed out with Carb cleaner maybe twice now. But you never know maybe 3rd time lucky. Also the bike has been rebuild using the workshop manual but these Italians aren't good with translations so do you maybe know the float level measurements? Would be appreciated thanks
 
If you've been into the carbs twice and one side runs and the other doesn't , and if the floats are the same level (+ or- , a millimeter or so),
I might check elsewhere . Also , try removing the air filter tubes to the carbs and see if covering the carb mouth with your hand ( briefly) and seeing if that causes it to run momentarily . And don't forget to try the compression test ! Good luck ! Peter
 
I does not matter how many times you've been inside the carb. If you have a competent cylinder, and spark, your issue is fuel and you have made a mistake in this area. I'm sorry, but these are the facts of engine combustion.

Looking at your exhaust setup, you don't appear to have a cross-over pipe so...

Another sure fire method is to run the engine for a 15 seconds, then shut it off, Get on the floor and sniff the exhaust on both sides.
The side that is running, you will smell gas. The side that is not, I bet you smell nothing.
 
I'm thinking that the pilot/idle/slow jet, which is has an ID on the order of 0.4mm, is plugged. You may need a very fine wire to clean out the jet. I've used small diameter guitar strings in the past.

Jason
 
Ok so my exhaust is aftermarket but it does have a cross over.


But i am making progress 😌 please bare with me guys as im also not a mechanic but have alot of passion for anything that has a engine.


Ok so what i did was check the spark again and there was nothing on the right side so i swapped spark plugs which i have done i the past and also this is the second set of brand new plugs but anyway after swapping it the right cylinder is firing and the left is not. So my conclusion is that maybe the new coils fixed the problem but because i was driving the bike on 1 cylinder it fouled the plug so after changing the coils i used a spark plug that was laying around to check for spark and there was spark but me not knowing the new plug had gone.?.? Is this a possibility? I will get a set of new plugs tomorrow and throw them in and test ride the bike and hopefully come back to you guys with good news!!


I do appreciate everyone's replies so far thanks a million. Lets hope it's just something simple like the plug for now 😀
 
Can someone give me the float levels and idle/mix screws adjustments please
NO - you can’t have any float mesuments , until you report you compression values and Exhaust smells… 🤪
( sung to the tune of - Pink Floyd’s - “ How can you have any Pudding if you don’t eat your Meat ! “)
 
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Ok so here is my compression test results. I will fit the new plugs after work and test the bike thanks guys
 

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Hi guys ok so im starting to think its Carb related... so i put in the brand new plugs and bike started up with one pop on the right side but after that it seemed fine reved up so good maaaan i was excited AF 😀 so i got ready for a test ride and i hopped on and it took about 2 blocks of riding say roughly 400m and got to a robot (yes we call a traffic light a robot is SA) and it went back to running on the one cylinder:( i just want this thing running properly its been standing so long.


Please see images for spark plugs it seems to be running extremely rich on the right side but that might be because it stopped running completely on that side when i took it for a spin? I dont know because the plug wasn't wet just black.
 

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Looks like you are flooding out the right side. Check that needles, atomizers, jets, and float levels are the same in both carbs. Also possible you have an air passage blocked on the right side. Once both are the same and all passages are clear try a new plug and see what happens.
 
Ok so my exhaust is aftermarket but it does have a cross over.


But i am making progress 😌 please bare with me guys as im also not a mechanic but have alot of passion for anything that has a engine.


Ok so what i did was check the spark again and there was nothing on the right side so i swapped spark plugs which i have done i the past and also this is the second set of brand new plugs but anyway after swapping it the right cylinder is firing and the left is not. So my conclusion is that maybe the new coils fixed the problem but because i was driving the bike on 1 cylinder it fouled the plug so after changing the coils i used a spark plug that was laying around to check for spark and there was spark but me not knowing the new plug had gone.?.? Is this a possibility? I will get a set of new plugs tomorrow and throw them in and test ride the bike and hopefully come back to you guys with good news!!


I do appreciate everyone's replies so far thanks a million. Lets hope it's just something simple like the plug for now 😀
Hi, I have the same bike and also had a similar issue resulting with a *new* plug being bad. (It’s been more than a few times I’ve seen the auto parts guys drop plugs on the floor in the store.) If you switched the plugs and the fault shifted, it’s the plug. New or not. Make sure you have a good electrical connection between the plug threads and the head. If the threads are oily, clean them and the inner head threads too. Best practice would require some anti-seize compound on those threads once cleaned. One benefit of not being on the clock for this issue is that you can take the time to do things right and not have to rush. (About half the time I take my bike in for service something gets broken or not reinstalled correctly. Sorry, I’m getting off topic…)

I haven’t heard any discussion of adjusting the electronic pickups. Does your new CDI system not require electronic pickup adjustment?
 
Hi, I have the same bike and also had a similar issue resulting with a *new* plug being bad. (It’s been more than a few times I’ve seen the auto parts guys drop plugs on the floor in the store.) If you switched the plugs and the fault shifted, it’s the plug. New or not. Make sure you have a good electrical connection between the plug threads and the head. If the threads are oily, clean them and the inner head threads too. Best practice would require some anti-seize compound on those threads once cleaned. One benefit of not being on the clock for this issue is that you can take the time to do things right and not have to rush. (About half the time I take my bike in for service something gets broken or not reinstalled correctly. Sorry, I’m getting off topic…)

I haven’t heard any discussion of adjusting the electronic pickups. Does your new CDI system not require electronic pickup adjustment?
So basically this is the 3rd set of brand new plugs and i have swapped them multiple times same prob, spark seems to be very strong when i test it by earthing to the bike.. it sparks better then my 02 Yamaha R1 :D ... And my CDI system is not new i believe the electronic ignition is standard on the MKII Guzzi? Everything on this bike is stock and OEM except the exhaust, Hooter and the New aftermarket coils i bought. I have no idea if the pickup has any adjustments i actually dont think so because a while ago i actually thought the bike had points ignition this was before i started to scratch around to try and get it running.
 
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