Seasonal startup procedure

It's time to get the old girl out of hibernation. I'll be changing the engine oil after a suitable warmup, but after sitting for over 6 months what is the usual prep procedure prior to starting the engine?
thanks

After six months you probably need to drain the sump and pour the oil retrieved back into the oil tank.

Might be worth kicking over a bunch of times with the ignition off (plugs out makes it MUCH easier) or (if you're truly paranoid - not necessarily a bad thing, BTW) removing the plugs and putting in gear and pushing around the block, in either case, to get some oil pumped up to the top end (and thence down the pushrod tubes onto the cam lobes). You're gonna want to kick over with clutch in a few times to free that up also.

Not sure of much else needed. Six months isn't all that long. Did you store with gas in it? Use a stabilizer? If not, you may need fresh gas. In any event, I'd burn (or drain) the old shite out of there in short order and put in fresh, perhaps with some SeaFoam or Techron or the like to clean things out a bit.

Agreed, once it's warm, change the oil. How long since the other fluids (gearbox, primary, forks, brakes - if not drums) have been changed? Good candidates all, perhaps.

Assuming you stored it properly (i.e., prepped it somewhat for storage and didn't just not start it for six months without any prep) you shouldn't need to do anything else that I can think of - others, please jump in if I've forgotten anything.

BrianK said:

Might be worth kicking over a bunch of times with the ignition off (plugs out makes it MUCH easier) or (if you're truly paranoid - not necessarily a bad thing, BTW) removing the plugs and putting in gear and pushing around the block, in either case, to get some oil pumped up to the top end (and thence down the pushrod tubes onto the cam lobes). You're gonna want to kick over with clutch in a few times to free that up also.

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If my Commando's engine hasn't been started for several months, then the first thing I do before starting it, is to remove the exhaust rocker covers and add approximately 100cc of engine oil to the head, as that oil will drain through the pushrod tunnels and directly lubricate the cam followers and lobes, and personally I prefer to keep any kicking-over to a minimum and start the engine as soon as possible, as any splash lubricated parts are unlikely to receive adquate lubrication from the engine turning over at kickstarter speed, or from the bike being pushed around in gear with the plugs out.

ludwig said:

singring said:

... after a suitable warmup..

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Why would you do that for ??

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Because it will flow out better warm?

ludwig said:

swooshdave said:

..Because it will flow out better warm?

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After sitting for 6 months it is very likely that all oil is in the sump .

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Which is why you drain what you can out of the sump first.

ludwig said:

Starting the bike like that , (with the risk of boling a seal ? ) ride it for 10 min to warm it up , wait another 5 to let the oil settle , just to make it flow better ??

Do you heat up the new oil before pouting it in ?

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No need to, I'm not trying to get it out. :mrgreen:

So you believe there is no benefit to draining hot oil? Do you live in Morocco or something? Oil flows better warm. When DRAINING the oil you want to get out as much as you can. When adding oil you don't care if there's some left in the bottle. :roll:

It take a good 20 minute ride to get the oil HOT. You can certainly drain cold oil in less time. All the old stuff has drain out of vital areas, Why thrash it all up into vital areas only to mix it up with the new when you change it?
Change your oil, pour some fresh down the exhaust rocker like LAB said and you will be good to go.

ludwig said:

swooshdave said:

.. When DRAINING the oil you want to get out as much as you can..

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Exactly !
now SD, think about it : after your last ride of the season , you put the bike in your garage , with HOT oil in the engine , right ?
This HOT oil drains down into the sump , for a whole 6 months , right ?
( well ,I suppose it will be cooled down by then ..)
Then you drain that COLD oil ..ok , it may run slightly slower than hot oil , but you'll ALLWAYS get more oil out than draining hot oil .

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Try this. Take a jar with oil nasty oil in it. Cold. Like you like it. Pour it out.

Take another jar of nasty oil, warm it up. Pour it out.

Which one has more residue?

Hi Dave,
Take a jar of cold nasty oil and let it drain for 6 months.
Take another jar of nasty oil, warm it up and drain it for 6 minutes.
Which one has more residue?
Get back to us in 6 months.

swooshdave said:

Try this. Take a jar with oil nasty oil in it. Cold. Like you like it. Pour it out.

Take another jar of nasty oil, warm it up. Pour it out.

Which one has more residue?

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But the COLD "jar" (sump) would have more oil in it to start with, because the oil from the upper parts of the engine will have had a greater length of time in which to drain back into the jar, so theoretically you'd empty more oil out of the cold jar.

Maybe we should just pull the motor and rebuild it to get all the oil out, LOL LOL LOL. If a little residue is your concern, You have left that oil in there way too long. If you change your oil on a regular basis you don't need to worry about a little residue left over. You can never get it all out, Why try? Just ride. I just got back myself, Think I'll go again after lunch. This time on the 72. LOL. :roll: :roll:

I can add nothing to the hot/cold/new/old oil discussion, but I'd add one small tip to the original poster. If you are dealing with Amal concentrics, I like to turn on the gas whilst rapping lightly on the bowl(s) with a screwdriver handle or the like, as needed. That is if they have set with the bowls empty during storage. Just to make sure the float hasn't stuck. This is the only brand and model of carb I've run into with this, but sometimes when they sit a few months, you might turn on the gas and look down to see it pouring out. (I drain my carbs before winter if I store the bike in my workshop, which is in my basement.)

Sorry Singring, we kinda got caught up spltting hairs and beating dead horses. (very common)

You need to make sure the battery is really up to snuff. Very important with Nortons, making sure its charge is deep.
Tire pressure, lube chain and all other lube spots, fresh gas in, hopefully, a dry fuel system.
Use your common sence, unlike alot of us trying to respond to your simple but reasonable and good question.

"No sweat in the arctic", which was the mantra when I was a youth working in the HAWS (High Arctic Weather Sites)...I appreciate all reponses as the arguments posted are educational. I am changing oil to Redline 20W50, and will remove the sump drain plug, and warm the crank case with a small portable heater to get as much of the old stuff out. Then will pour some down the exhaust rocker rod channels, change the oil filter, and drain the remaining old oil from the oil tank. A far as the carb suggestion, they were drained of fuel for the winter. I've had the floats off and checked the float level at the needle seat position. The floats sit about .16 in below the float bowl edge, so that is too low. The bike ran fine last year so I will continue to ride until the Amal Stay-up floats I ordered arrive. Then I will adjust the float level so that they are parallel to the float bowl edges, as recommended by Amal, but I wonder if that will make the mixture too rich all around. Got a new set of handlebars (black, in color) to install, and then she will be ready to ride. Been putting this off because of other commitments, but now that I have the time available, the blood rush to the head(s) at speed will be welcome.

I'm new to the forum - first post.

I have a '74 Interstate that I bought new in the UK (actually Wales) early '75. Eventually got it home to Canada, and rode it intermittently, mostly in summers, for the next 18 years. It was parked on occasion for a year or more when I was out of country, and other than changing fluids don't recall having done anything special to revive it. Went off-shore again in '96, and when I got back never had the time to get it on the road, so it hasn't run in another 18+ years. It has been parked in an unheated garage since then. I did drain the fuel tank and carbs, and sprayed the exterior with oil at the time, but that's about it.
I dragged it out of the corner of the garage last weekend and want to get it running before I do any major work on it. I turned the throttle a few times, and was a bit surprised that the cables moved freely, but I'm afraid to turn the engine over to check if its seized without taking some preventative steps to avoid damage. Any suggestions on what I should do before seeing if the pistons will move? Not sure where I heard it, but someone said that putting a few squirts of diesel in each cylinder and let it sit for a few days to work its way in would be a good idea. Otherwise, just plain oil or penetrating oil?

Appreciate any advice.
Cheers.

Don't think you should use diesel. A few squirts of oil should do it. If you want to, while the plugs are out, turn the engine over by hand with the kick starter or put it in 4th gear and turn the back wheel. You can bet the clutch has seized so pull that apart and clean it, and rub the plates with emery. removing the tappet covers and squirting a fair bit of oil in would be good as well. At least with the tappet covers off you will be able to tell when the engine has turned over twice [ one full cycle ]. If it turns over ok, Start it.
Dereck

IMO, plugs out, sump plug out, diesel ok CRC lube ok, (not wd40 or kero being abrasive), tablespoon each cylinder and work over by hand/foot. Pour copious oil down thru tappet covers mainly exhaust (to lube the cam).

Let stand for a day or so for drainage to happen.

Assuming the oil tank and sump have been drained fully, fit sump plug/s and top up with appropriate oil with a splash down the exhaust tappet covers to lube the cam and kick/push over 10-20 times.. to " pre charge" the oilways..

From my experience a good oil pump will spurt out approximately 1-2ish teaspoons, of oil each kick. (being 2-4 revolutions of motor) Therefore 10-20 kicks should/maybe fill the oil galleries..., or at least it a real good start with lubing the system....

Thats what i would do knowing the engine went into hibernation 6 months ago in good running condition.. Anyway 6 months is not really a long time..

Klnick

Have heard it helps to give the motor some heat before start up and I do it on new motors don't know if it does any good but it can't hurt. When we got hard frost the tractors used to get a heater below them and they certainly started easier and all hydraulics worked ok.

J

My bike often sits for that period and this is what I do:

Turn on fuel, tickle carbs, start bike; ride off.

I drain the carbs of fuel if the bike will not be running for longer than a few weeks.

But, as is clear, there are many individual views of what is necessary and the main thing is to be comfortable with whatever procedure you use.

Actually you should change the oil -when hot- in the fall. That way all the acids and moisture don't set in the engine all winter doing their damage.

As for what I do, I kick it 3 times then turn the key on, start it and ride away.

If you don't have a case reed breather then you probably should drain the sump and put the oil back in the tank before you start it. Jim

Ideally drain oils warm after final run of season . That way unwanted particles are in suspension and not settled on bottom. Also oils will flow out easier into pan. Dispose of properly at local station.