Getting a bike out of Mothballs

I need some information about getting a older bike that has been sitting for awhile, running again. I have a 1985 K100RT that has been sitting around four years without being started. I travel for long periods of time and haven't had a chance to ride. I know I will need a new battery and I have new tires to go on it. What do I need to do besides fresh oil and gas? I am worried about top-end oiling problems.

If this is the RandalC who used to live in Phoenix, welcome back. And if not, welcome anyway.

Randal, if you are worried about top end oiling, remove the spark plugs, shift the bike into fifth gear, and slowly turn it over by hand. This would be a good way to pre-oil the cams.

You should probably flush the gas tank. Its possible that the rubber mount around the fuel pump has deteriorated and is in the first stages of dissolving, so if you wanted to be sure that the fuel pump won't suck that up, replace that part. Then refill the tank with a fresh gallon of gas. I would also worry about the metal fuel rail down at the injectors being internally rusted, but the forum moderators are gonna argue with me about that one.

Flush the brake fluid and make sure the calipers move. Last thing you want is to take a test ride and not be able to stop.

When the bike fires up, water may drip from the water/oil pump. We can deal with that if it happens.

Jon

jdiaz said:

If this is the RandalC who used to live in Phoenix, welcome back. And if not, welcome anyway.

Click to expand...

Indeed.

I'd say you should consider tossing the tires that are on there too. They probably offer all the traction inducing characteristics of a ceramic tile.

I'd also do a full fluid drain and change. Brake fluid, trans, final drive, oil and filter, coolant; all of them.

Jon's right about the brakes!

dave

Replacing the the tires is a "given." How to treat the fluids is a bit different, IMO.

My first BMW was an '85 K100 that had sat up for a while. The dealer where I bought it did a fluid change at purchase. After I thought about it a while, I opted to do another full fluid change after 2,000 or so miles. Brakes, final drive, transmission, engine and forks.

By that time, I figured the "washing" effect of the first round of new fluids would have done its work, and that the second change would get me back to a routine maintenance schedule.

After that, I did oil changes at 2,500 mile intervals (Mobil 1), and the others annually. I rode that particular bike right at 30,000 trouble free miles.

In addition to a good washing of the fuel tank and filling up with new fuel, you might want to go ahead and replace the fuel filter while in the task. My experience with them tells me it can "shut you down" at the most inopportune of moments.

RandalC said:

I need some information about getting a older bike that has been sitting for awhile, running again. I have a 1985 K100RT that has been sitting around four years without being started. I travel for long periods of time and haven't had a chance to ride. I know I will need a new battery and I have new tires to go on it. What do I need to do besides fresh oil and gas? I am worried about top-end oiling problems.

Click to expand...

The top-oiling problem would be the least of my worries, and the tires and battery are a given.

Other got'cha's on long-stored K bikes:

1. Was the fuel completely drained from the tank? If not - you may be in for some ugly mess inside the tank. I'd drain whatever
is in there and remove the fuel pump. Gasoline this old has a very bad effect on the rubber mount the pump is in (I've seen the converted into some sort of mush the consistancy of thick tar).

If the mount has mushed - you'll end up having to scrape off the remains (a very ugly job) and replace it.

Then you want to bench test the pump itself. Turn it over, remove the mesh filter on the bottom - and look in. Hopefully you won't see rust. If you do - the pump is trash (large $$$). If you don't, squirt some WD40 into the moon shaped recess in the bottom, and holding the pump upside down, hook it to a battery for a second. Note the polarity marks on the top!

It should attempt to turn in your hand, and if you're real luckly, you'll see a disk in the recess spin (with little rollers in it that do the pumping.) Buzzzing doesn't count - it will buzz when the rollers are frozen up.

If all is well - reinstall the pump. And install a new fuel filter. If the bike starts and runs really crappy - then you may be looking at having the injectors cleaned. They get pretty bad when sitting for a long time with gas in them.

2. Steering head bearing grease - has probably turned to the consistancy of concrete. It holds up fine for a LONG time if the bearings are turned, but if they sit in one position for a long time (like 4 years) the grease hardens up. I'd consider new bearings as part of the cost of putting the bike back on the road.

3. General rubber parts - undoubtably the crankcase vent to the intake plenum has hardened up and started cracking, and I'd worry a bit about the condition of ALL other fuel system related parts - like hoses and the mounts for the throttle-bodies to the head. These can be tested once you have the bike running, and I'd consider this a must do.

4. Spline lubes - same problem with greases hardening up - both the clutch splines and the rear drive splines should be cleaned and greased (use Honda Moly-60)

5. Brakes - at a minimum, a complete fluid flush. Even though the brakes haven't been being used - the fluid was sitting there absorbing water. Problems may appear down the road with leaking seals due to rust deposits inside the system due to this water. Flush both systems, then look very carefully for leaks.

HTH,

RandalC said:

I need some information about getting a older bike that has been sitting for awhile, running again. I have a 1985 K100RT that has been sitting around four years without being started. I travel for long periods of time and haven't had a chance to ride. I know I will need a new battery and I have new tires to go on it. What do I need to do besides fresh oil and gas? I am worried about top-end oiling problems.

Click to expand...

Ah - forgot one

6. Cooling system. The coolant has been in there way too long, and unfortunately electrolytic action doesn't stop for time and non-use. So - you want to do a complete flush.

If bike still has the original '85 oil/water pump - you might consider rebuilding it with a new style shaft and seals. The seal may leak, and the original shaft had a design flaw (a nut that breaks off the end of the shaft) that later shaft designs cured. It's a rebuild it, or have a dealer rebuild it, or replace it deal.

And inspect and replace any questionable hoses. If they're original they're now 18-19 years old so you've gotten good use out of them.

Best,

Been there - Done that

A few years back I had EXACTLY the same experience- my 85 K100RS sat in a garage which served as a woodworking shop for 4 years (can you say "mouse nest?")

I put in a new battery, and it started right up...bad gas & all. I actually drove it home...in hindsight it wasn't the smartest thing I've done because the tires were in really bad shape...but then again, I never said I was smart.

Anyhoo, over the next few months I changed out ALL the fluids from nose to tail. The biggest GUNK factor was the fork oil (HINT: Take the forks OFF and remove the caps and turn them upside down to get the goop out of the very bottom of the forks. You should really change every fluid...don't forget the brakes. You'll be suprise on how many you'll have to do once you start thinking about it.

I've been running the highest octane I can in it since and every once in a while I put a bit of TECHRON fuel additive in the tank which cleans out the injectors....you'll find the bike runs better and better with every tank of new fuel. A new fuel filter really helped as well.

I really think the bike "Feels" better and it shows in how well it runs.

I finished it up with a new paint job, windshield and a few other do-dads and it looks like it came off the showroom floor.

Hope this helps!

My first bmw was an '85 K100RS that sat in a barn up in Connecticut for 3 years untouched- when I picked it up there really WAS a squirrel's nest in the airbox, and the rear main seal had gone south, sending oil into the clutch. I did the usual fluids/tires/battery/seals repairs too.

Beyond that, my only problems were electrical- some of the connections had corroded. Some patient quality time underneath the gas tank will save you time and trouble later.

I ended up putting another 45,000 miles on that bike, but your milage may vary...

good luck