Okay, so I’ve been messing around with this old 1969 Honda 175. It’s been sitting in my garage for, like, forever, and I finally decided to do something with it. I am not very good at repairing motorcycles, just do it for fun.
Getting Started
First thing, I tried to get it to start. Surprise, surprise – nothing. Not even a cough. The battery was totally dead, which I kind of expected.
- Checked the battery – Yep, dead.
- Looked at the spark plugs – they were pretty nasty.
- Checked the fuel – old and smelled terrible.
Cleaning Things Up
I figured I needed to clean stuff up before I even thought about getting it running. So, I:
- Drained the old fuel out of the tank. It was gross.
- Took off the carburetors. Man, they were gummed up. I spent a good few hours cleaning them out with carb cleaner and a toothbrush.
- Replaced the spark plugs with new ones.
Trying Again
After all that cleaning, I put everything back together. New battery in, fresh fuel, and… still nothing. It cranked over, but just wouldn’t fire up. I checked I had a spark- that was good.
More messing around
I did mess around with the carb settings, turning screws and hoping for the best. Finally found the problem. The fuel value was stocked, so I cleaned and fixed it.
Success!
Finally I got it running! I was so pumped! It was pretty rough at first, lots of smoke, and it didn’t want to idle. I fiddled with the idle screw and the air/fuel mixture screws on the carbs until it started to smooth out. It took a while, but eventually, I got it running pretty well. It’s still not perfect, but hey, it’s a 1969 bike!
I was very happy that day!