New member ... Bandit dropping cylinders

Hello.

I ride in Australind/Bunbury, WA, on a 2004 Bandit 1200. I browse forums now and then, but never register to benefit from the collective wisdom of others users. So, I thought I would change that and join up.

Actually, I have had a problem lately, and sure would appreciate any help.
I am not mechanically minded, so will pass any info on to the mechanic I am using.

On a cold start, the bike will run on two cylinders only (1 & 2 counting from the left as you sit on the bike). This happens once in 5-10 starts, and the problem rectifies with a few kilometres ride. Of course it is like riding on a rocky track until the problem clears. Here is a strange bit of information to add - the problem started when I disconnected the choke cable at the handlebar and lubricated it. I did not disconnect it from the carbies, rather just dribbled some lube down the cable. The bike ran very well on a test ride after I reconnected it, then as I rode gently up the kerb into the driveway, the gentle jolt from the kerb caused the first occurrence of the cylinder drop. I know - it sounds odd - but it is definitely the starting point.

The carbies have been professionally cleaned in an attempt to solve the issue, new needle jets installed, carbies retuned and balanced. But the problem still occurs.

One last little bit of information, as I am riding, very rarely an odd sound from the right side of the engine can be heard. It sounds like a cross between a spanner clunk and an electrical short. It is not a continuous sound, only a sharp once off sound.

Anyway, any offers of advice would be grateful.

Thanks in advance,
Chris

Hi and Welcome.

Your problem sounds a bit strange, my 1200 sometimes takes a while for all cylinders to catch fire when cold, I've taken to putting the fuel tap in the prime (mid) position until it fires if it has been a long time since the last ride. The choke cable shouldn't be a problem as long as it goes through it full range of motion pretty easy to see so I expect if it's been to a mechanic you can rule that out.

One thought I had was that the Bandit uses 2 ignition coils , but as I expected one does odd numbered cylinders and the other does even so wouldn't explain why adjacent cylinders are affected.

No idea on the strange intermittent noise, sorry.

Is the bike being parked on the side-stand all the time ?

Sure appreciate the input.

The choke was reset by a mechanic, so you are right, it is probably not the issue. I had the same comment from mechanic about the coils servicing odd and even pots.

If the roughness was there every cold start, I would not be too concerned. But this is a new behaviour that is recent.

Thanks again, CM

Re-Cycled wrote:Hi and Welcome.

Your problem sounds a bit strange, my 1200 sometimes takes a while for all cylinders to catch fire when cold, I've taken to putting the fuel tap in the prime (mid) position until it fires if it has been a long time since the last ride. The choke cable shouldn't be a problem as long as it goes through it full range of motion pretty easy to see so I expect if it's been to a mechanic you can rule that out.

One thought I had was that the Bandit uses 2 ignition coils , but as I expected one does odd numbered cylinders and the other does even so wouldn't explain why adjacent cylinders are affected.

No idea on the strange intermittent noise, sorry.

Yes, I do use the side stand ... and i only removed the centre stand a short time before the problem occurred.
But I also frequently park the bike overnight with a wheel chock that holds the bike vertical.

I will have to take note if the rough running occurs after a night on the side stand as well as in the vertical position.

My guess is that you have an idea about draining carbies when on the side stand. Right?

CM

gus wrote:Is the bike being parked on the side-stand all the time ?

I had my RF900R jetter pretty rich and always found it started cleaner if it was parked with the fuel tap off if parked overnight. I know thats a float issue but thats how I solved it I suggest you park over night with the tap off and turn it on when you go to start.
One other thing to check is when it starts on 2 pots kill it and pull the plugs and see what they look like.
The RH side is the clutch so how many k's has the bike done? Have you recently put different oil in it?
Its been my experience that mechanics dont like "chasing issues" because they cant charge you what it actually costs them. You're probably better off doing a lot of the investigating yourself and then saying I have ruled out XYZ.

Welcome to the forum and cheers.

Sounds electrical. My mates old 96 Bandit had issues with the side stand switch and the clutch microswitch.

I'd seriously look at replacing the plugs as they are a cheap item and may fix the problem. There may be a grounding or shorting problem as well. Time to moe away from the mechanic and more towards an auto sparky I reckon.

2wheelsagain wrote: I suggest you park over night with the tap off and turn it on when you go to start.

With the 1200 the tank tap is always off when the engine isn't running as it is opened by vacuum. It has 3 positions Reserve, Prime and Normal

The prime position allows fuel to flow to the carbs without vacuum for when the carbs are empty.

I don't know how the 1250 works.

The 1250 is injected, so it relies solely on the fuel pump to provide fuel pressure or it just won't fire.

It'll most likely be something really simple with the 1200. They are a bulletproof motor and normally require no mucking about with carbs etc. They normally just work.

What do the spark plugs look like? Take them out and take a photo. If they are black then there is certainly a problem as they should be a tan colour

Re-Cycled wrote:
With the 1200 the tank tap is always off when the engine isn't running as it is opened by vacuum.

Well there you go. You learn something every day. Thanks Peter

Is it worth checking then that something isnt stuck and fuel isnt dribbling or siphoning through the carbs when parked?

Wet or really sooty plugs should be the tell tale sign. Or fuel mixing in with the oil if it's been sitting for a while.

Had the same problem on my first (1200) Bandit. Changed the plugs. Problem solved. While the fuel tap IS vacuum controlled, the diaphragm and o-rings can leak.

Welcome aboard

Hi folks.

Sure appreciate all the input.
The bike still runs rough upon a cold start, and appears to be running on several cylinders only during that time.

It is back in the shop at the moment ... with a view to dealing with electrical issues this time.

The rough running stops somewhere between the end of the driveway and 5 kilometres down the road.
During the day it runs fine, and will not run rough at any start later in the day.
But even then, you can feel something is not quite right.

Today, as it was running rough, I backed off the throttle and there was backfiring and a smell of fuel.
This is the first time I have observed this.
Power is also a little down, but when it is running smoothly the power is crisp.

Will keep you posted.

Thanks again,
Chris

Chris,
Who is doing the work for you in Bunbury? Kawasaki country have always been pretty good, but I heard on the grape vine that Barry no longer works out the back. So I am not sure what they are like at the moment. All the apprentices were trained by Barry so they should know a thing or two.

Actually, the Bandit is at Motorcycle Engineering in Halifax. Danny, the owner, was trained under Barry.
Barry did leave Kawasaki Country, but only to head up North for the big $.

Motorcycle Engineering are a great bunch who love the job, and did some good work on the carbies for me.

Regards, CM

reddog wrote:Chris,
Who is doing the work for you in Bunbury? Kawasaki country have always been pretty good, but I heard on the grape vine that Barry no longer works out the back. So I am not sure what they are like at the moment. All the apprentices were trained by Barry so they should know a thing or two.

If you are happy with the work so far then hopefully they can sort out the problem for you. Sounds like the carby clean etc hasn't fixed the issue though.

Good luck with getting it operational again.

Howdy.

Got a call from the bike shop ... the Bandit has dropped number 3 cylinder.
Hoorah! They finally found the problem.

The consensus is that it is an electrical problem ... they will hunt it down on Monday.
Hopefully nothing too expensive.

Thx again for all your input.

So it's a 900cc Bandit

Could just be HT leads or plugs. If it was coils and you only have two then you'd be losing another cylinder.

Good luck with getting the beast back up to 100% power