bf100 wont start up

[bubsacle]

i recently finished putting in a head gasket in my manual bf100 and put it back together. It started up and i let it run for 10min. It then suddenly stopped and havent been able to get it running again after many many goes. It hadnt been going for a while before I replaced the head gasket. Tonight im going to clean the carb out and see if that helps. Any suggestions would be a great relief. its a 1980s model i think.

 

[psteurer]

Re: bf100 wont start up

Carbs are a possible reason for it stopping. You did not say why you removed the head gasket. You might want to do a compression check to make sure everything is fine there (need a $20-30 tester). Another simple thing to check would be spark (you need an inexpensive tester for this). Do you have the vent to the fuel tank open? Also, have you checked the fuel filter? These are all simple things. The carburetor would be more involved but it could very well be clogged up. You might also want to check your internal fuel lines to ensure they have not deteriorated. You might see evidence of that in the carburetor. The alcohol in today's gas eats away at the old fuel lines. Those are the three things that run the motor: fuel flow, spark, and compression.

 

[bubsacle]

Re: bf100 wont start up

yea i had changed the head gasket as it was stuffed and torn from when I got it off the previous owner. I cleaned the carbs up yesterday and found a little bit of gunk in the float bowl. The vent to the fuel tank is open. Will have a look at the fuel filter tonight. Where is the filter usually located on the fuel system? I could not spot it yesterday.
Thanks again for your help

 

[bubsacle]

Re: bf100 wont start up

Thanks.
No I took the gasket off and replaced it as the old gasket was torn and leaking. I cleaned the spark plugs and sprayed that starter spray in the spark plug holes and tryed to fire it up....abosultley nothing. I noticed the water in the testing tank is cloudy as yesterday i just filled it up. I do have a definite hunch that I do not have spark. The moter doesnt even sound close to starting. Might be a dumb question but what do you mean by charge the battery? when its a pull start?

 

[bubsacle]

Re: bf100 wont start up

thanks for that. I will look to get one.
Another thought I had was maybe it could be a kill switch thats causing it. I had a look but cant find any switch or clip that people talk about. When buying spark plugs do you have to get specialised plugs that are used only for this engine?

Thanks again, your been a big help.

steve

 

[bubsacle]

Re: bf100 wont start up

i took it down to the local auto electrical guy to have a look at it. It turned out that it was the breaker points causing the 'no spark'. Need a new condenser and points. Does any one no if these are expensice to replace?

 

[psteurer]

Re: bf100 wont start up

The breaker points are usually located underneath the flywheel. So you have to pull the flywheel off which can be a harrowing experience if you do it yourself. If you plan to bring it to someone, this is a pretty standard repair and they would have the right equipment to pull the flywheel. I would ball park the parts to be ~$50-75 and maybe labor about the same.

 

[bubsacle]

Re: bf100 wont start up

yea cheers again. I cleaned the points up a bit and what do i get...SPARK!!. Set the timing belt on. It wouldnt fire up but it kept backfiring and smoke out of the exhaust. I feel that is a timing issue. I alligned the cam pulleys dot with the dot on the head. The T and F is hard to find on my flywheel as it is a bit rusted and locating the arrow on the aft mounting head is also hard to spot. Would anyone have any pics on where to find these points? It would be a great help. I feel im on the home straight now.

Thanks again psteurer. Youve been great.

Steve