Yeah I concur; I dig your channel. Like a few other guys, I am working on my first solo recovery or build of my 1975 Xlch. The manual is great but seeing someone in real time helps and some real explanations help to. Can’t wait to see that hardtail finished!
I appreciate this video. I have a 95 and the same issue has been going on. Dumb found I started doing some homework and stumbled across your video. You saved me a bunch of time and headache. Much love man. ⚓️
Congratulations. You got her done. It actually sounded good going up and down the road. I bet you that thing won’t leave you hanging anymore. I just wanted to say back in the days before electric start. I was learning all that stuff by kicking. I’m lucky I never blew my knee out. Good luck. God Bless. Smitty
Rode it all over today. I think I got her licked for now... That intake blow back on a kicker bike would've been trouble!! Thanks for watching as always, appreciate your comments
Try kicking for a half hour with the WIFE at a community event and it just won't budge but you just rebuilt it and it rode you two there but now won't kick off. And SHE says doesn't this little red switch have to be on before you kick hunny? Yeah....makes anytime kicking a breeze now it seems so easy. Lol still have a few old kickers
Hey congratulations on getting it going right! Recently purchased a 1981 barn find Sportster iron head. Located in Daytona would love to meet you one day , we have a great group of people all over the east coast into Harley’s. God bless and keep it up. Thank you
Ghost fire when both fire at same time! I started out on a 1980 xlch Roadster,still have 4 sportys a 1993 Fxrs and a geezer Glide 1998,last of the Evos but I'm 71 now and changed my FLHTCUI rear tire at 68 using spoons! And still own my first big twin 1978 1/2 FLH Shovel and 76 Superglide, I've paid my dues but it's always been a great ride and still in the wind! Maranatha, Greetings from Tampa Florida 😎
Very glad you posted this. I am currently trying to work on my first harley and can't seem to get it running correctly. I just bought my second carburator, thinking that's the issue (again). I'm definitely going to check my timing system now.
I have a bud that used to have a 1975 XLCH we went through the same thing for over a month fixing a Bendix carb, only to find a set of stuck advance weights in the timing cover. So anybody running points, or a Dyna S style ignition, should, once a year, take the points out and pull the advance weights and clean them, inspect them for wear, if good then lube them up and run them for another year. That's the nice thing about old Harleys, they are an all season toy, ride all summer and wrench all winter!
Thanks for the video, sometimes it's not always the obvious so don't belittle yourself. I recently did some maintenance on my son's '96 Sportster after it had been sitting for 5 yrs. From the first start-up it was popping and cutting out. I had drained the tank which was perfectly clean, put MM oil in cylinders and new plugs and fresh gas with a little sea foam so i thought it would clear up but it never has. He took it back to NC last week and I live in Greenwood. Maybe he has a timing issue also. He is going to sell once this issue is resolved. I made a video of it and put it on my channel if you might know of someone.
Ah yes my first harley was an 83 xls, I have fond ??? memories of working on it constantly, 3 top ends and a bottom end just to name a few....😅 It taught me a lot about harleys, led me into working on them so it wasnt all bad. Dont be embarrassed, that problem is not common and many people would have trouble diagnosing it, so well done and ride on brother..
My Harley ran perfectly until I left it sit for about a year. The carb got all gummed up so I bought a brand new Mikuni hsr42 to replace the original CV. I’ve been regretting this decision ever since. Tuning this carb has been a nightmare for me. It was blowing 2 foot flames out the exhaust when first installed. After many jet changes and adjustments it now idles and runs good in the top end but low and midrange still pops and sputters. Hopefully I can get it figured out before the season ends. Luckily I have another bike that I can ride but it would be nice to have my Harley back on the road. I guess I could rebuild the CV but I’d hate to have wasted the money I spent on the Mikuni
How far are you able to go u think now? And thats what I did on my 79 ironhead, I put a cv carburetor keihin, but so.e recommend to upgrade the jets because it runs to lean,, both pilot and main jet plus do the needle too, there's some kit online after I tweaked it mines kicks in 3 tries best shit wish I did a video on it🤙🤙
When both plugs fire at the same time, when at low rpm the front fires close to TDC the rear plug fires while it is 45 degrees into its intake stroke. With timing late this firing in the rear can cause ignition with an open intake valve and blow flames out the carb. For me flames out the carb is a sign to check ignition...
Mine had the wrong screw for the plunger. Was doing the same thing. S&S Super E on mine. Once that was fixed the timing was way off. Once set it blued my pipes. But popping back through is either timing or intake pushrods set too tight
Mine used to do this when I first got it running, and it turned out the spark plugs were ever so slightly too short. It would fart through the carburetor (CV40 at the time) if I tried holding any speed; fine when accelerating.
Must be a universal thing, to celebrate after something starts on the first try after fixing something. Was punching the air like the end of 'Breakfast Club' first time I got the Meteor to idle after replacing the carb.
I just got a 2005 883 custom sportster, and it backfires and can put you in danger if it does it at an intersection while you are about to turn. I will check the plate! Thanks!
(72xlch, points ign, Bendix carb and it still runs GREAT) Tunnel vision. Long ago and several hundred miles from home on a Sunday, pulling out from a gas stop, the bike popped, then started sputtering and flaming out of the carb. Gas problem, right? I spent awhile looking around at things and finally checked my spark as I kicked the motor around and it was firing on intake. It was probably the dual spark that allowed the bike to try to run at all. BTW, dual fire means that both plugs fire at the same time every time. On one cycle the non compression cyl is on exhaust and on the other cycle the non compression cyl is beginning intake, but non compressed fuel charges don't like to burn. You can buy single fire systems but the stock dual fire has always treated me okay and it's not like the 72xlch is going to be a race bike. So, I took apart the ign, which is similar to yours but instead of a cup I have a cam carrier screwed to the #2 cam with advance weights and a points plate on top. What I found was close to what you had. One of the advance weights had come off and wedged under the cam carrier causing the pin to break off and the cam carrier to spin 180 degs. This cam carrier has a 4 inch long 12-32 screw that cannot be bought outside of the 70's era HD shop. In my case the fact that the spring had gotten under it pulled the threads off the engaged threads...meaning I could not put it back together. I found an auto garage and they let me use the grinder to grind down the points cam & cam carrier so I could get some threads to catch and I rode home. As a kid in the 70's I had an old 71xlch with a Tillotson diaphragm carb; like the carb on your chainsaw but with a 2 1/2 inch throat. Zooming down the highway one beautiful day it started sputtering, backfiring and carrying on so I pulled into the gas station and filled up. It still wouldn't start. finally the kick start lever stopped turning over. The motor was locked tight. I pulled the spark plugs and when I kicked it over gas shot out of the cyl and drenched my leg. The carb diaphragm had locked open and filled the cyl with gas. From then on I carried a bicycle spoke wound around the handlebar and whenever the bike would sputter I would reach the spoke under the carb and probe the diaphragm through the vent hole. I eventually, in about 78, gave the bike to someone with bolt cutters (his idea). He probably still wonders what the bike spoke is for. One more cautionary point. I once stopped for a couple of hours and when I left, my tank was almost empty, and the oil was overfull. The Bendix carb doesn't have an overflow tube. If the float sticks open the gas runs down into the engine. I have about 6 of those old carbs and none of the float seats works...meaning that even with a new needle, gas will still leak by. As long as the leak by is less than the bike uses at idle you won't notice. If it leaks more you will first notice the bike wants to sputter out at red lights. You can check this with a clear tube to the carb. Let the carb fill up and then pull the clear tube from the tank; mark the gas level in the tube. Come back in a couple of hours and see if the level has dropped.
Hello there cowboy here I like what you did to restore your bike great job a lot of work obviously I was curious if by chance you might have any of the forward controls parts left and if so what and would you be willing to sell them I'm an old vet with cancer from N C now living in A Florida I've got a 68 ironhead with a 78 1000 engine with my disabilities it's getting harder all the time to ride with stock control's when I get out on the road my legs and knees start cramping but I can't hold them out for very long but I love to ride and it's killing me knowing if I get going on a ride I've got to come back long before I want to please let me know if you want I'll send you my email so we can keep in touch always be safe healthy and happy God Bless please keep the dirty side down looking forward to seeing more videos and chatting along the way 🤠 by the way I'm known as cowboy keep doing what you're doing and love every minute of it 🙏
Oil definitely sprays out, they sell a clear plug to temporarily put in place for using your timing light, it's worth the $10-15 so you don't make a huge mess!
Thank you so much for the reply. I heard some say you cannot see clearly through the plastic plug, the oil splashing and the oil is dark to the point you don't see the marks on the fly wheel. Did you experience that condition?
@@buttcrackcycles I did watch the whole thing, I suggested tappets/pushrods before the point where you found ignition problem. Those old sportsters can be difficult at times. I've had a 71, 72, now a 99.
Wow.. this is a Yr ago , just Now Seein this Vid n right off the bat Can see WHY this is Butt Crack cycles , You put the Knock off Super E On n on Super E's it's an Enricher n the Lever HAS To be Picked UP No Mater What on EACH Start - JUST to Turn it On n Then Let Go. Ur NOT Doin That on Vid n NOR is ur Buddy Telling U That Either. Hhmm. 🧐🤔🤨 I DO Give Ya Props on the Timin CUP Find ! 👍 But then , We ALL Learn as We GO. 🤔🤓 Still a GOOD Vid n was Interesting to Learn on. Thnks.
You can find all of my videos about this bike here:
ruclips.net/p/PL2qPHGtR5vYYsanIZbcmlbserZOR5nST7
Yeah I concur; I dig your channel. Like a few other guys, I am working on my first solo recovery or build of my 1975 Xlch. The manual is great but seeing someone in real time helps and some real explanations help to. Can’t wait to see that hardtail finished!
Got a little work done on the 76 hard tail last week, I might have it running this upcoming week, though perhaps not ready for him to ride.
I appreciate this video. I have a 95 and the same issue has been going on. Dumb found I started doing some homework and stumbled across your video. You saved me a bunch of time and headache.
Much love man. ⚓️
Learning a lot from you for the future of my 1970 Ironhead. Fun to watch. Congrats on the successful fix!
Congratulations. You got her done. It actually sounded good going up and down the road. I bet you that thing won’t leave you hanging anymore. I just wanted to say back in the days before electric start. I was learning all that stuff by kicking. I’m lucky I never blew my knee out. Good luck. God Bless. Smitty
Rode it all over today. I think I got her licked for now... That intake blow back on a kicker bike would've been trouble!! Thanks for watching as always, appreciate your comments
Try kicking for a half hour with the WIFE at a community event and it just won't budge but you just rebuilt it and it rode you two there but now won't kick off. And SHE says doesn't this little red switch have to be on before you kick hunny? Yeah....makes anytime kicking a breeze now it seems so easy. Lol still have a few old kickers
I know this video is a year old but I finally found someone with the same issue . Again thanks alot
Love the happy dance at 10:16
Haha thanks
That's how we all learn, glad you're Rollin again brother ✌️
Hey congratulations on getting it going right! Recently purchased a 1981 barn find Sportster iron head. Located in Daytona would love to meet you one day , we have a great group of people all over the east coast into Harley’s.
God bless and keep it up. Thank you
Ghost fire when both fire at same time! I started out on a 1980 xlch Roadster,still have 4 sportys a 1993 Fxrs and a geezer Glide 1998,last of the Evos but I'm 71 now and changed my FLHTCUI rear tire at 68 using spoons! And still own my first big twin 1978 1/2 FLH Shovel and 76 Superglide, I've paid my dues but it's always been a great ride and still in the wind! Maranatha, Greetings from Tampa Florida 😎
Great video!
Be safe too...lol
The smallest problems are the hardest to find sometimes, I agree 100%
Oh yeah I've had that happen to my old 1980 sporty. Miles away from home . Had to get a tow truck home. Glad you figured it out though. Cheers.
Sounds grate mate this what I love about the oldies tinkering till ya get em sweet
A CV carburetor made my '74 XLH a well behaved runner. I run the Dyna S dual fire with mechanical advance.
Very glad you posted this. I am currently trying to work on my first harley and can't seem to get it running correctly. I just bought my second carburator, thinking that's the issue (again). I'm definitely going to check my timing system now.
It can't hurt and won't take long. Good luck hope you get it figured out!
I have a bud that used to have a 1975 XLCH we went through the same thing for over a month fixing a Bendix carb, only to find a set of stuck advance weights in the timing cover. So anybody running points, or a Dyna S style ignition, should, once a year, take the points out and pull the advance weights and clean them, inspect them for wear, if good then lube them up and run them for another year. That's the nice thing about old Harleys, they are an all season toy, ride all summer and wrench all winter!
Thanks for the video, sometimes it's not always the obvious so don't belittle yourself. I recently did some maintenance on my son's '96 Sportster after it had been sitting for 5 yrs. From the first start-up it was popping and cutting out. I had drained the tank which was perfectly clean, put MM oil in cylinders and new plugs and fresh gas with a little sea foam so i thought it would clear up but it never has. He took it back to NC last week and I live in Greenwood. Maybe he has a timing issue also. He is going to sell once this issue is resolved. I made a video of it and put it on my channel if you might know of someone.
Thanks, good video!
Awesome man. Glad you got it sorted! (And it wasnt anything major)
Sometimes the stupid little stuff kicks your butt for a while 😅
It's Saturday evening as I'm watching ..
Hopefully you went..no incidents..had a good time ..👍😎👍
Almost 90 miles today with no problems!
I have the same problem and thanks to this video I think I know what happened
Ah yes my first harley was an 83 xls, I have fond ??? memories of working on it constantly, 3 top ends and a bottom end just to name a few....😅
It taught me a lot about harleys, led me into working on them so it wasnt all bad.
Dont be embarrassed, that problem is not common and many people would have trouble diagnosing it, so well done and ride on brother..
My Harley ran perfectly until I left it sit for about a year. The carb got all gummed up so I bought a brand new Mikuni hsr42 to replace the original CV. I’ve been regretting this decision ever since. Tuning this carb has been a nightmare for me. It was blowing 2 foot flames out the exhaust when first installed. After many jet changes and adjustments it now idles and runs good in the top end but low and midrange still pops and sputters. Hopefully I can get it figured out before the season ends. Luckily I have another bike that I can ride but it would be nice to have my Harley back on the road. I guess I could rebuild the CV but I’d hate to have wasted the money I spent on the Mikuni
Nice, did that noise from engine (dinamo) normaly for iron?
How far are you able to go u think now? And thats what I did on my 79 ironhead, I put a cv carburetor keihin, but so.e recommend to upgrade the jets because it runs to lean,, both pilot and main jet plus do the needle too, there's some kit online after I tweaked it mines kicks in 3 tries best shit wish I did a video on it🤙🤙
When both plugs fire at the same time, when at low rpm the front fires close to TDC the rear plug fires while it is 45 degrees into its intake stroke. With timing late this firing in the rear can cause ignition with an open intake valve and blow flames out the carb. For me flames out the carb is a sign to check ignition...
Mine had the wrong screw for the plunger. Was doing the same thing. S&S Super E on mine. Once that was fixed the timing was way off. Once set it blued my pipes. But popping back through is either timing or intake pushrods set too tight
Mine used to do this when I first got it running, and it turned out the spark plugs were ever so slightly too short. It would fart through the carburetor (CV40 at the time) if I tried holding any speed; fine when accelerating.
Ur so nice. Love this video
Must be a universal thing, to celebrate after something starts on the first try after fixing something.
Was punching the air like the end of 'Breakfast Club' first time I got the Meteor to idle after replacing the carb.
Do the happy dance with Hudson!
Mine is just popping on start and kinda chirps a Lil. But usually once warm it makes no sounds
I just got a 2005 883 custom sportster, and it backfires and can put you in danger if it does it at an intersection while you are about to turn. I will check the plate! Thanks!
Mines came down to the rear exhaust push rod broke off about a 1/4" off the top. causing backfire then no starting.
(72xlch, points ign, Bendix carb and it still runs GREAT) Tunnel vision. Long ago and several hundred miles from home on a Sunday, pulling out from a gas stop, the bike popped, then started sputtering and flaming out of the carb. Gas problem, right? I spent awhile looking around at things and finally checked my spark as I kicked the motor around and it was firing on intake. It was probably the dual spark that allowed the bike to try to run at all. BTW, dual fire means that both plugs fire at the same time every time. On one cycle the non compression cyl is on exhaust and on the other cycle the non compression cyl is beginning intake, but non compressed fuel charges don't like to burn. You can buy single fire systems but the stock dual fire has always treated me okay and it's not like the 72xlch is going to be a race bike.
So, I took apart the ign, which is similar to yours but instead of a cup I have a cam carrier screwed to the #2 cam with advance weights and a points plate on top. What I found was close to what you had. One of the advance weights had come off and wedged under the cam carrier causing the pin to break off and the cam carrier to spin 180 degs. This cam carrier has a 4 inch long 12-32 screw that cannot be bought outside of the 70's era HD shop. In my case the fact that the spring had gotten under it pulled the threads off the engaged threads...meaning I could not put it back together. I found an auto garage and they let me use the grinder to grind down the points cam & cam carrier so I could get some threads to catch and I rode home.
As a kid in the 70's I had an old 71xlch with a Tillotson diaphragm carb; like the carb on your chainsaw but with a 2 1/2 inch throat. Zooming down the highway one beautiful day it started sputtering, backfiring and carrying on so I pulled into the gas station and filled up. It still wouldn't start. finally the kick start lever stopped turning over. The motor was locked tight. I pulled the spark plugs and when I kicked it over gas shot out of the cyl and drenched my leg. The carb diaphragm had locked open and filled the cyl with gas. From then on I carried a bicycle spoke wound around the handlebar and whenever the bike would sputter I would reach the spoke under the carb and probe the diaphragm through the vent hole. I eventually, in about 78, gave the bike to someone with bolt cutters (his idea). He probably still wonders what the bike spoke is for.
One more cautionary point. I once stopped for a couple of hours and when I left, my tank was almost empty, and the oil was overfull. The Bendix carb doesn't have an overflow tube. If the float sticks open the gas runs down into the engine. I have about 6 of those old carbs and none of the float seats works...meaning that even with a new needle, gas will still leak by. As long as the leak by is less than the bike uses at idle you won't notice. If it leaks more you will first notice the bike wants to sputter out at red lights. You can check this with a clear tube to the carb. Let the carb fill up and then pull the clear tube from the tank; mark the gas level in the tube. Come back in a couple of hours and see if the level has dropped.
David, great stories, enjoyed reading them. Thanks for the comment!
Optimistically, you learned something and showed us something and replaced some shit that won’t need so now.
Swap out the stock ignition for the ultima single fire
Over here
@buttcrackcycles Was your carb overflowing after these backfires?
How you doing? Got a 79 iron head. 1200 miles on moter. Chopper show bike guy sold it. I ride it
Hey man I live in Loris south carolina and have just put my 74 xlch on the road again.... would love to go riding with you
If you ever find yourself in the upstate let me know!
I bought one of those Chinese carburetor for a 96 Sportster and it don't squirt real well either.
Yeah we've gotten his bike running with it now, but he hasn't ridden it yet, I bet it'll have a significant stumble at take off.
Hello there cowboy here I like what you did to restore your bike great job a lot of work obviously I was curious if by chance you might have any of the forward controls parts left and if so what and would you be willing to sell them I'm an old vet with cancer from N C now living in A Florida I've got a 68 ironhead with a 78 1000 engine with my disabilities it's getting harder all the time to ride with stock control's when I get out on the road my legs and knees start cramping but I can't hold them out for very long but I love to ride and it's killing me knowing if I get going on a ride I've got to come back long before I want to please let me know if you want I'll send you my email so we can keep in touch always be safe healthy and happy God Bless please keep the dirty side down looking forward to seeing more videos and chatting along the way 🤠 by the way I'm known as cowboy keep doing what you're doing and love every minute of it 🙏
This bike came to me with mids and I do not have any forwards. Good luck
I really need a video showing timing using the timing light. How much oil sprays out, can you see the timing mark ?
Oil definitely sprays out, they sell a clear plug to temporarily put in place for using your timing light, it's worth the $10-15 so you don't make a huge mess!
Thank you so much for the reply. I heard some say you cannot see clearly through the plastic plug, the oil splashing and the oil is dark to the point you don't see the marks on the fly wheel. Did you experience that condition?
My Ironhead 1985 has been nothing but trouble one issue after the other. Glas I bought a Indian last year.
The cabbage patch dance, really Paul? She sounds great now.
I'm dealing with the same thing on my 1977 iron head smh
Did you try adjusting tappets/pushrods?
Watch the whole video, I adjust the pushrods in it, wasn't the problem.
@@buttcrackcycles I did watch the whole thing, I suggested tappets/pushrods before the point where you found ignition problem. Those old sportsters can be difficult at times. I've had a 71, 72, now a 99.
Check the o rings on the intake manifold/head junction
👍😎👍
You forgot to order your parts...go order your parts ..😎😉😅
😂😂 I would forget my head if it to wasn't for my neck
What part of SC? I live in Clover SC. Near kings mountain
York, so right next door
Wow.. this is a Yr ago ,
just Now Seein this Vid n right off the bat Can see WHY this is Butt Crack cycles , You put the Knock off Super E On n on Super E's it's an Enricher n the Lever HAS To be Picked UP No Mater What on EACH Start - JUST to Turn it On n Then Let Go.
Ur NOT Doin That on Vid n NOR is ur Buddy Telling U That Either. Hhmm. 🧐🤔🤨
I DO Give Ya Props on the Timin CUP Find ! 👍
But then , We ALL Learn as We GO. 🤔🤓
Still a GOOD Vid n was Interesting to Learn on. Thnks.
Believe you said the youngest iron head is a 1985 but mine is a 1977
Who is younger, a person born in 1977 or a person born in 1985? Make sense now?
@@buttcrackcycles 😂
Sometimes the symptoms are the same for some problems.
You will get same symptoms from a vacuum leak in the manifold gaskets. 👍
By the way , U Blinded me With the Nuts-to-Butt Crack ride ! 😖😣🫣