[furious furball]

after replacing the infamous clutch/tranny shaft/sprocket seals and putting everything back together, my T140 starts up, idles fine and revs great. I took her out, got about 5 miles into my test run and she starts sputtering/bogging down and I have to baby her another 3 miles back home.

Thinking maybe I had the clutch springs too loose I opened her back up tightened up. Start her up, idles fine, revs fine all the way to 5K, put her in gear and she bogs down, doesn't want to accelerate and wants to stall.

Take her back, scratch the ol' head and started to notice some movement with the clutch basket I'm worried might not be something that should be there. See my video with the engine off and kicking the bike over or tapping the kickstart lever and also with the engine running on idle. Could this explain why after all of this time, energy and work I still get a leaky bike in that infamous spot of gearbox oil? What is causing this or what is the fix? I'm tired of buying primary gaskets...I should just convert her to a belt at this point but before doing so I want to know what the solution is to this problem.

Could it be the front sprocket is out of spec and not fitting properly in the seal - it sits nice and tight on the tranny shaft splines.

And the whole infamous leak thing, I've got the sprocket and seal covered in RSV sealant, nothing is coming from the normal spots...

I've also double checked my wiring to ensure everything is connected and might be moving around when I try to moveforward and so far nothing appears out of normal and all connections are secure.


http://youtu.be/rTIH0XK2leU

 

[rambo]

It would appear that you have a fuel starvation problem that causes the bogging down when riding.The clutch should wobble a bit when the clutch lever is pulled in.Primary chain looks a bit slack but this would have no connection to the bogging down problem.Take the fuel cap off and ride it,check you have sufficient fuel by taking the pipes off the carbs etc.Could be you have the choke on or blocked carb jets

 

[Caulky]

Seen this?

Your primary chain is far too slack.
Adjust the three spring nuts for no wobble.
Adjust the cable adjusters (handle bar and gearbox ends) for 1/8th slack.
Adjust the central screw and nut until it bottoms on the rod, then unscrew the screw half a turn.
Tighten the nut.

Now you can fault-find the engine issue. [if there is one].

 

[tazaroo]

Furious Furball..........while I can't offer help with your issue I must say I like your Triumph "Steal Your Face" avatar. Been a head going on almost 25 years and if you don't mind I'm gonna "steal your avatar" but I won't use it here. I have a 73 T140 and have always been looking for Dead stuff to put on her but it seems like there is nothing out there. You might like this and yes I know..........it's a Harley and this derby cover rocks.

 

[Snakeoil]

I fully agree with Rambo. If by bogging you mean no engine power and not plenty of revs but clutch slippage, then you either have a fuel issue or an ignition issue.

He suggestion to loosen the cap is a good start because it could be that simple, plugged tank vent. If that does not cure it, pull your fuel lines off and make sure you have adequate flow to the carbs. You might have crud in the tank that is plugging up the petcock screens to the petcocks themselves. There should also be screens in the banjo bolts at the carb attachment point and if they are plugged, that too will inhibit flow. Lastly, check float levels or sticking floats to make sure that is not limiting your fuel supply.

If the bike ran fine before you went to work on the clutch, then you might have something else going on, like ignition issues. Does it, meaning almost shutd down from fuel starvation, or does it start to skip and miss like crazy at higher revs. If it is the latter, then you could have a bad condenser(s) or points. Leaving the ignition on for long periods while you work on an engine can cause the points to arc if in the right position and this will damage them. This could explain why your bike now runs poorly if it ran well before the clutch work.

Because you are thinking that this problem is related to the clutch, I suspect you are not solidly versed in combustion engine basics. I'd read the manual on how the engine operates and maybe even do a few web searches on combustion engine basics and it will better equip you to troubleshoot this problem.

regards,
Rob

 

[furious furball]

Thanks everyone. Tazaroo, have at it with the Steal Your Triumph logo I created, like all things Dead spread the love...the fat man rocks.

I love Lunmad's videos and this one I particularly followed many times.

My primary was adjusted to 1/2-inch and I revolved the chain as I measured & applied the setting every 6 inches. I'll look at this again in case something shifted.

I recently upgraded to the hydraulic clutch so I don't have the option to adjust the cable.

I was focusing on the clutch for these reasons which obviously you wouldn't know cuz I didn't tell ya:

1) I have a brand new TriSpark EI which has been within the last 2 months professionally tuned/timed by a seasoned Triumph mechanic
2) 2.5 months ago, recoated my fuel tank with Por15 (followed the instructions to the T), replaced both petcocks, fuel lines and fuel filters with brand new ones and also my fuel cap with a dual vent cap from Lowbrow.
3) 2.5 months ago, stripped my carbs and dipped the big parts in carb cleaner, replaced all gaskets, replaced the needles and jets (with OEM/stock settings) and sprayed all little parts with carb cleaner - all parts/holes were blown out and doubly cleaned with my air compressor and a guitar string.

Sounds like you guys don't see any worries on the movement I see in the clutch basket so I'll drop that off my worry list.

I did however on my last long ride lose one of my air filters, so I will strip the carbs again and clean them out. Maybe I'll even drain the tank and remove the petcocks to make sure something didn't go wrong with the new tank lining.

Guess my worry with gas/carb issues wasn't at the top of my list because the bike idles fine and when I throttle her while on the stand in neutral she effortlessly goes up to 5K revs the way she should. In the past when I had ignition issues (prior to being professionally tuned) she idled good, but backfired and bogged down while on the stand in neutral when giving her gas.

 

[daveforty]

what colour are your spark plugs? pale grey / white = weak mixture - fuel starvation; black / sooty plugs = rich mixture - air starvation.

They are the first things to look at if the engine isnt running correctly, they will give you the clues you need.

Is the alternator cable clear of the primary chain? the lash in the chain hasnt damaged the cable? if so, that would cause charging (voltage) issues which could affect the operation of the electronic ignition unit.

 

[rambo]

Could well be your tank liner has dissolved and clogged it up.My own new tank liner chemical did this which also made the fuel red in colour.After a few fill ups,all the tank liner had gone.I would check fuel flow to the carbs again and then clean out the carbs

 

[Garioch43]

New petcocks? Check for distorted grommets causing fuel starvation.

 

[Mr.Pete]

If you suspect fuel supply problems,do this simple test.
Remove the float bowl drain plug from both carbs.Put a jar under each float bowl.Turn on the fuel for one minute.
If you got 300ml of fuel from each carb,you're quite safe.Don't try to use full power if you only get 150ml;there is a problem.

This tests taps,hoses,filters,everything.

 

[JohnA]

If you suspect fuel supply problems,do this simple test.
Remove the float bowl drain plug from both carbs.Put a jar under each float bowl.Turn on the fuel for one minute.
If you got 300ml of fuel from each carb,you're quite safe.Don't try to use full power if you only get 150ml;there is a problem.

This tests taps,hoses,filters,everything.

This sort of advice is so useful, I wonder if there is some way that the Forum could make a compilation of really useful tips? Not the whole threads, just the useful tips!

While I'm at it, I'd also like to commend Plewsy for his excellent and entertaining videos. The Beatles soundtrack to the clutch one was a nice touch. Maybe the Forum could create a "Service to T140 owners" award, in which case Plewsy would be a prime candidate!

 

[triumpt120rv]

This sort of advice is so useful, I wonder if there is some way that the Forum could make a compilation of really useful tips? Not the whole threads, just the useful tips!

1. Click on Mr. Pete's name to the left ofone of his comments.
2. Go to left side of the page that opens up and click "Statistics".
3. Then click on "Find all posts by Mr. Pete".
4. A list of posts will open up that Mr. Pete wrote catergorized by thread title.

There is probably a good start for your compilation. Every comment is interesting and informative whether it is for your bike or not. The guy has a quite a talent.

 

[furious furball]

wow, wasn't expecting this. Even after a pro went through my electrical (or supposedly went thru the entire system) I just managed to find some loose wires in which the solder had deteriorated from the nipples. While the wires in their tight perched position stayed in the 4 splitter, they were vibrating while the bike was running and not allowing a solid electrical connection. New nipples, new 4 way splitter and she's running like a dream again.