We’ll be continuing the “1980 Honda CB50 motorcycle part issues” saga. Why? Well, it seems in many cases the previous blog post isn’t enough in resolving the motorcycle part issue. For the previous part, you can find the blog post here, "1980 Honda CB50 motorcycle part issues".

So, after the alternator, battery and gas are all checked, we should move our suspecting on other motorcycle parts:

Pulse generator - This motorcycle part could get hot and after the motorcycle goes on the road, the difference between temperatures makes it break down.   

Battery - Again we’re referring on the two spark units mounted back by the battery. If you see black emission down from the units, they may be weak.  

Spark Plugs – Connect spark plugs to the two outside cylinders and check them for spark. Notice if they look overheated from a lean condition. If it loses one coil, it could be the coil overheating or the spark unit acting up. If the spark plugs are good we’re moving on the next motorcycle part.

Vacuum hoses - Check if the vacuum hoses to the automatic fuel valve are tight. If they’re not tight, you can get vacuum leak and fuel supply loss to the carburetors.

Extra tip: Quick check your charging system by watching the headlight bulb intensity. If this light brightens up when you rev the motorcycle, than probably your motorcycle is doing okay.

Do you have really old Honda motorcycle made before 1980s? If you do and you’re trying to find old Honda motorcycle parts, you might find your solution here.

 Some guy had lights problem with his old 1979 Honda CX 500 motorcycle when turning the key and we tried to help him. Since Cycle-Parts.com is a company providing motorcycle parts produced mostly after 1980 we can’t meet our customers’ needs with really old Honda motorcycles.  

This guy’s problem more precisely was with the headlight, neutral light; tail light, blinkers and horn.

Situation no. 1. The ignition switch base could be down. Get new one and replaces it. If it works than you’re done with this issue, if not than we are going to the next step.

Situation no.2. Clean the connections to the battery, and check the fuses back by the battery and also those under the plate at the handlebars. If everything is okay than you should buy cheap 12v test light and start with the battery leads and move forward on the red and black wires with the switch on. If power is coming out of the battery connections, you should go up front to the switch and see if power is coming in and then out again. The motorcycle parts wiring diagram can be found here.

As we can notice, recently we were writing a lot about Honda motorcycles and sure a lot about starting issues.  As you can notice by far, every motorcycle has its own specifics and every problem with each motorcycle part could have million different solutions.

In today’s blog post we are going to elaborate starting issue at 1980 GL1100 Gold Wing Honda motorcycle.  This motorcycle was stored for 2 years though it has new starter, good voltage and starter relay. The owner suspects: the starter switch could be bad and also the connections could be bad.  

Experienced motorcyclists would test all the electrical components first. Next motorcycle part for inspection would be the battery and its connections. These GL1100 Gold Wing motorcycles all have a permanent magnet battery charging system, consisted of a stator with three output wires, which go into a regulator. This unit regulates the AC into DC and then DC to 14.5V to ensure proper battery charging. Every connection between the regulator and the battery should be checked.

Also there are cases where the battery could have 12V and it doesn’t have enough amperage to give the starter real power.  There have been tests with new batteries when one cell is shorted or weak and the motorcycle won’t start. Also check if the battery is right for the motorcycle.

Furthermore, the problem can be located at the Stator and Regulator. In addition, as we can tell from the previous blog post stator and regulator failure is also common motorcycle part issue at 1980 Honda CB650.

Every motorcycle series have common motorcycle parts issues more or less. One of these 1980 CB650 Honda motorcycle parts issues is turning off the field rotor when the charging voltage is too high; making the charging drop in which case the regulation circuit turns the field rotor back on. This issue sometimes is manifested similar to when the motorcycle is running out of gas.

The motorcycle ignition is battery-powered, so when the voltage drops down bellow 13.5V, the ignition system components shot down. Diagnosing bad rotor is easy, mount volt-ohm meter for testing the charging system output and the ohms value on the rotor tracks cold or hot.

Bad rotor can also cause bad regulator. When the rotor fails it draws too much current for the regulation circuit to supply, causing the regulator to die. This way this motorcycle part dies alongside the rotor.

Loss of spark can be caused by bad connection somewhere. Suspect any connection in the entire motorcycle. You can start diagnosing bad connection by taking off fairing motorcycle parts, the gas tank and seat, and disconnect all connections you find. Do these one at a time, and spray them with a contact cleaner before filling the connector again.

Also another motorcycle part could be suspected for resolving the issue. There is a vacuum-operated valve on these motorcycles. There is a fuel screen inside the fuel tank which requires draining the tank and removing the valve to draw the screen out from the inside the fuel tank. 

You can learn how to change the battery at Honda Nighthawk by following this 6-point list of instructions connected with moving several Honda motorcycle parts:

1.   First motorcycle part you need to remove is the right side cover. For removing this motorcycle part first you need to remove the seat. The side cover is held in place by rubber grommets. You need to pull at the front of this motorcycle part (the grommets are at the front of the side cover) in order not to break the side cover.

2.   Remove the battery case door bolt

3.   Slide the battery towards you

4.   Disconnect the negative battery cables  and the positive battery cable

5.   Remove the battery

6.   Hook up  the ground cable and then the positive cable

This motorcycle parts instruction is really simple and it should be done without any hardness except the first point. That’s why we dedicated more lines in explaining – just to make sure you don’t break any motorcycle part. 

Do you have really old Honda motorcycle made before 1980s? If you do and you’re trying to find old Honda motorcycle parts, you might find your solution here.

Some guy had a problem with finding aftermarket motorcycle parts and we tried to help him. Since Cycle-Parts.com is a company providing Honda motorcycle parts produced mostly after 1980 we can’t meet our customers’ needs with really old Honda motorcycles.   

This guy’s problem was linked with the connectors between the air filter and the carburetors. He was desperate to find out if he could find connectors that will suite his motorcycle the most. We’re talking about 1975 Honda cb200t motorcycle.

So here’s the answer: such connectors Honda is not producing anymore, unfortunately.  But you can look for aftermarket motorcycle parts (really hard to find) or you can try to build up or patch the old ones with some goop adhesive.  

Last thing you can try to do is to find other Honda motorcycle parts such as pod type filters but they will need you to increase your carburetors main and idle jet sizes, plus the motorcycle will need increasing the fuel mixture.

If you’re looking for other aftermarket motorcycle parts, you can check our aftermarket motorcycle parts section in which you can search by motorcycle type/brand or by motorcycle parts category.  

Another motorcycle parts blog is up, this time we will explain Honda motorcycle / atv ignition issue. Motorcycle parts to check for solving this Honda motorcycle/ATV ignition issue:

Ignition coil.  The motorcycle part called ignition coil could be weak. A weak Ignition coil will shut down until it cools off– the only way to test it is to carry it into a dealer that has a coil tester. A weak trigger coil can do the same thing.

Battery.  Low battery voltage could also be the issue.

Sparkplug cap. Remove the sparkplug cap from the wire, counter clockwise, trim back a ¼ inch of wire and reinstall the sparkplug cap.

On/Off Switch. This switch might be bad, so check this for any case!

Connections.  Clean and put electrical grease on all connections!

Additional tip: Test the motorcycle parts when there’s not spark. .

I would recommend reading Honda motorcycle parts that affect the ignition system for additional thoughts on this issue.

Today’s blog post will be about recognizing your Honda motorcycle part when returning from repairs. We’re not saying that all repair salons are ripping off their customers but it wouldn’t be bad a little carefulness.  We know few people who were installed different motorcycle part than the original one (intentionally or not intentionally). Best advice when going to repair salon is to do research in advance, in order not to look like total ignorant about motorcycle parts.

Now we’re going to present what-if situation about recognizing Honda motorcycle part, particularly - the Honda engine.

The first question when you forgot to write down your engine’s serial number before you send the motorcycle in repair salon would be:

How can I find out the engine’s serial number by the VIN number of the motorcycle?

Answer: The VIN number will not help you find your engine number. Honda doesn’t use matching numbers because often engines are pulled from the line for racing use.  The VIN number will only help you to narrow down the engine number range and expert can tell if the engine was the same year or not.

The only way to find your motorcycle’s serial number is to find the original MSO (Manufacturers Statement of Origin) that went with the motorcycle when sold new (The original bill of sale from the dealer). If you have owner’s manual, usually the serial number is in the front next to the VIN number.

TIP: Next time when you'll send your motorcycle in a repair salon I would advice to mark all motorcycle parts.

We are going to talk about reasons for oil leaking at exhaust pipe header, the motorcycle we are inspecting is 1984 Honda v65 magna motorcycle. Possible problems and solutions to these:

1.   First and foremost I would check if the oil is not too watery or too thin.  

2.   If the motorcycle is running fine – the exhaust header gaskets might be leaking. These motorcycle parts are really cheap and can cost around five dollars. The exhaust pipe should heat up at the same rate as the other related motorcycle parts. If it feels cooler when you first start the motorcycle then the problem is in the cylinder.

3.   If the motorcycle is not running okay – there can be problems with several honda motorcycle parts: carburetor, piston, ring or valve guides and seals.

The carburetor related problem could be located if the carburetor float is too high or there is float needle valve leaking fuel into the cylinder.

The worse damage could be at the piston or ring allowing oil to blow by the rings and exit through the exhaust pipe.

Cylinder problem would be connected with low compression and heat rate. Also damaged valve guides and seals could allow oil leaking in the cylinder. And also check the spark plug condition and color for clues on the combustion in the cylinder.

4.   If the oil is coming from another location – then logically the issue might be located at some other motorcycle part. Check the cylinder head cover gasket for example.

5.   Also unburned fuel could be an issue.

Check all these Honda motorcycle parts and if you cannot locate the leaking issue than it would be smart to leave it at more experienced Honda motorcyclist to fix the issue. 

One of our customers had difficulty finding the thermostat at his old 1986 Honda VT700C SHADOW. Consequently we thought this can be great opportunity for brand new do-it-yourself blog post. Often, ignorant motorcyclists are put in situation where they cannot find specific motorcycle part in their own motorcycle. As we mentioned above our customer was suspecting that the thermostat or other accompanying VT700C Shadow motorcycle part was having an issue.

The first frontier he runs onto is the missing knowledge for where the thermostat is actually located. The problem was with the gage going in red - misleadingly alarming that the motorcycle is overheating.

First thing we should do is to locatе the thermostat which is below the coolant filler cap. The best way to find the thermostat at any vehicle is to locate several motorcycle parts. The first motorcycle part for locating is the top radiator hose and then you should track it backwards. This will guide you to where the hose appends to the thermostat housing.

Second, if the motorcycle is really overheating than the radiator fan should come on.

Third, if the fan doesn’t come on then you may have a faulty fan. You can check if this motorcycle part is working by unplugging it and connecting it to 12 volts and see if it turns.

Fourth, if the fan turns fine but still never comes on when the motorcycle is overheating than the fan sensor or wiring may need checking.

It wouldn’t be bad if you ensure the cooling system is full and all the air is out before you put the filler cap on. You can move the motorcycle a bit back and forth to release any possible trapped air in the system.  Hope this post will be useful in future for motorcycle population.

BTW Cycle-parts run promotional offers nonstop. Now you can use the coupon code SUMMER in the shopping cart to apply for 10% off discount. The only precondition is that your motorcycle parts order should be over $165. The promotional period end on Friday, June 24^th at 11:59pm.