GSV190 won't start

   / GSV190 won't start #1  

daugen

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Joined
Feb 27, 2012
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Location
New Hope PA
Tractor
in between now
I have an almost new Billy Goat leaf vac and spent the extra money to get the Honda motor. I have never had starting problems with Hondas and have owned plenty of them.
This one was a dog to begin with. Only three years old with a whopping 12 hours on it and I need to use ether to get it going. Then I have to keep the choke on partially to keep it running, and can only pull
2850 rpms instead of the original 3300-3400. Last year I had it retuned by the dealer who cleaned the carb, and it ran/started better, but not like other Hondas I've owned, which were always 1-2 pull machines.
This thing is recoil start and I'm pulling the whole heavy flywheel vac mechanism while starting, no clutch, and what a pain. I'm not weak and pull it pretty hard, but after ten or twelve pulls, I give up.
I've dosed it with carb cleaner, always use Stabil, change the gas, etc, and same thing. Using ether will likely wreck the thing and this is a primo engine that should not need it, nor I suppose should any engine.
Should I just take it back again for another carb redo? Once it gets going it doesn't miss or anything, but as soon as I start to pull the throttle back (choke is at full throttle) it plain dies. Will not run on part throttle at all.
Suggestions please. Thanks
Drew
 
   / GSV190 won't start #2  
Time for another carb or check the boot between carb and cylinder head. I agree that Honda's are some of the easiest starting engines out there typically. Ether shouldn't be need either. If you can check compression and whether there is a hot enough spark. It could be as simple as a dirty fuel pick up in the tank also. It really sounds like it is getting an air leak and too lean unless you pull the choke out a bit.
 
   / GSV190 won't start #3  
Common problem on the Honda engines is the emulsion tube to be partially plugged. When cleaning the carb it needs to be removed, cleaned and reinstalled.

Ken
 
   / GSV190 won't start
  • Thread Starter
#4  
thanks guys. I had to look up "emulsion tube", not a term I was familiar with, but now I know. This machine gets seriously dirty from residual fine dirt coming out of the bag, but after twelve hours, I'd think it wouldn't take that long to clog or get dirt in the tank.
I'm thinking there was a problem here from the beginning, and it looks like a trip back to the dealer, a different one this time. I will check first for any loose connections. Appreciate the advice.
 
   / GSV190 won't start #6  
The tube doesn't get plugged by dirt (as long as you're using clean fuel and an air filter), it gets varnished up by fuel going stale. With your chipper only getting 4 hours use per year it is a food canidate for a varnished carb. Even when you run "all" the fuel out before storing enought fuel remains in the carb to cause problems.

Ken
 
   / GSV190 won't start
  • Thread Starter
#7  
I had one month two years ago where my Yamaha outboard wouldn't start, my lawn mower wouldn't start, my chain saw wouldn't start, and this unit wouldn't either. The local repair shops immediately blame ethanol, but I'm pretty careful about following all the advice and liberally dose with carb cleaner. I take really good care of my equipment, but I guess I'd better learn how to take carbs apart, this seems to be a chronic problem, and I don't think for just me. I've watched a bunch of YouTube videos on carb repair, but don't have confidence yet to do it, which is likely dumb. At 100-150 a pop at the repair shop, I think I'd better learn. I appreciate the advice.
 
   / GSV190 won't start #8  
You can get bad batches of gas as well. One of the local gas stations served up some bad gas here a few years ago. About 20 cars had major engine problems after that. Typically the carbs aren't that hard to work on. I try to lay them out in the order I took them apart. Paying close attention to which way diaphragms are oriented. Also if you have floats the little springs in those. There are a lot of folks on here that like Seafoam additive. It does seem to work as I have used it. The ethanol gas is a pain to deal with. If you can get regular gas at Co-ops or something like that just for the small engines do that.
 
   / GSV190 won't start
  • Thread Starter
#9  
thanks, I dose everything constantly with SeaFoam and like it very much. I gave this engine a big shot of it in the tank, but think I might try the aerosol version direct into the carb. Couldn't hurt.
 
   / GSV190 won't start #10  
You did not say, but did you pull the carb and clean out the jets and passages in the carb?

I believe there is an idle circuit and a fixed jet circuit for high speed.

Check especially the idle adjustment, and the main jet.

The idle circuit is providing gas at all times.

Biker eNews: How Carburetors Work
 
 
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