Honda Spree and Elite 50 Forums

85 Spree runs great when warm. Idles ok when warm. Multiple long cranks to start. Helps to spray fuel into carb for fast start. Carb was cleaned 4 times last year. This week I took apart the bystarter.
Cleaned the contacts inside the by starter. Does not start any better.
Also, have to start with full throttle evey time ( is this normal? ). When engine is warm, the idle screw has to be turn in about all the way.
Screw is turned out about 1 to 1-1/2 turns. Do i need a brand new $70 Honda BYSTARTER???????

Did you bench test the bi-starter? The wall in the float bowl has a hole in it for gas to pass from the main chamber to the small chamber for the enriching circuit. Is that hole open?

Will try to check tonight.

This port? This port is clear.

How does one bench test the bystarter?

Yes, that's the connecting passage. Fuel needs to flow from the larger chamber through that passage to the smaller chamber where the enriching circuit picks it up. Put some gas in the larger chamber and make sure it slowly fills the smaller chamber.

I put the bystarter on the bench and measure how far the needle protrudes from the body. I then use some alligator clips to connect a battery to the bystarter leads. After a period of time the needle should move (outward) a bit. When installed, before it moves, extra gas is drawn from the smaller chamber of the floatbowl into the carb (thereby "enriching" the mixture for start-up). When the bystarter draws current long enough, the needle moves outward, closing the pathway from the small chamber in the floatbowl up into the carburetor, ending the enriching process. I cannot remember how long it takes for the needle to begin moving nor do I recall how far it moves. Figure on less than 5 minutes and about 1/8". Someone should have this info elsewhere. One other thought. Passages must be clean (open) from the float bowl all the way into the throat of the carb.

Your two fingers work well for a choke

Two finger choke, is that the way Honda designed this scooter?
How about fixing it correctly.

Hey, my carb works perfect, but when it's 10F outside, it still needs a choke, bystarter just doesn't give enough enrichment at that temp. Just a fact, they weren't mean to be run in the cold.

mmaannyy wrote:Multiple long cranks to start. Helps to spray fuel into carb for fast start.

So what you are saying is that every time you want to ride it you have to take the airbox apart to spray some fuel into the carb?

If I spray the carb, it starts the first time. It was 60F last week. No spray, cranked 9 times untill it started. Each crank duration was about 10-12 seconds. I don't want to burn out the starter. I would like to fix it before I put on the cover panels. Panels are being painted.

If the bystarter is no good then it will never "warm up" and will have problems starting hot. If it wont start cold then its somethig in the carb clogged up.

I find that cracking the throttle while cranking helps.

Is this the tinybrass tube?