R90/6 suddenly not running

[redavide]

Last night I was out on my R90/6 and here's what happened:

1) started perfectly (like always);

2) full tank of gas;

3) has been running perfectly for years, all maintenance up to date;

4) after about 10-15 minutes of riding, it started running really rough for about 3-4 seconds, then went back to running normally;

5) about 30 seconds later, started running really rough again, sputtering, bucking, zero power, but this time didn't recover;

6) I limped back home at about 5 miles an hour, engine just barely running, still sputtering, no power;

7) then it just completely crapped out, when I tried to restart, it would start really rough and when I let out the clutch and put any demand on the engine, it just stalled and died;

8) as this was happening, I switched petcocks to reserve, because it felt like it wasn't getting fuel and I thought the little tubes in the gas tank might be blocked, etc. Didn't make any difference;

9) feels like both cylinders aren't functioning. If it was just one, I'd think I could at least get home on the good cylinder;


I'm going to check for spark, empty some gas and see if it's flowing and check appearance of fuel, maybe take off the front cover and check points, etc., but I'm hoping someone might have experienced something similar and hopefully can give me a heads up . . . .

Thanks for your help.

Dave

[schrader7032]

Other things to check:

- be sure that the starter relay terminals are clean; find relay under tank and unplug/replug a few times

- be sure the small wire connects both coils; it goes from the - terminal on one coil to the + terminal on the other coil

[redavide]

Ok, thanks, I'll check.

What could the starter relay have to do with the problem I described?????

[schrader7032]

The starter relay controls power to the bike.

BTW...any recent maintenance? Something that could have dramatically changed is the valve clearances. Hard to believe both sides would suddenly close up, but if you had been in there recently, maybe it undid itself.

So look at any past maintenance that you were doing.

[mark_weiss]

Slipped ignition breaker points can cause similar symptoms. A failed/failing ignition condenser can be similar. Usually, a failing condenser will allow reasonable idle, but minimal power and no ability to increase revs.

[redavide]

The problem was a bad condenser . . . Wallet's $12 lighter and I'm back on the road . . . .

Anyway, thanks for the pointers!

[sminn560sl]

The problem was a bad condenser . . . Wallet's $12 lighter and I'm back on the road . . . .

Anyway, thanks for the pointers!

Cool. Glad you're back on the road.