Help!!When I got it over there and parked it I noticed that there was steam or smoke coming out of t

[Chuck Hughes]

I would run it, for awhile, and when it either starts acting up, or you get home, that line that was capped off, unhook that from whereever you hooked it up, and it'll probably hiss. That's probably your vent line. Get a longer line and run that somewhere under the bike. My money is on vapor lock, cause like I said that sounds exactly like the issues I had when I bought mine.

 

[Big D Florida]

I would run it, for awhile, and when it either starts acting up, or you get home, that line that was capped off, unhook that from whereever you hooked it up, and it'll probably hiss. That's probably your vent line. Get a longer line and run that somewhere under the bike. My money is on vapor lock, cause like I said that sounds exactly like the issues I had when I bought mine.

Gas cap, or vent tube, or both.

 

[Chuck Hughes]

Gas cap, or vent tube, or both.

Yup. Mine was both. i have unvented caps on mine, and the vent line was capped

 

[Hirter6Pack]

Service manuals are a great tool.

NOTE: One of the most common troubleshooting mistakes is to over look the easiest or
most obvious possible causes of a problem. A process of elimination should begin with the
easiest and most obvious possible cause and progress to the more difficult.

 

[woodbutcher]

Yeah... that's what I meant...lol Some are different.
7. Are you certain about the "on" and "Reserve" positions of your petcock ? All the way back should be "on", middle is "reserve", all the way forward is "off" , on mine.
Mine has it stamped right on the petcock.

View attachment 48243

And before y'all chime in about it... yes, I know it isn't clean, but I just rode in the dad-gum rain...lol.

just looked at mine. forward-reserve, straight out-off, back-on. but mine does not look like yours, it has rounded shoulder on the bottom with lighter printing for the locations.

 

[Big D Florida]

just looked at mine. forward-reserve, straight out-off, back-on. but mine does not look like yours, it has rounded shoulder on the bottom with lighter printing for the locations.

To my knowledge, mine is original.. perhaps Big Dog used different suppliers over the years, or this is a replacement, but it looks just like a couple of our other members have on their K9's.
At any rate, Greg certainly wouldn't be the first person to have the petcock in the wrong position resulting in stalling... I did it myself when I first got mine, being used to a different setup on my last carbureted bike.
Sometimes it is the simplest of things...lol.

 

[Hirter6Pack]

I do not like the petcock on the 04 Mastiff. It labeled but does not have the positive stop position bearing to let you know you are fully in the on position or res. If a fuel filter can restrict flow then maybe a petcock not fully open can cause the same problem.

 

[Big D Florida]

I do not like the petcock on the 04 Mastiff. It labeled but does not have the positive stop position bearing to let you know you are fully in the on position or res. If a fuel filter can restrict flow then maybe a petcock not fully open can cause the same problem.

Mine does not have the stops either. I am planning to replace it with a Pingel, soon.

 

[Gmutoagrsv]

OK I have a lot to cover here. Before I do I want to say thank you to everybody I don't know if the problem is gone yet but I appreciate everybody stepping in and give me any help and ideas.
I went to go for a ride today it fired up and I rode it down the road and within a quarter-mile it was doing that again popping sputtering and dying.
I took a bunch of pictures but I have to figure out how to get them on here. Can somebody please let me know how to post them on here?

Big d
I know it's difficult troubleshooting over the phone or verbally especially through messaging but again I appreciate you guys giving it everything
I checked the gas cap I can blow through it no problems there is no white thing in there at all I have a picture of that

I don't know where the petcock screen is but I looked at the petcock and the fuel line and there is no green anything or slimy or anything like that however inside the tank I can see the green and I can see some of that is peeled away I have a picture of that as well

I have a picture of the fuel line the way what is router and it was coming in between the heads and coming up to the carb. I rerouted the fuel line behind the carb over the intake manifold's and then to the gas tank. I have a picture of how I routed it.

I am not sure what Jets are in it I have not actually opened up the carb. The plugs are champion ra8hc. I replaced them already so they are brand new.

I took a picture of the petcock reserve it is to the front off is to the side and on is to the back.

It is fresh gas I've had this problem on three tanks 91 octane Chevron and I think this time of year it is not mixed with ethanol.

I am not sure how old the plug wires are but I looked at them and they look to be in good shape no cracks weathering and the caps inside fit snug and look to be in good shape.

When I was tinkering with the three screws I was pretty much doing it by sound and how it was running. I went through the S&S carb set up manual and readjusted it today.

I do not see a white cap on the mixture screw.


Proflyer
I used brake clean to check and see if there was any leaks and nothing at all.
I think you are right as intermittent as it is I don't think it has to do with the settings at all now you saying that made me think about it.

Chuck
I did notice when I got the bike back from the shop that the vent from the tank and from the carb were capped off. I didn't know what they were for so I did run a hose between the two I have a picture of that. I removed the hose completely so now those vents are open.

I am letting it cool down and probably try again tomorrow. I know it makes a difference but I am between 4500 and 5500 feet above sea level and would like to but have not yet written up to Lake Tahoe which is between 7000 and 9000.

 

[Hirter6Pack]

Make sure the caps on top of the carburetor are in good shape and not leaking or weather cracked.

 

[Gmutoagrsv]

Make sure the caps on top of the carburetor are in good shape and not leaking or weather cracked.
View attachment 48249

I only noticed one vent. When I cover it on the card I can hear it in the motors RPMs should that be capped or uncapped?

 

[bdm7250]

OK I have a lot to cover here. Before I do I want to say thank you to everybody I don't know if the problem is gone yet but I appreciate everybody stepping in and give me any help and ideas.
I went to go for a ride today it fired up and I rode it down the road and within a quarter-mile it was doing that again popping sputtering and dying.
I took a bunch of pictures but I have to figure out how to get them on here. Can somebody please let me know how to post them on here?

Big d
I know it's difficult troubleshooting over the phone or verbally especially through messaging but again I appreciate you guys giving it everything
I checked the gas cap I can blow through it no problems there is no white thing in there at all I have a picture of that

I don't know where the petcock screen is but I looked at the petcock and the fuel line and there is no green anything or slimy or anything like that however inside the tank I can see the green and I can see some of that is peeled away I have a picture of that as well

I have a picture of the fuel line the way what is router and it was coming in between the heads and coming up to the carb. I rerouted the fuel line behind the carb over the intake manifold's and then to the gas tank. I have a picture of how I routed it.

I am not sure what Jets are in it I have not actually opened up the carb. The plugs are champion ra8hc. I replaced them already so they are brand new.

I took a picture of the petcock reserve it is to the front off is to the side and on is to the back.

It is fresh gas I've had this problem on three tanks 91 octane Chevron and I think this time of year it is not mixed with ethanol.

I am not sure how old the plug wires are but I looked at them and they look to be in good shape no cracks weathering and the caps inside fit snug and look to be in good shape.

When I was tinkering with the three screws I was pretty much doing it by sound and how it was running. I went through the S&S carb set up manual and readjusted it today.

I do not see a white cap on the mixture screw.


Proflyer
I used brake clean to check and see if there was any leaks and nothing at all.
I think you are right as intermittent as it is I don't think it has to do with the settings at all now you saying that made me think about it.

Chuck
I did notice when I got the bike back from the shop that the vent from the tank and from the carb were capped off. I didn't know what they were for so I did run a hose between the two I have a picture of that. I removed the hose completely so now those vents are open.

I am letting it cool down and probably try again tomorrow. I know it makes a difference but I am between 4500 and 5500 feet above sea level and would like to but have not yet written up to Lake Tahoe which is between 7000 and 9000.

When is the last time you had your carb apart? Just in case your not aware, ethanol wreaks havoc on rubber. It sounds like you may have a tear in your diaphragm.

 

[BWG56]

don't know if mine is the odd man out, but, on my petcock, the reserve is all the way forward, off is straight out (middle), and on is all the way back. OE.

Mine is the same as yours Tom

 

[Gmutoagrsv]

When is the last time you had your carb apart? Just in case your not aware, ethanol wreaks havoc on rubber. It sounds like you may have a tear in your diaphragm.

I've only had the bike a month. Maybe less. I wasn't sure about that deep into it so I haven't at all.

 

[BWG56]

I don't know where the petcock screen is but I looked at the petcock and the fuel line and there is no green anything or slimy or anything like that however inside the tank I can see the green and I can see some of that is peeled away I have a picture of that as well
u are right as intermittent as it is I don't think it has to do with the settings at all now you saying that made me think about it.

.

You have to remove the petcock, the screen is up in the tank.

 

[Big D Florida]

I know it's difficult troubleshooting over the phone or verbally especially through messaging but again I appreciate you guys giving it everything
You are quite welcome, that is what this site is about, for the most part. Many of the members on here have helped me, and countless others.


I checked the gas cap I can blow through it no problems there is no white thing in there at all I have a picture of that
Good... that should eliminate that as a cause.


I don't know where the petcock screen is but I looked at the petcock and the fuel line and there is no green anything or slimy or anything like that however inside the tank I can see the green and I can see some of that is peeled away I have a picture of that as well
The screen is inside the tank, the gas must be drained, and petcock must be removed to inspect. It is inside the tank that the green slimy substance will accumulate, but only if your tank liner is disintegrating. Ker posted a good picture of it, and the contaminates often picked up from the fuel storage tanks when pumping your gas.
* Note... Never get gas when a fuel truck is making a delivery, it stirs up the sediments in the storage tanks.

I am not sure what Jets are in it I have not actually opened up the carb. The plugs are champion ra8hc. I replaced them already so they are brand new.
Jets might be your issue. The size is stamped on the jet, the carb bowl must be removed to take both jets out for inspection, cleaning, or replacement.
Those are the correct plugs. I with your pipes, I would suggest 78 & 32 jet sizes.

I do not see a white cap on the mixture screw.
That is OK, the caps are to prevent tampering or inadvertent turning of the screw once it is set.



You have several other good suggestions and ideas here from other folks. Hope you can get it worked out soon.

 

[Big D Florida]

One more thing I thought of... when our bikes "sneeze" through the carb, that is what a backfire is (not decel pop out the tailpipes)... it is often a symptom of a lean condition.

 

[bdm7250]

I've only had the bike a month. Maybe less. I wasn't sure about that deep into it so I haven't at all.

Had a similar issue with my slammer, my bellows seal, ejector nozzle o-ring and diaphragm were all damaged. Bike ran like shit but never actually died, just something you may want to check at some point.

 

[bdm7250]

Mine is the same as yours Tom

Mine too, strange cause I have a mastiff.... .

 

[BWG56]

Mine too, strange cause I have a mastiff.... .

Who cares