Bleh. Ratbike Razz '88 won't start.

[leatherneck]

To be clear, this is my first gas powered scoot. I have an electric model, which is strictly ok.

Here's the scoop:

1988 Razz. Known issues are electric ignition doesn't work.
Rear brake cable is stuck, but front works just fine. I'm ok with that for now. It stops on a nickel right now, I can wait a bit to make it stop on a dime.
Guy I bought it from said the choke needs to be wide open to make it work. Said on cold days, he just sprayed starter fluid in there and all was well. He also said to leave the gas cap loose because it will vacuum-lock.

He also said he didn't trust the oil pump so he premixed the fuel before putting it in there.

He ended up riding it some 40 miles to my house to deliver it. I rode it 3 times in the last month for a total of maybe 10ish miles.

So now here's where I'm at.

Last time I took it out, I figured "Hey, This thing is prolly getting low on fuel. Let me check before I head home." Gauge said 1/4th a tank left, so I just went on home.

Last weekend, I went to start it up. It sounded like it wanted to fire up, but couldn't quite make it over. I checked the fuel tank, all but bone dry. There were some small puddles in the bottom, but for all intents and purposes, it was empty.

I went to the gas station today. Bought some 2-stroke oil, a gas can and some fuel.

I went straight home and put the oil in there (~ 7 oz.) and then poured in the fuel. I put the remainder of the oil in the oil tank with the intent to see if it was working at all.

Now it still won't start. Maybe I'm forgetting a step or something. I don't have an owner's manual to consult, so here I am...

What I do is:

1) Put in the key, turn it all the way to the right.
2) Open the choke
3) Make sure the switch is on run.
4) Open the throttle
5) Pull back on the break
6) Kick.

Again, it sounds like it wants to turn over, but doesn't. I've done this 10 kicks in a row with no joy.

Now I have ridden it a few times, and nothing that I am aware of has changed. Any suggestions?

[fastrazz89]

Sounds like your Razz needs some REAL maintenance. It should run perfectly fine with the choke off. You should start with the basics:
1.take apart and clean out the carb REALLY well
2.Make sure fuel lines and the vacuum line is correctly connected.
3.replace the spark plug with a NEW one.
4.Drain all (if any) old gas from the gastank and fill gastank with fresh gas.

Here is how to go about cleaning out the carb: For your carb, get a phillips screwdriver and a flatblade screwdriver. Remove the carb from the scooter- it is held onto the engine by a hoseclamp; loosen the hoseclamp and the carb should come loose with a little bit of wiggling. Then, take the phillips screwdriver and remove the screw from the top of the carburetor. Now you should be able to take the top of the carb with all of the cables and needles off of the carburetor. Now take the carburetor somewhere that is brightly lit and clean. Disassemble the carburetor- take the phillips screwdriver and remove the float bowl from the bottom of the carburetor (there may be some gas still in the float bowl). Take the phillips screwdriver and remove the float (the round thing that bounces up and down in the bottom of the carb). Be careful to not bend or lose the little needle that is attached to the float. With your flatblade screwdriver, remove the two brass jets in the bottom of the carb.
That is it for disassembly. You may want to take some carb cleaner and an air compressor to blow out ALL of the small passages in the carb and its jets. By all means get ALL of the small passages clean- even the smallest bit of gunk will throw off how the scooter runs. Also be sure to clean the little float needle well so it doesn't stick.
Once you have everything all clean, re-assemble the carb- put in the brass jets, put in the float AND NEEDLE in (make sure the needle is hooked to the tab on the float) and screw the float down into its proper place. Be sure to connect all lines to the carb, especially the tiny oil line. Finish re-assembly and put it back in the scooter. Once the scooter is fully assembled, make sure you have FRESH gas in the gas tank and have a new spark plug in the scooter.
Sorry for writing a how-to novel, but I really hope this works out for ya!

[fastrazz89]

Once you get the Razz running, here is how to find out if your oil pump is working:
Fill the gastank with gas mixed with two-stroke oil.
Go to your carb and pull the tiny black line on the carburetor that comes from the right side of the engine- that is your oil feed line. Let the scoot run, give it some throttle while it is on the stand. After awhile, some oil should come out of the tiny black oil line. If oil comes out of it, then your oil pump is good, just make sure your oil tank is full of oil, reconnect the oil feed line and there is no need to mix your gas and oil.

For your "vacuum lock" problem: this is probably due to a dirty carb. Clean out your carb and the problem will go away. Make sure to tighten your gascap all the way- that is how all of your gas evaporated out of your gastank! The gascap has a vent, so there is no need to keep it loose.

Start with cleaning out your carb, and go down the list like I said.
If you have any questions or need any help, feel free to ask!

[leatherneck]

Thanks for the info!

I did get it started tonight. First it ran about 100 ft and died. After a minute or two, it restarted and ran about 300ft and died. Next kick it restarted and performed just like it did before!

I'm absolutely going to go down the list you put out for me.

Thanks again for your time!

[leatherneck]

Oh, I forgot to mention, when it started and died the first time, I thought it sounded like it wasn't getting a steady flow of gas. I screwed the cap almost all the way on and it fired right up.

[fastrazz89]

I sent you a PM. ;wink)