Vintage husqvarnas not starting

speedman wrote:

Do you know how to use the tickler button on the Bing carb for a cold start? They are a barbarically primitive cold start device, but...

Do you know how to use the tickler button on the Bing carb for a cold start? They are a barbarically primitive cold start device, but we always found them reliable if the carb was jetted decently & in good working order.

On the left side of the carb, just left of the idle screw, is a weird vertical plunger with a black plastic tip. What it does is push down on the carb floats so that the float needle allow fuel to flow into the float bowl as long as you keep the tickler pushed down. For a cold start, you open the gas tap(s), then depress the tickler and hold it down till gas starts to drip out of the float bowl's overflow tube. (Overflow tube is the brass standpipe inside the bowl, not any of the vent hoses.)

Once you see a little gas starting to puddle atop the engine cases, let the tickler go and commence kicking. Tickling the Bing ensures that some premix is getting into the motor, and the temporary high level of fuel inside the float bowl will cause the bike to run rich till the excess is used up. I think it's the opposite of a choke, which restricts airflow to make the engine run rich like it needs when cold; the tickler increases available fuel to make it run rich.

You should only need the tickler on truly cold starts; using it when not needed can load up your engine/foul your plug. Like I said, a very primitive device, but if the spark is solid, it can be very effective for that first start of the day. Does require cleaning the little premix puddle residue off the top of the cases as often as you see fit.

Some old Bings are equipped with chokes/starting circuits in addition to the tickler. But they are variable slides rather than an on/off style like Mikunis, etc. tend to have. I recall people using the variable Bing chokes to change overall jetting a tad for long sustained high-rpm runs like road sections in an enduro: once they were topped out, they'd ease the choke lever on till the engine started to run rich, then back the lever off till it cleaned up. That way they knew they probably weren't running lean on top. The variable chokes could also be used to compensate for temperature or altitude a bit.

JMCR250 wrote:

I have a permanent scar on my right shin from trying to get my buddy's Husky 125 running for a VMX race we drove all the...

I have a permanent scar on my right shin from trying to get my buddy's Husky 125 running for a VMX race we drove all the way to Glen Helen to do. And this was with a dialed-in Mikuni. Turns out that day, it was a spark plug cap, but there were other subsequent issues until he finally got fed up and sold it cheap so he could buy an 82 Honda CR125.

My understanding is that the kick starter doesn't turn the crank over fast enough to get a reliable spark generated. If everything is perfect, it might work. If jetting is off or altitude/temps/pressure change, a big hill becomes your friend.

Very nice bikes. I hope you get the starting jinx mastered.

speedman wrote:

Do you know how to use the tickler button on the Bing carb for a cold start? They are a barbarically primitive cold start device, but...

Do you know how to use the tickler button on the Bing carb for a cold start? They are a barbarically primitive cold start device, but we always found them reliable if the carb was jetted decently & in good working order.

On the left side of the carb, just left of the idle screw, is a weird vertical plunger with a black plastic tip. What it does is push down on the carb floats so that the float needle allow fuel to flow into the float bowl as long as you keep the tickler pushed down. For a cold start, you open the gas tap(s), then depress the tickler and hold it down till gas starts to drip out of the float bowl's overflow tube. (Overflow tube is the brass standpipe inside the bowl, not any of the vent hoses.)

Once you see a little gas starting to puddle atop the engine cases, let the tickler go and commence kicking. Tickling the Bing ensures that some premix is getting into the motor, and the temporary high level of fuel inside the float bowl will cause the bike to run rich till the excess is used up. I think it's the opposite of a choke, which restricts airflow to make the engine run rich like it needs when cold; the tickler increases available fuel to make it run rich.

You should only need the tickler on truly cold starts; using it when not needed can load up your engine/foul your plug. Like I said, a very primitive device, but if the spark is solid, it can be very effective for that first start of the day. Does require cleaning the little premix puddle residue off the top of the cases as often as you see fit.

Some old Bings are equipped with chokes/starting circuits in addition to the tickler. But they are variable slides rather than an on/off style like Mikunis, etc. tend to have. I recall people using the variable Bing chokes to change overall jetting a tad for long sustained high-rpm runs like road sections in an enduro: once they were topped out, they'd ease the choke lever on till the engine started to run rich, then back the lever off till it cleaned up. That way they knew they probably weren't running lean on top. The variable chokes could also be used to compensate for temperature or altitude a bit.

SouthwestMfg wrote:

^^ This ^^ If you not fouling the plug then either you not getting enough gas or your coil or ignition is bad. You should have...

^^ This ^^
If you not fouling the plug then either you not getting enough gas or your coil or ignition is bad.
You should have a blue or white spark. You can grab the plug (scary) but a good spark will jolt you more than a weak one. Of course we are assuming you set the timing and have compression . . . .

Hasletjoe wrote:

Quick question, If you turn the fuel on and pull the float bowl of, is there fuel there?

ohiomotoxer wrote:

First off the plug wire is laying on the pipe so it wont run long if it does start. Second the throttle cable looks suspect at...

First off the plug wire is laying on the pipe so it wont run long if it does start.
Second the throttle cable looks suspect at the carb cap adjuster.
Tape the wires from the stator to the coil to the frame.
These issues alone make me question the work done on the machine.

Also check that the reeds are not sealed closed OR are bent open.


Daine Leimbach (see below) told me to run a seperate ground from the coil to the stator plate and to make sure the kill switch wire was shielded from ground.
Find top of hill.
Dont use the tickler.
Fuel on, lay the bike over on the shifter side until you see some fuel dripping from the carb.
Stand bike up and do a bump start.

If she doesnt pop you have ignition issues.
You didnt mention the make of the new ignitions.
Motosplats are junk and can fail on a whim.

I knew the late Daine Leimbach from Penton/KTM he tested my motoplats and they eventually came out with the PVL which i let them use my hondaCR’s for the rotor/stator plate work up.

Kaaden'sTheory wrote:

I went through this with my Mikuni equipped 77 390CR. Two things I learned that made a huge difference in cold starting: Make sure you don't...

I went through this with my Mikuni equipped 77 390CR. Two things I learned that made a huge difference in cold starting: Make sure you don't have a resistor style plug cap. There are a couple of places that sell caps that say non resistor but if you check them, you will find they have about 5 ohms. Dennis Kirk has proper non resistor caps and they are less than $2.00.
The other thing is to make sure your kick start is wound back so your lever gets a bite at about one o-clock. It's easy to put the lever on and not have it engage till halfway down the stroke. You definitely need to get it spinning as fast as possible when you kick it.
Not sure if this will cure your problem but it should help. As the owners of old British cars say, "carburetor problems are usually spark and electrical problems are usually fuel" Good luck

ohiomotoxer wrote:

First off the plug wire is laying on the pipe so it wont run long if it does start. Second the throttle cable looks suspect at...

First off the plug wire is laying on the pipe so it wont run long if it does start.
Second the throttle cable looks suspect at the carb cap adjuster.
Tape the wires from the stator to the coil to the frame.
These issues alone make me question the work done on the machine.

Also check that the reeds are not sealed closed OR are bent open.


Daine Leimbach (see below) told me to run a seperate ground from the coil to the stator plate and to make sure the kill switch wire was shielded from ground.
Find top of hill.
Dont use the tickler.
Fuel on, lay the bike over on the shifter side until you see some fuel dripping from the carb.
Stand bike up and do a bump start.

If she doesnt pop you have ignition issues.
You didnt mention the make of the new ignitions.
Motosplats are junk and can fail on a whim.

I knew the late Daine Leimbach from Penton/KTM he tested my motoplats and they eventually came out with the PVL which i let them use my hondaCR’s for the rotor/stator plate work up.

speedman wrote:

I meant to ask the other day, is the float bowl's standpipe clear? Make sure it's not blocked, as it does a bit of the float...

I meant to ask the other day, is the float bowl's standpipe clear? Make sure it's not blocked, as it does a bit of the float bowl's venting/pressure equalization. I don't think its diameter is critical like a jet's, it's just a brass tube, so you could clear it with a length of wire. You definitely should be able to see straight through it from the inside looking out. The main thing the standpipe does, I think, is let you know the float bowl level has risen far enough when you use the tickler, and it can't do that if it's blocked.

There is definitely something amiss with the carb venting anyway, now that I look again at the first pictures in the thread. On the righthand side of the carb is the main float bowl vent, which looks like a smaller version of the fuel fitting on the same side. I was looking at the last pics and wondering where the carb vent hose(s) were, and scrolled to the OP and discovered they're MIA.

I think it's 1/8" ID tubing and needs to loop up over the carb and back down the other side and end lower than the bottom of the float bowl. We use to thread the free end(s) under the bale that secures the float bowl, as it wasn't hard to pull the hose out of there if we had to get at the jets or whatever.

Also make that fitting is open clear through to the interior of the float bowl, same as the standpipe. I'm puzzled that the vent hose was omitted; anyone who would do that might leave its fitting blocked.

Some Bings had two such vents IIRC, and we'd thread a hose end under the float bowl bale on each side. Still way quicker to get the bowl off & on than dealing with Mikuni bowl screws was.

Another starting tip may already have occurred to you: until you have the bike squared away and starting readily, swallow your pride, step off the bike and kick it with your right foot. That can be essential to generating the necessary starter shaft speed others have mentioned, since most people are somewhat right-footed in terms of the additional muscle fiber recruitment that can make your dominant limb stronger in a given motion. It seemed like even the factory guys would do this back in the day; certainly if restarting after a crash, hey, you're already off the bike anyway, and you want to deploy your maximum possible kicking strength to fire it up more reliably.

speedman wrote:

I meant to ask the other day, is the float bowl's standpipe clear? Make sure it's not blocked, as it does a bit of the float...

I meant to ask the other day, is the float bowl's standpipe clear? Make sure it's not blocked, as it does a bit of the float bowl's venting/pressure equalization. I don't think its diameter is critical like a jet's, it's just a brass tube, so you could clear it with a length of wire. You definitely should be able to see straight through it from the inside looking out. The main thing the standpipe does, I think, is let you know the float bowl level has risen far enough when you use the tickler, and it can't do that if it's blocked.

There is definitely something amiss with the carb venting anyway, now that I look again at the first pictures in the thread. On the righthand side of the carb is the main float bowl vent, which looks like a smaller version of the fuel fitting on the same side. I was looking at the last pics and wondering where the carb vent hose(s) were, and scrolled to the OP and discovered they're MIA.

I think it's 1/8" ID tubing and needs to loop up over the carb and back down the other side and end lower than the bottom of the float bowl. We use to thread the free end(s) under the bale that secures the float bowl, as it wasn't hard to pull the hose out of there if we had to get at the jets or whatever.

Also make that fitting is open clear through to the interior of the float bowl, same as the standpipe. I'm puzzled that the vent hose was omitted; anyone who would do that might leave its fitting blocked.

Some Bings had two such vents IIRC, and we'd thread a hose end under the float bowl bale on each side. Still way quicker to get the bowl off & on than dealing with Mikuni bowl screws was.

Another starting tip may already have occurred to you: until you have the bike squared away and starting readily, swallow your pride, step off the bike and kick it with your right foot. That can be essential to generating the necessary starter shaft speed others have mentioned, since most people are somewhat right-footed in terms of the additional muscle fiber recruitment that can make your dominant limb stronger in a given motion. It seemed like even the factory guys would do this back in the day; certainly if restarting after a crash, hey, you're already off the bike anyway, and you want to deploy your maximum possible kicking strength to fire it up more reliably.

jakebach88 wrote:

I took the carbs apart last night and checked all of the passageways. One of the vent hoses you mentioned was clocked but the standpipes were...

I took the carbs apart last night and checked all of the passageways. One of the vent hoses you mentioned was clocked but the standpipes were both clear! I also have always been trying to start the bike standing next to it… hahaha when I bought the bike I tried starting it like a normal bike which ended badly 😂

OldPro277 wrote:

I've re-read this entire thread and I'm still not sure if you actually tried bump starting down a hill or being towed . If you haven't...

I've re-read this entire thread and I'm still not sure if you actually tried bump starting down a hill or being towed . If you haven't tried those methods ,you need to. You've got to see if these things even run at all before you try to get them to start easier.

lostboy819 wrote:

Are you getting any signs like a back fire or pop or anything when trying to start it ?? Jetting would not be so far off...

Are you getting any signs like a back fire or pop or anything when trying to start it ?? Jetting would not be so far off that it wouldn't even get a small sputter or pop or something. Something id way off if neither one of them even show a sign of life when kicking it over.

RJP MOTO wrote:

Not trying to be insulting but has fresh fuel already been mentioned? Apologies if it has................................Good luck for tomorrow.

speedman wrote:

Sorry if redundant, but I'd check the float level, in case the actuating tab somehow isn't set right. Usually setting it so when the floats are...

Sorry if redundant, but I'd check the float level, in case the actuating tab somehow isn't set right. Usually setting it so when the floats are level (parallel w/ edge of carb body), the tab is just touching the spring-loaded ball in the float needle, not pressing the ball in/forcing the needle against the seat. Idea being that the floats will have to go farther up toward the top of the carb to actually shut the float needle.

Another Bing quirk that probably doesn't affect your starting issue is Bing putting a little cylindrical mesh screen down in the main jet well in the float bowl. Tends to be crushed/twisted so that it's stuck round the outside of the main jet when you pull the bowl off. I thought it was some kind of primitive large-gauge last-ditch fuel filter, till I saw the explanation that it's there to fight cavitation over rough ground, etc. by trapping premix down in the main jet well where it's needed. Early ones are metal mesh, later ones are plastic. Needs to be in there--another primitive but effective Bing thing, which I mention because I myself mistook its purpose at first . . . back when Richard Nixon was President.

Also second the above advice about checking the throttle cable at the carb top: that little rubber boot is meant to be slid down till its bottom inner edge goes over the bottom edge of the adjuster's flats, to help keep the outer cable seated in the adjuster where it belongs. In fact, we would safety wire or zip tie that boot to the adjuster to make sure the cable stayed put. The way it's sitting in your first pictures, the cable could bounce or jump out if you shut off suddenly, hanging the throttle partway open, which is not as bad as sticking wfo, but can be truly awkward if you're not expecting it.

Good advice above to try bump starting first to confirm it definitely can be started if spun hard enough for long enough. Good luck this weekend, I hope by next weekend you're looking back and wondering why it was ever difficult to start.