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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2008 11:40 am
by Whiskerfish
Old Fogey wrote:They can also supply Viton sheet which may be better; any thoughts?

Does the original diaphram have reinforcing in it like the ones you've made up?
Viton would be good I think. It is listed here
http://www.merl-ltd.co.uk/2003_materials/rubber12.shtml "have outstanding resistance to chemical attack by oxidation, by acids and by fuels".

Yes the original diaphram has a fiber core inside it. I can see it around the edges.

Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2008 2:14 pm
by peteybug
Whisker you have any luck? With yours. If not I'll make you a deal I'll send one of mine to you to try( working on my bike now ) If it works on yours you send a non working one back in exchange.

Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2008 4:48 pm
by Whiskerfish
I have fussed with it 2 or 3 times today with no luck. I shaved down the screw head so it is below the lip of the big diaphram washer. I have adjusted the Diaphram position by placing washers on the post below the Diaphram. I had opened up the spring some and I opened it up some more. Actually a lot more. Still no luck.

I tried the Better half's hair dryer to release some of the tension on the diaphram. That did not work. I still have almost a quarter inch of freeplay on the cam lever when the top of the pump is installed. My thinking is that the diaphram is under so much tension that it is not going to the top of it's travel. Next thing to try is submerging it in boiling water. Gonna have to wait for tomorrow when the Wife is at work to do that. I learned a long time agao that when she spends all weekend cleaning the house to keep the motorcycle parts out of the Kitchen for at least 24 hours. ;)

Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2008 5:41 pm
by peteybug
I don't believe its the screw but maybe. I just had to manualy work pump after it was back together. Then it would stick in down possition loosend screws a little and kept working rod then tighten and work rod. I think this made material more flexable. It is a stiff fabric. Oh ya I know what you mean about doin stuff in house shakehands

Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2008 5:50 pm
by Whiskerfish
Well this thing has been on and off the bike at least a half dozen times. Each time I had the bike running for a minute or better So I think it has been exercised. I am hoping that boiling water and some stretching will help.

The screw head now is about the size of the original post dimple. So I agree that is not the issue.

Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 9:34 pm
by Sidecar Bob
We had some foreign biker visitors last week - a couple of the guys from the Transverse Twins on their way back from Alaska on an ST1100 sidecar outfit. Don (from Australia) had to have a good look at both of my bikes because he has a GoldWing as well as CXs.

When I explained the fitting on the carb manifold and my failed vacuum fuel pump experiment he told me that he is sure that fuel pump kits for GoldWings are available in Australia and did I want him to send me one when he gets home?

After they left here they continued east across Canada They are in NovaScotia right now) and are intending to make the Amish Rally in the Woods on Aug. 14-17, then head back to Gene's in Tennessee. After Don gets back home (end of the month) I will get him to look into the kit for me.

They seem to have a lot of stuff in Australia that isn't available anywhere else.

No stupid questions, huh? Let me try!

Posted: Tue Aug 05, 2008 11:49 am
by kritch
Ok so I am just assuming that the attempt to rebuild these pumps is to keep the bike as original as possible, right? Other wise my question is; Is there something wrong with running the electric pumps on these bikes? I am sure I am missing the answer to this somewhere on the site and people are going to yell at me.... please folks, just dont throw anything at me.

Posted: Tue Aug 05, 2008 12:02 pm
by Sidecar Bob
The rubber diaphragms in all of our fuel pumps will eventually deteriorate & fail - rubber doesn't last forever - so we will all need to replace or repair our pumps eventually. If you can replace the diaphragm for a fraction of the cost of replacing the whole pump or with substantially less work it makes a lot of sense.

Another consideration is that unless the electric pump is connected with some kind of tipover switch to turn it off in the event of the bike falling down, it is possible that, with the bike laying on it's side and the floats not able to stop the flow of fuel, fuel would continue to be pumped out through the carbs. With the original mechanical pump this won't happen.

Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 1:31 am
by heraldhamster
after peteybug's explanation of "exercising" his last week or so, I got to thinking and (I don't have it back together yet or working) but I punched my perimeter screw holes in the new diaphragm about a 1/16th of an inch further out than the OEM diaphragm. this should allow some wrinkle or "flex" once it's installed back in the housing.

I still have yet to drill & tap mine.

Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 6:53 am
by peteybug
kritch nothing wrong with electric pumps at all. I just want to do someting to keep old pump I'm a cheep old furt. Plus its a challange. There supose to be non rebuildable.

Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 7:38 am
by Whiskerfish
peteybug wrote:kritch nothing wrong with electric pumps at all. I just want to do someting to keep old pump I'm a cheep old furt. Plus its a challange. There supose to be non rebuildable.


Kind of my outlook too. Replacements are expensive and if a hunk of Nitrile will fix a few that is a great investment. $80 for a new pump is like 6 tanks of gas!! That is a lot of riding for those of us on "Fixed Incomes".

Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 8:30 am
by CYBORG
that would make your gas about $2.66 a gal. where do you get it? and can i get some? ;) ;)

Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 9:29 am
by Whiskerfish
That was before my coffee :roll:

thanks folks

Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 3:53 pm
by kritch
Makes sense. Especially the part about laying your bike down. That would be a bad situation.

Thanks for the explanations folks.

Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 4:22 pm
by CYBORG
as someone else memtioned, if you lay your bike down, you have more serious issues to worry about. and remember the bike is now horizonal, and fuel is laying on the side of the tank, or the top, and the pickup tubes are more then likly letting the pump suck air. i run an electric pump, and have layed the bike down three times without the fuel being an issue. the angle sw is a good idea, but just another thing to go wrong. some may remember the recall on goldwings with the angle sw failures. i think simple is better...and more reliable