by mr_luke » Tue Jun 21, 2011 6:08 am
I take it when you stripped the carb down you found the float bowl full of petrol with no water? And that the fuel is fresh? One thing which seems to catch people out fairly often is the rubber bit on the end of the 'choke' plunger. Is it present, and attached to the plunger as it should be, buried in the bottom of the carb, or missing altogether? Assuming it's there, how are you using it to try and start the bike? The manual for my ETZ suggests it should be started from cold with the 'choke' on and the throttle completely cold. Works for me!
Does the engine have a reasonable amount of compression? If so, I'd start looking closer at the ignition. A good spark when the plug is held against the cylinder head doesn't always mean it's doing much when it's actually fitted, so a new plug would be an easy place to start. Failing that, it would be worth checking the ignition timing, and cleaning up the points.
It's a wonderfully simple engine, so in theory there shouldn't be too much to go wrong!
BTW, there will be no reed valve, to the best of my knowledge.