Hitchcocks Forum

Hi
Having just bought a 2005 Enfield 500 Bullet Electra X can someone please help.

The bike is difficult to start from cold. The battery is fully charged and turnes the engine over ok.
Petrol through the carb is ok as well.
the only way i was able to start the bike last Sat was to remove the spark plug and warm it up first.
Then it started immediately.
Any help would be be appreciated as to what the problem may be.

regards

Does this happen all the time from cold? Or just when it's left a LONG time because mine does this. Could be electrical. Weak spark? I did have a weak spark but by cleaning all the connections up i got it to be a reliable starter last year. The only way is to check each connection and if you're handy with a multimeter try and check each of the main parts (condenser, regulator/rectifier etc).

Try a NEW spark plug, not just a cleaned up old one? Dead easy to try and it HAS made a difference to my bike at times. Good luck Chris

Thanks for the replies so far gents
The first thing I was going to try was changing the spark plug.
The one in there is an NGK and looks in good condition but as its a quick easy job I was just going to change it in any case.
Do you recommend a particular type or make of plug that's better in these bikes than others.??

If it started OK with a warmed plug then it will likely be the plug.
Recommended replacement is NGK B9ES

Don't touch the throttle AT ALL when starting from cold with the choke out. (That is in the manual.)

These cheap NGK's can be a little iffy especially if running a little rich, something about a deposit on the insulator which shorts the spark and defies attempts at cleaning..

As a one off just try an iridium plug, BR9EIX available from our host at £9.50.. Expensive i know but fairly confident these are not faked as a large number of the cheap ones seem to be…
Mine is about to start its fourth year and still starts fine… gwilly

On the other hand Papasmurf, mine refuses to start without a smidgen of throttle - hot or cold. It runs fine, mixture and timing seem spot on and it starts 1st/2nd kick every time but insists on that bit of throttle. They're all different!

At one stage my crossbred Electra/cast iron was chewing up plugs like there was no tomorrow at one stage I was only getting 150ks out of a plug. I believe the problem was fuel because the plugs always seemed to fail when the motor was under load and opening the throttle in fifth gear when going uphill and it must have wet the plug and it would just cut out. Dropping the needle one notch seemed to solve the problem.

Just how widespread is this fake NGK problem? Judging by the fake identity guides I've seen on the internet every one I've bought over several years has been fake, wherever I've bought it from. I can't imagine I've been conned every time. Has anyone positively found one?