Robbin engine won't start

Badazzharley · 03-07-2021, 08:52 PM

WOW! Just checked the vales! One cylinder they both had .010 lash and the other cylinder both had 0 to slightly negative lash. So I adjusted all to the .004 and all the adjusting screws are the same height about 1/16" above the nuts. Rechecked the compression and Whala! 180 on one and 175 on the other.

JPonLKN · 03-07-2021, 09:35 PM

Is it running now?

Badazzharley · 03-07-2021, 09:57 PM

No. Still have the spark problem. One spark when I first hit the pedal then nothing. So I'm assuming the igniter is bad.

Badazzharley · 03-07-2021, 10:13 PM

Just discovered another interesting problem. I started to hook up the little throttle lever to the carb and it's about a 1/2" short. Also when I slid the air filter box on the side screws don't line up by the same 1/2". Very puzzling. Then I thought maybe this motor is a 350cc. I'm don't know if that would be the difference or not. But maybe the longer stroke would be the difference. Am I correct?

JPonLKN · 03-07-2021, 10:28 PM

What year cart? Then, some info on the motor. MCI or Pre-MCI? You can tell a MCI motor by the aluminum exhaust manifold which is cast directly into the head, where a Pre-MCI motor has a separate cast iron exhaust manifold.

From what I can tell, the 350 and 295 have all the same mounting points, and are geometrically the same with respect to locations of carb, exhaust, motor mounts, etc. I have seen that a pre-MCI muffler won't fit on a MCI motor without some modification, and some slight differences in the coil mounting bracket, but that is between the MCI and Pre-MCI motors. If you are putting a MCI motor in a Pre-MCI cart, or vice versa...you won't get spark correctly. You will get occasional spark, and carb backfires, but that is about it.

Take some photos of the motor, and one of the data tag on the cart, in the glove box area and post them.

Badazzharley · 03-07-2021, 11:04 PM

Well that is the problem. I guess I'm screwed.

JPonLKN · 03-08-2021, 10:15 AM

Nah, not screwed. In for a bit more work than just drop it in and run it, for sure. Not sure why your throttle linkage and other stuff is off by 1/2". I've interchanged MCI and pre-MCI periphery stuff a bunch on the machines I have been working on. The only issues I found were the coil mount and exhaust. I will say that I never tried to hook up the series of drag links on a MCI motor before, just put the MCI style throttle cable on each machine and abandoned those drag links. There is a metal bracket that mounts off the carb that holds the choke cable and throttle cable. A new throttle cable and that bracket is all you need to fix that. In fact, I just made the bracket for one of my machines last week and it works fine. I have a carb coming in later today...If I remember, I will post some photos of the setup so you can see what changed.

As for getting the motor running, you will need a MCI ignitor. Good luck! I suspect it already has a MCI pulsar coil on it (mounts behind the fan, has blue and green wires coming out). That should be it, they wire up the same, starter generator is the same. You might end up with some carb issues, as the MCI carbs are smaller diameter and smaller jets, I believe, but most folks here say they are interchangeable. It might take some playing to get the right air/fuel mixture by re-jetting, and you can always add a restrictor plate to the carburetor insulator if it is running too lean.

Pull the black "House" cover over the electricals and post a photo, I'm curious what ignitor you have. We can tell by seeing the outside. Regulator and solenoid should work fine. The coils are different too, although I have heard you can make them work. Never tried though. You can do simple google searches using MCI, or Pre-MCI with whatever component you are looking for and you will see the differences to tell what you have.

All the wiring is the same, except the newer stuff had plastic connectors, where the pre-MCI stuff is more spade connectors. Did your muffler bolt up easily in the cart? An overall top view photo of the entire engine bay would be helpful too. Where did you get the motor? Was it recently rebuilt?

Badazzharley · 03-08-2021, 10:35 AM

I bought the motor off offer up. It came with an aftermarket muffler and it bolted up fine. It has not been rebuilt. The guy did a Preditor V-Twin conversion but said this motor ran perfectly. It does have great compression after I adjusted the valves. Here are pictures of the igniter and top view of the motor.

JPonLKN · 03-08-2021, 10:55 AM

I was editing my post above when you posted the photos, so there is some changed info up there.

Yeah, Pre-MCI coil and Ignitor for sure. I can't tell what color wires are coming from behind the fan shroud. Are they blue and green or red and white? If they are red and white, it would be Pre-MCI pulsar coil, and if blue and green, it is MCI. They have different mounting pattern, so they should be blue and green if this truly is a MCI motor.
As for the carb..if you are using your pre-MCI carb, it will be bigger, and shouldn't be a problem, given that exhaust you have, as you should be able to flow more air through the system to make up for the extra fuel.

Badazzharley · 03-08-2021, 11:13 AM

The wires are blue and green. So I will order an MCI igniter. How do I wire it up if the connectors are different? Should I do a search for a wiring diagram?

03-07-2021, 08:52 PM	#11
Badazzharley Not Yet Wild Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 31	Re: Robbin engine won't start WOW! Just checked the vales! One cylinder they both had .010 lash and the other cylinder both had 0 to slightly negative lash. So I adjusted all to the .004 and all the adjusting screws are the same height about 1/16" above the nuts. Rechecked the compression and Whala! 180 on one and 175 on the other.
Badazzharley Not Yet Wild Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 31

03-07-2021, 09:35 PM	#12
JPonLKN Gone Wild Join Date: Jul 2020 Location: NC Posts: 773	Re: Robbin engine won't start Is it running now?

03-07-2021, 09:57 PM	#13
Badazzharley Not Yet Wild Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 31	Re: Robbin engine won't start No. Still have the spark problem. One spark when I first hit the pedal then nothing. So I'm assuming the igniter is bad.
Badazzharley Not Yet Wild Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 31

03-07-2021, 10:13 PM	#14
Badazzharley Not Yet Wild Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 31	Re: Robbin engine won't start Just discovered another interesting problem. I started to hook up the little throttle lever to the carb and it's about a 1/2" short. Also when I slid the air filter box on the side screws don't line up by the same 1/2". Very puzzling. Then I thought maybe this motor is a 350cc. I'm don't know if that would be the difference or not. But maybe the longer stroke would be the difference. Am I correct?
Badazzharley Not Yet Wild Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 31

03-07-2021, 10:28 PM	#15
JPonLKN Gone Wild Join Date: Jul 2020 Location: NC Posts: 773	Re: Robbin engine won't start What year cart? Then, some info on the motor. MCI or Pre-MCI? You can tell a MCI motor by the aluminum exhaust manifold which is cast directly into the head, where a Pre-MCI motor has a separate cast iron exhaust manifold. From what I can tell, the 350 and 295 have all the same mounting points, and are geometrically the same with respect to locations of carb, exhaust, motor mounts, etc. I have seen that a pre-MCI muffler won't fit on a MCI motor without some modification, and some slight differences in the coil mounting bracket, but that is between the MCI and Pre-MCI motors. If you are putting a MCI motor in a Pre-MCI cart, or vice versa...you won't get spark correctly. You will get occasional spark, and carb backfires, but that is about it. Take some photos of the motor, and one of the data tag on the cart, in the glove box area and post them.

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03-08-2021, 10:15 AM	#17
JPonLKN Gone Wild Join Date: Jul 2020 Location: NC Posts: 773	Re: Robbin engine won't start Nah, not screwed. In for a bit more work than just drop it in and run it, for sure. Not sure why your throttle linkage and other stuff is off by 1/2". I've interchanged MCI and pre-MCI periphery stuff a bunch on the machines I have been working on. The only issues I found were the coil mount and exhaust. I will say that I never tried to hook up the series of drag links on a MCI motor before, just put the MCI style throttle cable on each machine and abandoned those drag links. There is a metal bracket that mounts off the carb that holds the choke cable and throttle cable. A new throttle cable and that bracket is all you need to fix that. In fact, I just made the bracket for one of my machines last week and it works fine. I have a carb coming in later today...If I remember, I will post some photos of the setup so you can see what changed. As for getting the motor running, you will need a MCI ignitor. Good luck! I suspect it already has a MCI pulsar coil on it (mounts behind the fan, has blue and green wires coming out). That should be it, they wire up the same, starter generator is the same. You might end up with some carb issues, as the MCI carbs are smaller diameter and smaller jets, I believe, but most folks here say they are interchangeable. It might take some playing to get the right air/fuel mixture by re-jetting, and you can always add a restrictor plate to the carburetor insulator if it is running too lean. Pull the black "House" cover over the electricals and post a photo, I'm curious what ignitor you have. We can tell by seeing the outside. Regulator and solenoid should work fine. The coils are different too, although I have heard you can make them work. Never tried though. You can do simple google searches using MCI, or Pre-MCI with whatever component you are looking for and you will see the differences to tell what you have. All the wiring is the same, except the newer stuff had plastic connectors, where the pre-MCI stuff is more spade connectors. Did your muffler bolt up easily in the cart? An overall top view photo of the entire engine bay would be helpful too. Where did you get the motor? Was it recently rebuilt?

03-08-2021, 10:55 AM	#19
JPonLKN Gone Wild Join Date: Jul 2020 Location: NC Posts: 773	Re: Robbin engine won't start I was editing my post above when you posted the photos, so there is some changed info up there. Yeah, Pre-MCI coil and Ignitor for sure. I can't tell what color wires are coming from behind the fan shroud. Are they blue and green or red and white? If they are red and white, it would be Pre-MCI pulsar coil, and if blue and green, it is MCI. They have different mounting pattern, so they should be blue and green if this truly is a MCI motor. As for the carb..if you are using your pre-MCI carb, it will be bigger, and shouldn't be a problem, given that exhaust you have, as you should be able to flow more air through the system to make up for the extra fuel.

03-08-2021, 11:13 AM	#20
Badazzharley Not Yet Wild Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 31	Re: Robbin engine won't start The wires are blue and green. So I will order an MCI igniter. How do I wire it up if the connectors are different? Should I do a search for a wiring diagram?
Badazzharley Not Yet Wild Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 31

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