Horsefly

Thanks to everyone for the good advice. I have been shopping, checking out various sites and have learned a lot in the last 24 hours. I'll start by saying that while patience may be a virtue, it's not one of mine. Once I dive into a project I'm not big on unnecessary delays. In stock definitely takes priority over a minor difference in price and sometimes, perfect is the enemy of good enough. I was pretty impressed with the on-line tech support chat guy at RMATV who was kind enough to tell me that I probably didn't need the $34 full main fuse box and should try the 94 cents package of replacement fuses first if the rest of the main fuse box looked OK. When I asked him why it was sold in quantities of 2 he said that the second one was a spare that gets hidden inside the top of the rubber housing for the fuse. ! if I didn't go back and look again and there was a spare tucked away inside of my housing case. DUH... replaced the blown fuse with the spare and now I have a really cool night light in my shop that still doesn't run... Also talked to my son who is a Harley guy and told him about the mouse nest inside the air cleaner box and explained how the foam air cleaner element had been shredded and mixed with fiberglass insulation to make a toasty nest. I asked him if it was OK to try to start it without the air cleaner element and he told me to clean everything out and to cut 4 inches off of the top of an old sock to make a tube to slip over the main air cleaner housing to create some back pressure. Ever wonder what mysteriously happened to the top of one of your socks during that ride to Sturgis? Anyway, I'm making progress. Have power to my ignition switch and the Neutral light comes on when it's switched on. Reverse light and oil pressure are a no-go but they can probably wait for another day. Also have headlights and tail lights. Have spark at the new spark plug and seem to have compression when I pull the manual start rope. Fresh fuel seems to be flowing out of the tank to the carb although I only put about 1/2 a gallon in the tank which may not be enough even though I tried setting the fuel knob to RES. The starter motor turns when I push the button and it sounds like it's trying hard but won't catch and start. I'm wondering about a shot of starting fluid in the air intake next. Any thoughts?

I've been pulling my '97 Foreman 400 apart trying to figure out why it doesn't run. Have come up with a short list of essential parts that need to be replaced with new - fuel strainer screen, air filter element, rear brake cable, 30 amp main fuse, etc. Heck, a bunch of new plastic retaining connector clips would probably make my life a lot easier in the future too. Any suggestions on reputable on-line parts suppliers? OEM vs aftermarket? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

He looks healthy and in general should be a good neighbor to have around. They keep your rodent population down. Not unusual to see one in daylight hours at this time of year.

Thanks. I found the Service Manual and it looks like it will be a huge help. Looking forward to being part of a forum where folks help each other again. I was a fisherman and a shrimper on the coast of SC for decades. We used to have a site where everybody shared useful information and especially tried to help out the newbies.

Glad to have found this site and happy to be a part of it. Profile pic is my trusty all wheel drive. Only 1 hp but has never let me down! Just picked up a 1997 Honda Foreman 400FW. To say it's going to be a project is an understatement in Spades. All of the fenders and mud flaps need to be replaced, seat is ripped, rear hand brake cable broken, etc. Oh, and of course it won't start... The good news is that it has been sitting under cover for the last 2 years and that the tires all took and seem to be holding air. Think I will start by testing the battery, draining and flushing the fuel tank, fresh fuel, a new spark plug and air cleaner, and draining and changing the oil. Anything obvious that I have over looked that should be taken care of before I pull the string? Figured I'd look into the electric start later and won't mess with the cosmetic parts until I get it running. I'm not a mechanic by any stretch but I'm pretty handy. I was able to find the Owners Manual on line but the only Service Manual I have located so far is $120 on Amazon. Is there another place to look for one and do I really need it? Any thoughts and suggestions are welcome.