07 R6 wont start after head gasket replacement

I'm hoping the all knowing BBS can help me with an issue I am having with my 07 R6. I replaced the head gasket on my engine, got everything put back together and torqued down to spec, and I can't get it started. It cranks over and sounds like it wants to start, but does not.
I feel like I have tried just about everything... I have ran diagnostic mode to check throttle position, and fire the spark plugs (which they do). I have drained the gas in the tank and put nice fresh gas in, I have checked the valve lash and verified everything to be in spec. I have double and triple checked TDC and made sure that the cams were lined up perfect at it, and I have done leak down tests and verified everything to be below 3% leak.
I am just about stumped... I know the cylinders are getting fuel, and I have verified by taking out the plugs after a round of cranking.
The only thing I wonder about is if the crank could be one revolution off of the firing order, therefore making the plugs fire just before the intake stroke, as opposed to the right time at the end of the compression stroke... the bike has a cylinder position sensor, but could this still be the case? I don't know if it affects the timing of the spark, or just fueling.
Any ideas you guys can come up with would be greatly appreciated!

 

this might sound stupid but I had someone call me one time he did the same thing replaced the head gasket but he put the cams in backwards intake in the exhaust and the exhaust in the intake the way you can tell is pull the cam pos. sensor out and make sure there is a pickup in the hole....i know but i have seen it happen!

 

Try new plugs..if the first "fuel" injected had turned to varnish or gone dead during the down time, you may have buggered the plugs or "washed" them with varnish....
You can also try to start it with the tank off (and new plugs) and see if it burps or burbles a tad...that would give you a clue if it wants to run and was flooded...
In addition, depending on how it resonded to the above, you could drop a few drops of fresh gas down the intakes (again with the tank off) and see if it fires a few pops to test the theory.

 

I just took out the plugs, hooked them back up to the coils, and grounded them, and then cranked on the engine to see if they would fire. They were firing ok and the spark still looked strong. Is it possible that they are just firing in the wrong order due to the crank position sensor being off, or does the cam position sensor automatically know where the piston is and therefore know when to fire the plugs?

 

The cam sensor determines injector timing, the crank sensor does the ignition.
It has a "waste spark" system which fires the plugs evey time the piston/s rise to TDC no matter if it's on a comp stoke or an exhaust stroke.
You can't determine if the plugs are bad or good by doing what you did.
Trust me on this, just replace the plugs, it's the quickest and most reliable way to test them...
The load placed on the plugs by the compression in the cyls raises the amps required for the spark to jump the gap (compared to ambient air pressure) and if there is ANY easier path to ground (such as an oil film, stale gas residue, or scratches caused by humans with wire brushes), the electricity will shunt around the air gap and there will be no spark.

 

That makes sense, thanks for the explanation on the sensors... it takes the guesswork out of one more thing. I will try the plugs next. I was hoping to not have to change the plugs, but I guess I will have to. They are those $100 a piece NGK kit plugs

 

Buy some generic plugs for testing and post repair startups...
You can clean the kit plugs (and any plug for that matter) by glass bead blasting..(the only legit way to clean plugs)..BUT if they are badly fouled, glass beads will not be able to save them.

 

They would be ok to run at low rpms, or should I use another washer on the stock plugs to be sure there is plenty clearance?

 

I very much doubt stock type plugs would interfere with the piston crowns...
I would not race or do full pull dyno runs with stock heat range plugs (at least not for long or in the heat of summer), but for starting and even street "testing" you should have no problems, unless you have done something else to the engine in addition to the .007 thinner headgasket install.

 

I appreciate the insight. I am just going to replace them with the kit plugs ... the clearance is less than just a thinner head gasket. If using a set of stock plugs with an extra washer is an option for post repair startups, that would definitely save me some money on plugs.

 

You can make a solid washer to any thickness you need, but using two oem style crush washers will result in a mangled mess of washers.
If you made major changes to the internals, you should already know how close the pistons get to the plugs.
I find it hard to believe you've shrunk the chamber far enough to touch the plugs...
Fwiw, you could screw a stock plug into the head and slowly rotate the crank by hand (and with only one plug installed) and see if parts touch.
Worst case would be a tiny ding in a piston and a closed gap on a stock plug..

 

I went and got some plugs today, cranked it by hand to make sure that there was clearance, and it was ok. I got the throttle bodies back in and put the tank on with some fresh gas.
It is still doing the same thing... It cranks pretty fast and doesn't want to start.
I just did some more leakdown tests because I wondered why it was cranking fast, and now it shows 40% leak through the rings... WTF?

 

How long did it "sit" and did it overheat the last time it ran?
Also, when you say it's leaking past the rings, can you hear it hissing at the oil filler orifice?
Sometimes it's hard to tell where the air pressure is going...
Quickest way to test for ring seal problems is to pour about a teaspoon of motor oil down the holes and test again.
If your reading goes WAY up then the rings are sticking in the grooves or are toasted/burnt/kaputs...
Expect to see some improvment on your re-test with oil added, but if it comes up a tad yet stays lower than it should, then ouch...

 

It didn't overheat last time it ran, and it was last on the track a little over a month ago . I have the side cover off and can hear the air coming down into the crankcase for sure. I could smell the gas in the air it is pushing through. I just poured some oil down before typing, and am letting it sit for a few. I am wondering if the fuel in the cylinder washed away the oil in the rings... when doing leak downs before cranking on it to get it started the last couple days, I was getting good readings...

 

It is also now showing error code 14

 

Both leak-down and compression tests should be done with a warm engine, otherwise you get inaccurate readings.

 

Dude, I'm about speechless on that one...
He's tying to find the cause of a no-start and has massive comp loss.

 

My sincerest apologies.

 

Your penalty is to change the oil on a 1969 harley....

 

Easy enough, I'll just wait a week until it leaks itself empty.