You'er right, it was not OK. She was dead, but now she lives. Connie is alive! She’s alive!
I re-charged the battery and tried once more, but with the same result (funny that!), so I unhooked the battery and started dismantling: first the cam chain tensioner (manual after market type), then the alternator and then the starter motor. When taking off the alternator the manual says ‘remove the mounting bolts’ and shows a photo with arrows pointing to 2 bolts. There is in fact a 3rd bolt hidden away deep under the alternator that requires a long 6mm Allen key. That done, getting the starter motor out requires that you have an angled 10mm ring spanner, but don’t undo the bolt all the way or the spanner snags against the oil filler cap just as the bolt comes loose but not out of it hole. The result is that you have to manipulate the bolt with your fingers in a spot you cannot see to turn the bolt back in just far enough to release the spanner!
The starter seemed to have been jammed, but once it was off I applied the battery 12volts to it with jump leads and after the first attempt it sprang into life. So, I lubed everything up, checked the ‘O’ rings were all OK and put all the bits back together.
Now to try again… I had taken the plugs out of cyls 1 & 4 just to make cranking a little easier and also to check that I was getting a spark. I pressed the starter button and … it worked! I had sparks on the plugs for 1 & 4 so I replaced them, re-fitted the tank and tried again. Connie coughed a few times and obviously wanted to start, but after 2+ years of not breathing she was obviously finding it difficult. I sprayed a liberal quantity of BRADEX into the airbox and pressed the button again. This time she coughed and fired. Billowing smoke at the back end from the bradex but with a bit of choke and a gentle hand on the accelerator and she settled down to an idol at about 1100 RPM.
Now her heart is beating, the next move is to adjust and balance the carbs, rebuild the front and rear suspension, refurb and refit the brakes, flush the cooling system and oil and do a full service on everything. That’ll keep me busy for a few more days.
Kevin