Test drive two Runs like crap now

Hello all,
I Took her out today after getting the charging system working.
It ran great for the first 20 min. I shut it off for a hour and then started out again. I got about a mile up the road when it ran out of gas. I put it on reserve and made it to a gas station....filled it up put it back on run and took off down the road. It was running ok and then I pulled the clutch going down a long hill and idled the engine for a min. It started to die when I let the clutch out so I figured that the vacuum at idle failed to operate the petcock so I put it on prime and it picked up but it would surge and had no power. It would run strong at times and other times it would not go over 5 k then it would kick in and go like hell Only to run bad after letting off the gas. What could it be? I rebuilt the petcocks but did not do the vacuum diaphragm. Could that be that problem? It is almost like one of the coils is kicking in and out.

What do you guys think

 

Spray some Starting Fluid directly into the AirBox AIR Intake and see how she goes with that.

That will tell you whether its a FUEL Problem ... -or- ... Ignition related!

Runs great on Ether = Fuel Supply Problem
Suns shitty on the Spray = Ignition break-down.

 

I will try that when I get some more bike energy... A little at a time. I was under the impression that ether was not good for engines. It will start idle and rev good without a load on it. So you have to take it for a ride for the problem to rear it's ugly head. I wonder if starting fluid would last long enough to see a difference. Well I will play with it soon and let you know how I made out.
Thanks

 

Do you have an in line fuel filter?

Running out fo gas might have sucked some junk (rust) in the carbs, petcock, fuel line, etc. (even though there is a filter or sorts on the petcock.)

If you have an in line filter, does it have nasties in it?

HTH
Jim

 

its pretty hard to get fuel filters on this bike. The petcocks are situated in such a way that the angle where the fuel lines go on makes it almost impossible to add filters. I was able to get more tubing from Len (XJ4ever) and fit the filters between the intake rubber boots. The fuel lines then make a u turn up and go into the carb fuel tees.
i used those little tapered ones with the barbed tubes on each end.

Mn

 

Add some Fuel Line.
Put-in an Inline Fram Fuel Filter.

As long as the Tank stays above the Carbs, ...
Gravity will get the GAS down to the Carbs.

 

One of the great things about this bike is that the tank has no rust inside. I am talking shinny like new. I did have the petcocks off redid the rubbers cleaned the internal filters. I will have to take the vacuum diaphragm and clean it out and replace the diaphragm. I know the bike needs new carb boots and I have patched them up with high temp gasket maker. I don't want to take the carbs off without replacing the boots. I will have to wait until I get some more money before that happens. I will work on it this week and let you guys know how things are going.

Thanks again for you input,
I will update this post as soon as I know more about the problem.

 

Ether is good for diagnosing a problem. Not for everyday 'I can't get my bike to start' use. Before long they become lazy and addicted to the ether.

 

Hi Guys
I got it fixed today and it runs better then ever. I rebuilt the vacuum diaphragm and cleaned the bowls. When I was installing all the fuel and vacuum lines I got out the repair manual and realized the lines where not hooked up the way they should have been. I got the bike with two of the lines crossed. I took it out for a long ride and it has so much power and is vary smooth. I am vary happy with the way the bike rides and handles.
All I need is a pair of foot pegs as I feel a bit crouched.

Well thanks for all your help and if you need anything let me know.