Choke Cable and Carb Question XJ550

I have an XJ550 that has had a nasty hard starting issue- with full choke, some throttle, and a prayer it would start but if I let it die in those first few seconds I was SOL and taking the bus to school. I've been reading the boards without posting because I think knowledge is gained by listening and not talking.

- so I checked for spark and voltage while cranking, all good, battery is brand new Yumicron
- I've been running a little seafoam in every tank for weeks hoping it would clear the pilot jets. (yes weeks, 95% of the time I'd get her started).
- I yanked the starter apart and cleaned everything, brushes were like new.
- Started parking it in my garage and sitting it on a trickle charger.

None of that helped, so I bought new NGK plugs today and when I went to take out #1 I noticed the cable for the choke had a lot of slack in it, so with the lever I pulled the choke all the way out and I realized the enrichment circuit was barely engaging. Work the choke by hand and it starts right up every time. :x

So my question is, does this cable have adjustment? I can't seem to figure it out if it does, and how do I determine what length I need when I go down to the bike shop to buy a new one?

Lastly, the previous owner cut the mufflers off, and it sounds awesome, but I doubt that he jetted it, he just didn't seem like that kind of guy, especially since I found the main fuse bypassed with twisted wires covered in painter's tape. What size jets do I need with straight pipes and a UNI high flow filter?

 

Sorry, the bracket is between carb #3 and #4, like this:

 

Yeah that is the lever I am moving by hand, the cable end is in the bracket, and I suppose there is a tiny amount of adjustment there but not nearly enough to solve my problem, I'm jaunting over to the bike shop now to have them cut me a new one to the length I think I need.

 

Just curious, but what are the different carb options that can be on an XJ550? I have a 1982 Maxim, but the carbs are different than what you have pictured. My choke adjustment bracket is on the outside of carb #1. It looks as though it may have a little more room for adjustment.

 

Mine looks exactly like the picture you posted, but I could see the bracket in that first picture serves the same purpose

 

Mine is off of an '83 maxim 750, so no wonder it is a bit different.

 

Folsuml, the adjustment is to loosen the little clamp (held by the single screw) and slide the cable up/down in the bracket.

You want it so that when it's in the fully "off" position, none of the plungers are being lifted by the mechanism. The "on" position isn't so critical; the adjustment is for the "off" position.

 

The bike shop looked at me like an alien when I asked them to make me a new cable so I bought one from the motorcycle shop instead. The cable didn't stretch, the cable stop at the choke lever on the handlebars got reamed out and the cable was pulling through. The new cable has a much bigger diameter and doesn't.