1982 xj650 starting issues

New to this forum. Loads of great information. I have been reading through the forum looking for help for my starting issues, but haven't found the right fix yet.
Bought this bike last week and drove it home. Had to drive with the throttle in a three quarters on position to have the bike stay running. It had a bad battery so it needed to be jump started.
I got the bike home and parked in my garage. The bike didn't start the morning after.
So as with most vehicles I buy, I changed the oil, plugs, new battery, fresh gas with some marvil mystery oil.
I checked the air filter, looks brand new.
When I try to start the bike it turns and cranks but doesn't start. I sprayed a little ether in the air box and away it went.
It ran for quite a while. I adjusted the idle screw to the point where I figured the engine sounded pretty good running. Shut it down and tried to start again. It started right up. Let it sit till the morning again and no start. With the engine warm it seems to start pretty easy, but when I let it sit for a few hours, it just tries to start but won't kick in.
At first I thought a battery issue, but I checked the voltages while it was running and not running and they seemed good.
13v not running, 14.6v when running.
Any input from the smart guys out there would be appreciated.

 

Welcome to the forum and congrads on the bike. We will need a little more information about the bike. From your user name I am guessing it is a xj650? A little back ground on the bike would be nice. Was it a daily rider or has it been sitting for some time. I am guessing the latter.

Most of these older bike will need a lot of tlc. In the upper right hand corner is a icon that you should click on and take your time reading. One of the links you will need to look at is called "The church of clean". Almost all of these older bikes need to have the carbs pulled and gone through, unless they run and start easy. In your case I am guessing they have some junk in them.

There will be some great folks posting soon to help out as well. Great people on here with lots of helpful info. Again, welcome to the forum and congrads on the bike.

 

Thinking I may need to open up the carbs to see if anything is sticking. Will try that when I get home from work.

 

The bike was sitting for about a year and a half. But started easy when I got on it. So some reading and then a good clean is in order. Thank you

 

Pretty good indication that the carbs need to be cleaned, this issue is usually caused by the enrichment jet getting plugged up in the carb bowls. Plenty of info on here to assist and link to the best parts shop in the upper right.

Welcome to the forum!

 

Thanks guys, after reading the instructions on carb cleaning and a little bit of grief, I was able to get the bike going and it seems to be purring like a kitten.
Thanks again to all for the help.