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running rich???

Discussion in 'XJ Technical Chat' started by fcat5, Feb 3, 2008.

  1. fcat5

    fcat5 New Member

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    Hi all, I am a new member and neqw to the xj bikes all together. I just aquired a 1982 maxim 550. the bike is in really great shape but has been sitting in a garage for 4 years. I gaot it home, got a batt up to par and tried to start it. no start. I removed and cleared the pilot and main jets and finnally got the bike to start on its own. Problem is while running it seems too rich,blueish smoke and real gassy smelling. also when trying to rev it up[ it just stumbles and wants to die unless i crack the throttle real slowly.ny help is greatly appreciated!!!!!!!
     
  2. fcat5

    fcat5 New Member

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    Also this may help, cold starting is a SOB only can get it to pop?
     
  3. RickCoMatic

    RickCoMatic Well-Known Member

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    There's no way that those Mikuni Carbs are going to Clear themselves out and get to a point where the Bike will run smoothly without going through them thoroughly and completely to Clean them.

    Sitting for 6 Month or less would be reason enough to have to do them.

    4 Years will require a complete Cleaning and possibly some new gaskets, float body's and pins, emulsion tube clearing and cleaning and inspection of the rubber diaphragms.
     
  4. fcat5

    fcat5 New Member

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    so could the carbs being dirty cause it to run rich and stumble on accel
     
  5. MiCarl

    MiCarl Active Member

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    Where in Ohio?
     
  6. fcat5

    fcat5 New Member

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    defiance, 50 miles from toledo
     
  7. MiCarl

    MiCarl Active Member

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    When good riding weather comes I might have to make a trip down. Or, you can throw it on a trailer and bring to Detroit.
     
  8. fcat5

    fcat5 New Member

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    xj wizard sounds cool, what are a coupe thing i can try beforehand.Seems to me the batt has to be FULLY charged for it to fire?When i do get it to run runs alittle rough and seems rich,real gassy smell and blue smoke.it also stumbles on accel and finnally catches up to itself. Like i said it has been sitting for a while.Would really like to bring it back to life it is a real good lookink bike yet has 16,000 miles on it but looks like 200!! Any help is greatly appreciated
     
  9. MiCarl

    MiCarl Active Member

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    Yes, need good battery to start. A poor battery can spin it but not have enough volts left to fire the plugs.

    I worry that the blue smoke might be oil. If so, you could have a ring problem. Have you done a compression check?

    Also, very easy to fuel foul the plugs from being rich or even just idling it a lot on the choke.

    I've never been in a Mikuni carb. You need to get carb advice from Rick.
     
  10. fcat5

    fcat5 New Member

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    what should the compression be i have a compression gauge. the blue smoke definately smells like GAS.
     
  11. RickCoMatic

    RickCoMatic Well-Known Member

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    Do you have the skill to remove those Carbs and give them a thorough Cleaning?

    I'm sure you need it.
    Mikuni's that sit for more than a few months usually need a real good cleaning because the Fuel Bowls are vented and the Fuel in them evaporates leaving behind a varnish-like foreign matter that turns into a goo and clogs things up pretty good when you try to start the bike.

    If you don't have the experience to do the job yourself; see if there's a Member close to you who can help you or take the Carbs off the Bike and send them out!

    In the mean time ... look to see if the Piolt Mixture Screws are exposed of if they have the plugs in place so you can't tamper with them.
     
  12. fcat5

    fcat5 New Member

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    where do i look for the mixture screw caps? ive cleaned many sets of carbs before but these do look a little different than im used to.With some guidance im sure ill get it straight!!!
     
  13. yamaha.xj.manuals

    yamaha.xj.manuals New Member

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    fcat5,
    Info was sent to your PM Box
     
  14. fcat5

    fcat5 New Member

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    thanks ill take a lokk at it tonight and see if the screw caps are there or not
     
  15. fcat5

    fcat5 New Member

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    well i cked to see if the pilot screws covers had been out and they are still there. Could it be that the pilot air jet is plugged and causing a rich mixture?
     
  16. RickCoMatic

    RickCoMatic Well-Known Member

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    Yessir!

    You need to do a Carb Cleaning.
    You'll have to strip the Jets and components ... Machine-out (drill) the Pilot Mixture Screw Anti-tamper Plugs and extract them.
    Withdraw the Pilot Mixture Screws
    Flush-out the Pilot Fuel~Air Passages along with the Starter Jet and Main Jet Fuel and Air Passages.
    Check the Diaphragms Pistons for friction-free movement.
    Clean the Emulsion Tubes abd blow-out the Main AIR Passage.

    Check the Float Levels
    Bench Sync the rack
    Preset the Pilot Mixture Screws
    Commence Carb Tuning.
     
  17. MiCarl

    MiCarl Active Member

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    Wow. You got yerself a gen-u-ine virgin then. Not many of them left.
     
  18. RickCoMatic

    RickCoMatic Well-Known Member

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    Be careful drilling-out the Plugs.

    The slot of the Pilot Mixture Screw is just below the Plug.
    If you run through the Plug with the drill and hit the screw ... you will ruin the Screw and be out that Pilot Jet which ... since it has been covered ... should be easily extracted.

    I don't Drill the Plugs out anymore.
    If I need to get-out those Plugs ... I use a tiny Metal-Cutting Bit in a Dremel Tool and grind-away the Plug leaving the Pilot Screw untouched.

    It takes an extra 20 minutes to do the lot of them grinding the plugs until they can be pried-out ... but, the stakes are worth it!
     
  19. XJ650Maxim-NV

    XJ650Maxim-NV New Member

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    I have a 1982 XJ650 Maxim I bought. Bike starts and runs well, I have been riding it, but it has the gassy smell of a rich running bike. The plugs are gone from the idle mix screws and i believe they have been fiddled with. I was wondering if anyone knows what the factory settings for these were?
     
  20. snowwy66

    snowwy66 Member

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    screw the mixture in all the way. then slowly back out to get the highest idle. that back in a little just enough to the point it drops.

    usually in the neighborhood of 2 1/2 to 3 turns. but it all depends on the mechanical condition of your bike.

    as for the blue smoke. that's a combination of black from gas and grey from oil. fix the carbs. and run the bike. smoke should go away eventually.

    it's not uncommon for ANY engine to smoke a little after sitting for months on end. the smoke usually goes away after driving a few miles.
     
  21. cutlass79500

    cutlass79500 Well-Known Member

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    If its running that rich and you can smell it its probably not the air screws. bet you have a float hi or the carbs are out of sync
     
  22. waldo

    waldo Member

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    Have you checked valve adjustment yet, compression check, carb sync, coils plug caps, looked for air leaks, checked charging system.
     
  23. XJ650Maxim-NV

    XJ650Maxim-NV New Member

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    Valves are adjusted, compression is good, new coils, wires, caps, plugs, corrected the loose vacuum plug to stop that, new battery, charging at 13.5 volts. Havent done carb sync yet because it is YICS and i am going to try and build that homemade tool. BUT, I want to know what the factory settings on those air screws are since the caps are gone and i dont know who did what to this bike before i bought it. I want everything back to factory so that when i sync it it is right.
     
  24. hogfiddles

    hogfiddles XJ-Wizard, Host-Central NY Carb Clinic Moderator Premium Member

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    While you're at it, make sure the bike is on the center stand. Check the sight glass down by your right foot. The oil level should be visible in the glass. If it looks over full, (and do this anyway) open the oil filler cap and take a sniff. Do you smell gas in the crank case? If so, you have gas in the oil and it needs to be drained and replaced with clean fresh oil. Then do the carbs, because that's where the gas went through after leaking down through a petcock that should be rebuilt, too.

    Also, you don't HAVE to have the yics tool to do your syncing. (ok, so now that bag has been opened, be ready to read a lot of replies about that.........)

    Welcome to the group! You'll find that you got a real nice bike there, and you'll find that this site is probably the most valuable resource you'll come across.

    Did I see that you're from Ohio? I'm from NY. If you're interested, I'll be hosting a carb clinic in June. I'm about half an hour below Utica. If you're interested in that, pm me and I'll give you more particulars.

    Dave Fox
     
  25. RickCoMatic

    RickCoMatic Well-Known Member

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    You don't need the YICS Tool to do some Fine Tuning.

    You DO need the YICS Passage Blocked to an ACCURATE Sync.

    The KEY WORD being: ACCURATE.
     
  26. bigfitz52

    bigfitz52 Well-Known Member Premium Member

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    For both the original post and the additional, related questions:

    You need to pull the rack and do a complete carb service as outlined in the service manual. Period.

    Then, after the carbs have been thoroughly cleaned, their float levels checked and adjusted (using fuel and the "clear tube" method) and bench sync'ed they go back on the bike and get vacuum sync'ed.

    AFTER you've checked the valve clearances and adjusted if necessary.

    NO SHORTCUTS. Some "screw tweaking" ain't gonna "fix" anything if the carbs aren't truly clean and the valves need adjusting.
     

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