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air fuel mixture

17K views 16 replies 9 participants last post by  weekendrider 
#1 ·
is there an easy way to tell if the air fuel mixture is running rich or lean? I have an 85 maxim 700 and to me it smells like it is rich but I don't want to screw anything up and be forced to take it to a shop. It starts and runs ok once it is warm just smells rich.

Thanks
 
#6 ·
I'll say yes due to the fact that it is like 20 degrees here but the only thing I think is wierd is when I shut off the bike there is still some exhaust that comes out of the tail pipe. But other than that it is not excessivly smoking or any odd colors it just smells rich
 
#7 ·
Before I do this I want to get everything straight. To me I would turn the mixture screws clockwise to "tighten" them thus making the mixture leaner, is this correct or is it the other way around. Also common sense would tell me go in small amounts as to not go too rich or lean. any added tips would be very helpful.


Also should I only do one at a time or do all of them at once ( it is an inline four )

Thanks to all
 
#10 ·
Before you do anything else wait until it warms up to see what happens. It might correct its self. my 4 wheeler runs a little on the rich side when it's cold compared to hot. I almost never have the Ninja out unless it's above 40. Probably a good tune and carb sync is all it needs IMO if it runs rich when the temps go up.

Usually the mixture screws are 1.5 to 2.5 turns out.
 
#11 · (Edited)
jim_jen_dj,

Did you start to have a problem have you put gas in the bike?

What kind of weather (temperature wise) are you riding in?

If your riding in cool temp's your bike is going to take longer to reach normal operating temperature, maybe 3 times longer. Which means you might have the choke on longer than you would normally do which could cause the samething.

Don't put hotter plugs in the bike. If you do have a fuel problem (carbs), putting hotter plugs in it isn't really going to help any. If you replace the plug's use stock.

When the bike warms up, how does it run? What is your gas mileage like?
In cooler weather it's going to drop some. If the plugs were black, what did the electrodes look like?

Before you touch the carb's, try running some fuel cleaner through the carbs first. If that doesn't work, then you might have problems with the carb's and adjusting them really won't do you any good.

If the carb's need to be gone through, they'll have to be synchronize to make sure that they work together. If you set them up wrong,....you'll have a whole other set of problems.

Good Luck and let us know how it turns out.
 
#12 ·
Well, I don't have the &%^$ to ride when it is below 40 or 50 so it has not been that much, also I don't know the milage yet just because of that fact. But when the bike gets totally warmed up it runs great, so should I assume there is no problem or should I still run some cleaner through it?

Thanks
 
#14 ·
I have a follow up question... I feel as if I am having a similar problem.

I have a 1981 Kawasaki 440LTD that runs great. It has no problem going down the road but its top speed is only about 65. It has a hard time staying at 65 and also only gets about 35 miles to the gallon. Any ideas?
 
#17 ·
Before you start pulling the plugs to make adjustments.
Take the time to google "throttle chops" and the correct way to get a good plug reading.
If you want a reference for what the plugs are showing. Dan has a great site and his plug reference works well for me.
http://www.dansmc.com/spark_plugs/spark_plugs_catalog.html

For understanding CV carbs and how they work. This was written by some serious XS'ers about the CV carbs used on the XS650. BUT the information is a good reference for Constant Velocity carbs.
http://www.amckayltd.com/carbguide.pdf
 
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