'07 250R not running right

[vbrad511]

My nephew left for college in the fall of 2013 and entrusted my dad to put his bike away. My dad, bless his heart, put it away, and says he put stabilizer in it, but I'm not sure if it really happened that way. Mitch, my nephew got the bike out out a few times last summer, just riding it around the neighborhood, but not enough to run fresh fuel into it. The time has come for him to move on, and part of that means selling the bike, but now it's having some troubles. I didn't want to run, so I pulled and cleaned the carbs out. Pulled the jets, chased the passages, put her all back together, and she'll start and run just fine, until it gets a little warm, and then drop off and die and not restart again. Starting fluid doesn't help, and I can't tell if the spark's gotten weak, or is just not there. Is there anything in the ignition that I should be looking at, or do I pull the carbs again and check things out. And yes, I dumped the nasty fuel. It's running on VP's fix-it-fuel, just to make sure things get good and clean internally.

It's also developed an antifreeze leak. Down by the kickstand there's a "junction" where the pipe comes back from the radiator, hits a fitting that looks like it goes into the motor, then another pipe come out and goes up and into the back of the block. It's leaking down low where the fitting goes into the motor. I can flex the pipe a bit and you can see the AF seeping around it. What do we do for this? Seal to change? What's it called?

Thanks for the add folks. Looking forward to getting this beautiful bike back up and running.

[Ghostt]

Okay let's start with the coolant leak.

Sounds like the O-rings on the pipes need to be replaced(part# 670 & 670A)

As far as the other problem,

Did you dump the old gas?

Stupid question time, how did you clean the carburetors? Ultrasonic? Did you remove the idle mixture screws? Verify that ALL fuel circuits were clear with a air compressor? Replace any parts? Set the fuel float heights?

[vbrad511]

Originally Posted by Ghostt

Okay let's start with the coolant leak.

Sounds like the O-rings on the pipes need to be replaced(part# 670 & 670A)

As far as the other problem,

Did you dump the old gas?

Stupid question time, how did you clean the carburetors? Ultrasonic? Did you remove the idle mixture screws? Verify that ALL fuel circuits were clear with a air compressor? Replace any parts? Set the fuel float heights?

The orings....are they special orings? I have an assortment box full of them. Would I be able to just match something up, or are there special shapes to them?
Yes, I did dump the old fuel, and put in 2 quarts of VP's "Fix It Fuel". I pulled the bowls, and pulled the jets and sprayed things out with carb cleaner. I also have a set of wire gauges in assorted sizes I used to clean out the few holes I found plugged, and then used the straw on the carb cleaner to make sure things were clear. The pivot pins for the floats were stuck in their towers. I didn't want to risk breaking anything so I filled the intake hose with carb cleaner and blew it through while raising and lowering each float, ensuring the motions allowed and then stopped flow. How do I get those pivot pins loose without damaging the towers, and are the plastic floats adjustable? I also didn't realize there were removable idle mixture screws. I will likely be heading back out there tomorrow or Monday to further address things. Sounds like I'll be pulling the carbs back off. Thanks for the reply, and keep the tips coming, please.

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by vbrad511

............. keep the tips coming, please.

Any O-ring of similar dimensions would do.

Take a look at these;
http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Intake

https://www.ninjette.org/forums/show...ecret+passages

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Cooling_system

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/How_do_...ling_system%3F

[vbrad511]

Originally Posted by Motofool

Any O-ring of similar dimensions would do.

Take a look at these;
http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Intake

https://www.ninjette.org/forums/show...ecret+passages

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Cooling_system

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/How_do_...ling_system%3F

Great links, Moto. I've bookmarked them, and saved the carb photos too. I'll be back out to the bike to pull the carbs again tomorrow (monday).
Thanks so much....this really helps.

[Ghostt]

Removal of the idle mixture screws is another important part of a good and meticulous cleaning.

[vbrad511]

Just a little update. I pulled the carbs again, they looked fine. I chased all the passages anyway. Got the AF leak taken care of (new oring) too. Put it back together, fired up, ran for a couple minutes then sputtered down and died. I got it fired up again, gave it a bit of throttle (had to, to keep it running), and it finally again sputtered and died. This time, a few moments later, it started puking crap out of the air box. I pulled the AF tank to find a small hole in the air box. The crap that'd come out was hard to describe, had an odd consistancy, almost like diesel fuel. I dabbed a bit on a paint stick and hit it with a lighter, and it didn't catch, so then I checked the AF. Level still fine. Then checked the oil. Looked high. Actually looked very high, so I got a couple small buckets and pulled the drain plug. All in all I got about 7 quarts out of it, and yes, it was that same fuel-laden crap that'd come out of the air box. I wrapped up for the day after that, came home, rounded up a filter, some cheapo oil to use as a rinse, and then some good 15/40 synthetic for a final fill. I'll get this all done tomorrow and update again.

[Ghostt]

Sounds like a stuck, or improper float level

Pull the carburetors again, and check them very careful, before you waste more oil.

[vbrad511]

How do you set the float levels? They're plastic.

[blink.]

Originally Posted by vbrad511

How do you set the float levels? They're plastic.

Was wondering the same thing?

[blink.]

Never mind, you just bend the metal piece down to raise it.

[Ghostt]

Originally Posted by vbrad511

How do you set the float levels? They're plastic.

How do I adjust the floats?
Drain the fuel out of the carburetors into a suitable container. Remove the carbs. Remove the float bowl by taking out the screws and lockwashers.

You can use a standard tape measure (in mm). Float height is measured from the rim of the carb body to the bottom of the float with the float valve *just* seated, i.e... the spring on the float valve is not compressed. You'll have to hold the carburetor sideways to keep the weight of the float itself from compressing the spring. Bend the tab to get to the correct float height. Float height is 17mm +- 2mm, but make sure to check your Service Supplement for your year.

Theory: Each set of carbs has a different recommended height (listed in the service manual for the given bike). If the floats hang too low, your bike can (and most likely will) run lean, and if they sit too high, you'll likely be fighting a rich running bike. A 6" ruler or a basic set of calipers can be used to measure the height. To measure, you want the floats to just be touching the fuel needle (which has a spring on it; you don't want to compress that). To adjust up or down, you just bend the small metal tang that rests on the fuel needle.

[vbrad511]

Perfect. I didn't realize the tangs were metal. I did get it all back together today, oil changed twice, seems to be running fine. Take a little twist of the throttle to get it started, but revs nicely and idles and pulls just fine. If it gives us any more grief I'll pull them again and check them.
One more thing, the idle-air screws. They weren't visible on the carbs when I had them off yesterday, but a Youtube vid I watched showed me the location. On these carbs there's a "plate", or a "plug" over them, so you can't see them. Is it ok to pull that plug? What's the best way to do it?

[Ghostt]

Originally Posted by vbrad511

Perfect. I didn't realize the tangs were metal. I did get it all back together today, oil changed twice, seems to be running fine. Take a little twist of the throttle to get it started, but revs nicely and idles and pulls just fine. If it gives us any more grief I'll pull them again and check them.
One more thing, the idle-air screws. They weren't visible on the carbs when I had them off yesterday, but a Youtube vid I watched showed me the location. On these carbs there's a "plate", or a "plug" over them, so you can't see them. Is it ok to pull that plug? What's the best way to do it?

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Removin...re_screw_plugs

Then tune them following my guide above.

And check that float height while your doing the idle mixture cap removal.

Remember to inspect the float needle valves, there is a small viton tip, which over time wears out, below is a picture of a very used , and bad one, next to a new one.

Note that the viton tip is worn and pulled away from the metal part, personally I just change them out when doing a rebuild, it's not worth the aggravation of saving a few $$$, Vs flooding the engine, and possibly damaging the engine.

On the other end of the needle valve is a small spring loaded plunger, with also gets stuck, causing the same end results, I suggest getting you parts for @ducatiman he's got the best prices, plus he includes new stainless steel hardware fasteners.

Setting the floats is the most important part of carburetor tuning, and also the most overlooked.

[blink.]

Originally Posted by vbrad511

Perfect. I didn't realize the tangs were metal. I did get it all back together today, oil changed twice, seems to be running fine. Take a little twist of the throttle to get it started, but revs nicely and idles and pulls just fine. If it gives us any more grief I'll pull them again and check them.
One more thing, the idle-air screws. They weren't visible on the carbs when I had them off yesterday, but a Youtube vid I watched showed me the location. On these carbs there's a "plate", or a "plug" over them, so you can't see them. Is it ok to pull that plug? What's the best way to do it?

Take a drill bit and very carefully drill the cap out.