Second small issue

[zhowfast]

Ok so second to the clutch issue I am experiencing at the moment I was wondering if there may be a way to adjust the choke lever/cable. I feel like such a noob, but is the Ninja 250 a cold natured bike? The choke lever on mine seems to do nothing at all to help the bike warm up. It won't stay running when it is cold (and for the first 10-15 minutes after a cold start) unless I sit there and crack the throttle a bit. I have never had a bike be so finicky like this on its first start of the day. Is there an adjustment near/on the carb somewhere? If not what could I do to mitigate this issue...

[DannoXYZ]

What's history of your bike? How long was it left sitting?

No choke-cable adjustment. Just cable-stop at carbs with no adjuster.

Does choke-lever stay in place when you pull it to full-choke?

Most likely your carbs need professional cleaning & refurb. Search for "clean carbs ducatiman" here for threads with photos on what's needed to truly restore carbs back to factory-fresh clean condition. Then bike will run flawlessly like when it left showroom floor.

[zhowfast]

Hey Danno... the bike has not sat around much at all. Maybe like three weeks with out being started. The lever does stay in place when it's fully choked. As far as the carbs go the guy I got the bike from used a carb cleaning guy he found in this website. I think he sent them off to the Ducati Man you mentioned... I'll have to look at the paperwork again to see but I'm fairly confident... My first thought was that something just didn't get put back together right when the carbs were reassembled after cleaning. Isn't there just a little flap the opens and closes when you choke/un-choke the bike? Could that piece maybe not be fully closing? I'm stuck on a clutch problem right now too... I'll take a fairing off and get a good look at the choke mechanism and let you know what I find...

[ducatiman]

These employ a separate enrichment (or starter) circuit....when you pull choke (starter) lever...plungers (1 in each carb) engage the starter circuit to add fuel. Using the common phrase choke lever is ok....not technically correct...but just a matter of linguistics.

There are no air flaps such as on an older, traditional choke circuit.

PM me the original owners name, if you like. Lets see how long ago I did them.

[ducatiman]

Confirmed fresh fuel? Or is it 3 weeks old or older?

Modern ethanol fuels "separate" in alarmingly short periods. Thus suggested to use a ethanol treatment/stabilizer with every tank. Seafoam, Stabil 360, Startron....your choice but suggested if not required.

So there is a first suggestion....use absolutely fresh fuel with added stabilizer.

[zhowfast]

Thanks for the help ducatiman. I drained the old gas from the tank, put fresh gas in, and (with the aid of a jumper box) got it started. It wasn't as cold natured as I remember but it still took a while for it to idle by itself without me cracking the throttle... I PMed you about the previous owners. Let me know what you think. I am going to use a fuel stabilizer from now on...

[DannoXYZ]

Even if thoroughly refurbished by ducatiman, if previous-owner let bike sit for +3 months after that, it'll need cleaning again.

Choke action moves plunger; all action internal. Look at side of carb and verify chock-lever moves plunger. Very possible choke-cable was installed with barrel-end inserted into lever, but cable-housing not installed into stop. In which case, pulling lever on handlebar doesn't do anything.

When warmed-up, verify your idle-speed knob-adjustment. Idle-speed should be 1500-1800rpms or so.

[ducatiman]

Yes, can confirm I did these, were shipped back just 1 day short of 9 months ago. No way to know frequency of use, fresh fuel or accompanied ethanol additive/stabilizer.

Good, fresh fuel, now get some miles on it ....next a long ride after you've added a fuel system cleaner such as Seafoam or Stabil 360 or SOMETHING into the tank.
Personally, I'm a user of the Stabil 360 Marine, good long term results, but your preference.

Going forward, use it EVERY tankful. These ethanol pump fuels turn so fast, and fairly frequent use of the bike works in our favor.

[zhowfast]

Thanks for the pointers! I will see what I can get done by the weekend and let y'all know the results...

[DannoXYZ]

Ethanol separation is initiated by moisture. Be sure tank cap has good seals with only tiny vent hole. Also make sure all tank ports are plugged except for one vent with hose going down to swingarm.

On EFI systems with sealed tanks, separation is not an issue since no moisture gets in. It can sit for years and start right Up on 1st crank.