Idle Round n Round

[dayvsea]

1995 Nin with 4K on it. When I start it and let it idle for a bit it's OK, and I drive off etc. As the bike comes up to temp it starts to idle high, eventually you pull to a stop and the bikes @4000+, hard to have the throttle sit back down for shifting etc..If I stop to adjust curb idle with the idle knob I can get it to idle at 1500 nicely, BUT if I jazz the throttle, it stays high 5K+,- then I adjust curb idle again to get it out of the stratosphere, and it slowly starts down until it sputters and dies if I don't jazz it, and round and round we go.. I like "Round and Round" if Ratt does it, but not the Nin.. Any help?

[choneofakind]

Clean your carbs.

[alex.s]

pilot jet is clogged with old dried up gas from not being ridden enough. effect was that idle was turned up to the point that it opens the needle, sending the revs to 4k.

clean your carbs.

[dayvsea]

Thanks for the replys.

[dirty nasty]

Clean the carbs and adjust them. If you need help I'm not too far from the Hartford area (I'm in West Springfield) and could clean them for you.

[dayvsea]

Thanks DN, I'll let you know.. Need some time/nice weather to get a diagnostic ride in..

[choneofakind]

MA tech day!!

Seriously though, it will be easier to clean the carbs and learn a bit about your bike if you have someone with some ninjette-wrenching experience with you. Nasty should fit the bill just fine.

[dayvsea]

OKay I got the idle down now (couple tanks O' seafoam) but now I have a different prob..I go for a ride sometimes an hour in or so.. It starts to bog, I jazz it to keep running with a little success, but it will just slow down and finally quit.. Wait a while and I can restart it and drive again... But not a lot of confidence in riding w/o getting stuck.. Yesterday it did it again after turkey, but only 3 minutes into the ride..A little choke play when dying to some success, but still low r'd and died.. Wait 10, then restart and drive off.. WTF?

[Jiggles]

Open the gas cap when that happens

[dayvsea]

The tank does "squeal" so i figured it's not a draw issue..But.. Does that fall in line with 1 hour out against 3 minutes out with same issue?

[Motofool]

The Seafoam may have detached some junk from your tank that ended up clogging your fuel filter(s).

There is one inside the tank, upstream the petcock and another one inside the lower end of the gas hose that feeds the carbs.

You could disconnect that hose and check how much gas is delivering when you apply vacuum to the petcock.

[Jiggles]

Petcock?

[Motofool]

Oops, correction made; thanks Jiggles.

[dayvsea]

You guys and your pets.. I will check the filters..I fear that turkey day was the last ride of the year though.. Supposedly cold and yucky here on out.. Waaaaa.. I think we can agree that it is a fuel starving issue though, yes?

[dayvsea]

Putting it to bed the other day, top the tank, seafoam, was going to run it starved with petcock to off, drain bowls, etc... But bike just kept on runnin..Never quit with fuel set to off..Sooo, I'm wondering if petcock is not turning flow off, maybe is cause of bike quitting as in above posts..Also I do hear the tank squeal, as if to vent.. But get a pretty good "soda bottle" rush of air when tank is opened..Not very equal in pressure to my mind.. But maybe they all do this? Any thoughts welcomed..

[choneofakind]

Use the drains on the bottom of the carb bowls to drain the gas. The bike will run for a while by using the idle-till-it-dies method. It will also leave just a touch of gas in the bottom of the bowls.

After the bowls are drained, test it. Try to drain them again a day later and see if they let more fuel out.

[dayvsea]

Well, if I cant run the bike to starved with the valve set to off, I reckon opening the bowls is not too red hot, yes?

[choneofakind]

Not necessarily. Like I said, it runs for a long time on just the bowls. I've farted around adjusting the carbs for a long time and not even run the gas out of the fuel line, much less even touched the fuel in the bowls.

[dayvsea]

I sat on the bike waiting for it to quit.. cold out so I was at about 4K, running for 4-5 minutes..Maybe 6

[choneofakind]

It will run for 10 or so.

Again, drain your carbs with an allen key and a piece of hose. Try draining them again in a day or two. If you get more fuel, you have a leak somewhere.

[dayvsea]

OK, choneofakind I'm back to "do bowls". You figure if I'm topping out a shy half beer can per carb draining, I'm fooling myself then?

[choneofakind]

Yeah, that's my thoughts. Try draining them again in a day or two just to check.

[dayvsea]

Walp it's too damn cold to do anything..BUT at Christmas I was at a gearheads house who's wrenching prowess I respect..(Nut cars,bikes,Hot boats etc..) I was telling him about the bogging and quitting by the side of the road..And like a jacknife he said "you got one of those thingies for turning the gas off on the tank"? I said yes.. He said "rebuild it"! THAT advice PLUS the fact when I open the gas filler it whooshes like a coke can in reverse..Makes me think I need to focus on these two items..
Also, in storage, with petcock off..I went in garage to smell gas..drops on floor, believe was leaking through jugs to crankcase..So I don't think petcock is stopping flow..Probably have to rebuild..(Frigging parts are expensive for what they are.. Should be $12..WTF!