idle adjustments

payaso13

1978xs650
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Couldn't find a thread about my ?....when I ride bike for about 20 miles to work or when its ridden for a while and I come to a stop light idle is about 1500....when I first start bike to warm up its set at 1200...so is it OK to mess with screw under choke to bring idle down or just let it be? Just don't know if that's OK to go back n forth
 
Yes, that is exactly what you should do. As the engine warms up, it heats the incoming fuel causing it to burn more efficiently, hence you need less, and you can idle down as the engine warms up. You will get to where you can reach down and adjust the screw without even looking.
 
Ok thanks its what I've been doing just needed reassurance.... thanks..hey I've been looking at your temp-sticks...you still making those?
 
I like to clip off about 1/2" of fuel line and push it over the screw head, it makes adjusting easier. Picked up that tip on here a long time ago.
 
You're in a warm part of the country so I'd set it at 1200 when warmed up and leave it there.

Play with the throttle when warming up in the morning to keep it running.

Does it stumble just a little when accelerating when warm.

Perhaps your mixture screws could be slightly lean. 1/16 to 1/8 more might help to even things out then re-adjust the idle when warm.

Sync the carbs will also help.

I've never played with the idle screw every day to fix an idle issue. It's usually set and forget.

This a good article on shaft seals that may also be giving you some issues.
http://www.xs650.com/forum/showthread.php?t=29452&highlight=carb+seals
.
 
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Yes, one setting should work at all times if the bike is in good running condition and tuned well. I never fiddle with mine. There's no turning it up and down daily shit happening here. I have a nice 1100 to 1200 idle hot and around 1000 cold (with an occasional throttle blip to insure it stays running).
 
Well I used to play with throttle in morning to keep it at 1200 for bout a minute then it would finally idle by itself...fires right up no prob...its about mid 50 in morning now...thank god...then bout 80 later on way home from work...no stumbles...well a little that's from putting 32 rear sprocket on needs more gas start in off...love it thought on freeway doin 70 @ 4200 rpm...anyway...doesn't feel like a big issue but I'm new to this so I do appreciate your advise!
 
It will take some tuning and tinkering to get it just right.
 
Couldn't find a thread about my ?....when I ride bike for about 20 miles to work or when its ridden for a while and I come to a stop light idle is about 1500....when I first start bike to warm up its set at 1200...so is it OK to mess with screw under choke to bring idle down or just let it be? Just don't know if that's OK to go back n forth

Im no genious but I was told by the boys at Redemption Cycles who specialize in these restorataions that it is NOT uncommon to have to adjust an older bikes idle once or twice a ride. He told me that when it is cold it idles higher then as you ride and it warms up it lowers itself........I know this is not profound news to anyone but sometimes we tend to lean towards a REALLY COMPLICATED issue when its NOT.
My husband rides a 2008 Raider ...........computer regulates EVERYTHING............but for those of us blasting around on neanderthal, raw, rough rides, we HAVE to manually adjust sometimes.
TRUST ME, I HATE dying when I pull that clutch in coming into a stop or coasting ! ! ! ESPECIALLY at innersections ! ! YEAH I KNOW ! ! ! but if we just give it 2 adjustments.........I think we'll keep that heart pumping !
 
Tammi you would be ahead of the game to heed posts 2, 6, & 7.
And welcome to the site.
 
XSJohn recommended a slight decrease in ignition advance timing to get smoother launches when changing to rear sprockets with fewer teeth than stock. I tried it on my '82 when I had a 31-tooth sprocket on it - it pulled very smoothly, no stumble. You can probably find his posts on this topic by searching his name.
 
I don't think I'd be listening to those boys from Redemption Cycle. They have things totally ass-backwards. A bike DOES NOT idle higher cold and lower hot. It's just the opposite in fact.
 
I don't think I'd be listening to those boys from Redemption Cycle. They have things totally ass-backwards. A bike DOES NOT idle higher cold and lower hot. It's just the opposite in fact.

Well I sure need to figure this out. We thought it was debris in my lines and there was...because my bike runs GREAT........and then WHENEVER...........random times......its dying out.....like the other man said, starts RIGHT up and rips away....but there are new lines, everything was flushed out and so YESTERDAY, after I JUST got this bike back, its still doing it...........and the bummer is that it was not doing this until about 3 weeks ago in the first place.
SO .......I need a solution. A solid, correct solution.
One guys says to adjust while another one says no need to. . . which is it because I would like my bike to stay running....

this looks to be a pretty common issue with conflicting resolutions.
HELP.
 
First start your own thread with info and pictures of the carb set you are working with.
Next read and study the carb guide. It will give valuable info about OEM carb sets.
Other info would also help. Type of air filters, tach or not, what jets do you have installed, type of intake manifolds, etc.
As a moral booster. You can do this yourself, at home and pretty cheaply. Unlike a 2008 bike with EFI.
 
Just before the advent of fuel injection, typical automobile carburetors had at least three "choke" systems to facilitate cold starting. One was an "actual" choke -- a plate would almost completely block incoming air to the carb when the accelerator was pressed all the way to the floor and then released before the cold start. The second was an "accelerator pump": each time the accelerator was pressed to the floor and released gas would squirt down the carb, "priming" the intake manifold for the cold start.
And, the third was a FAST IDLE lobe that was set on the cold engine by pressing the accelerator all the way to the floor and releasing. It mechanically increased the idle speed. As the engine warmed up, subsequent presses on the accelerator would sequentially move the lobe and reduce the fast idle, until finally, when the engine was fully warm, the carb was at normal idle.
Our XS650s have a single, primitive "choke" system, that is actually an "enrichener," and that works similarly to the accelerator pump that I described above, by providing extra fuel for the cold start.
We can manually add a second system by turning the idle adjustment screw in with our fingers. This mimics the automobile carburetor's fast idle lobe. I personally think that this is a completely reasonable and even beneficial way to cold start an XS650 THAT HAS the BS38 CARB SET. The choke (enrichener) on the BS38 is "all-on" or "all-off." There is no "partial choke" with the BS38. The BS34, on the other hand, does allow for partial choking. In my experience, the BS34 cold starts just fine using only the adjustable choke. However, every BS38 I have ever had my hands on benefits from increasing the cold-start idle speed.
 
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