first ride EVER. and it sucked. calling all tuners!

bought the 79 special 2 years ago. got it to run then killed it, bought it, took it home and tore into it. finally got it running a few weeks ago. rode it 5-10 feet to check basics last weekend. this weekend idled it for a good while. then ran her around the neighbor hood.

so...

right side carb blows black smoke when throttled
left side carb blows white smoke when throttled

bogs when throttled on idle.

when riding bogs down suuuuppper bad on throttle. if steady throttle rides but pops and stumbles. when i got back started back firing on right mainly, a little on left. and a tiny bit through right carb. played w/ mixture screws, no change.

threw in almost a gallon before and after was significantly lower on the eyeball and tank hand lift gauge o meter.

i have pamco ignition and dual coil, new plugs n wires from mikesxs kit, straight pipes, bs38 carbs will do pods or homemade stacks n pods. right now open.

i'll be removing carbs again, i'll work on a thorough clean and rejet. what jets shall i go for ladies n gents? I forgot what you told me daddyGcycles!

i gotta get my hands on a timing light. how does one time with the pamco, or do i not need to? i don't have the e-advancer...could that be an issue too?

never seen white smoke on an engine w/o antifreeze. is it super hot? what am i missing.

oh where's the best place to get a deal on the oil filters?

can't pull the plugs to read yet cause she still hot. was difficult to idle after the ride. and kept spitting fire so i shut her down in fear that i'd set her a-lite

tia
v

Carbs are out of sync....

Cam chain and valves adjusted proper, and in that order?

added to the list. I didn't open up the engine. Hopefully I didn't screw anything up in there by not

well where to start ?!

First thing first the obvious.
The reason it is bogging off idle is because you are running it without any air filters .!
The engine is getting way too much air and so the mixture is too weak .To prove this try giving it a little choke whilst you throttle it off of idle . You should notice it will pick up better with the increased gas flow.
Another cheap and dirty test would be to wind some gaffa tape around each pod to partially restrict the air flow and see if there is any sign of improvement to your idle and throttling off of idle

Try refitting the pod filters and if there is still no improvement you'll need to go up on your idle/pilot jets .
I have a 79 Sll with pods and I have just bought some 30's to try . Standard is I believ 27.5 without checking.

RE the smoke its a classic sign of a leaking head gasket amongst other things. I would do a compression test before anything else to see what is happening in the engine under compression. Chances are compressive gasses are leaking into the central camchain tunnel from one or both of the jugs .

Most folk recommend using a liquid gasket around the tunnel both sides of the head gasket especially if you haven't skimmed the head and block

If you are new to the carb tuning game you can save a lot of headaches by just buying a wideband O2 Sensor. I bought two of the Innovate MTX-L kits and love them. I have them off the bike so I can use them on all of my projects. You literally just need to supply them with some power and screw them into the exhaust bung. I believe there is also an additional attachment so you can clip it on the end of the exhaust.

Straight pipes and no filters equals won't run for shit. These carbs were designed for a "still air" design air box. The slides flutter bad in carbs made for such an intake when they don't have one. This is the primary reason the Uni foam filter pods work and the pleated style pods don't.
Also, you MUST time your ignition properly, or you'll be at risk to burn holes in your pistons. Since you don't have E-advance, your ATU might be stuck, leading to your bogging under throttle and farting and banging at steady state.
It seems you have a good bit of "core" work to do before you are ready for another test run. If you were doing all this with stock jets, then it's a wonder it even ran. You have to jet to what your setup will be. Impossible to tune it for your setup if you have not finished it yet.

i'll order the e-advancer. i'm assuming mike has instructions on the site?

i'll be reading the manual to learn how to adjust cam chain and valves...in that order.

i'll look further into the stacks i wanted to make. any ideas to a homemade 'still air' filter? i have the pleated k&n style pods....bummer!

i'll pull the carbs out and clean adjust as necessary. is there a jet kit i should buy...that has a range of sizes i would likely need?

hotrdd i don't have that in my budget at the moment. sounds like a great idea tho!

i'll research intake stack and exhaust baffle ideas in the mean time.

peanut post back on how your 30s work out. what is your setup? just pods? uni or pleated? is black liquid gasket maker good enough? along with a new gasket? i'll work on getting a compression tester. i neglected to open the motor hoping i had the same luck as i did with my 85 vf700f

vernk said:

i

peanut post back on how your 30s work out. what is your setup? just pods? uni or pleated? is black liquid gasket maker good enough? along with a new gasket? i'll work on getting a compression tester. i neglected to open the motor hoping i had the same luck as i did with my 85 vf700f

Click to expand...

threebond Neo 1104 is the only liquid gasket you'll need . It used to be called Yamabond before a formulae change
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Threebond-1104-Neo-Liquid-Gasket-/281427315146

Don't use any kind of silicon based sealant because it won't work and you'll end up with bits of silicon blocking your oilways and filters .

I have the pleated pods on my 79 fitted by the po. I hear that the Uni-pods re beter but whatever you use you will need to experiment with your jetting if you change your inlet or exhausts . There is no magic number unfortunately.


Compression testers are as cheap as chips you'll need one if you want to know anything about the condition of your engine and the various components .I wouldn't pull the head before carrying out a compression test to see if you need to
Something like this is all you need and I've had one of these for over 20 years http://www.ebay.com/itm/FLEX-DRIVE-COMPRESSION-TESTER-CHECK-PRESSURE-PSI-TESTER-GAUGE-NEW-/200810022615?hash=item2ec135c6d7&item=200810022615&pt=Motors_Automotive_Tools&vxp=mtr