SteveK
Steve
Hey guys,
So I'm new to the carb/kickstart bike and I'm having a hard time getting the 400 started with the kickstart. The electric start works fine, but I am a bit uneasy about relying on that, plus in the future I would like to phase it out and get a smaller battery.
Here's what's going on:
The kickstart engages fine, it grabs hard and there's no slipping. And I am pretty sure I am kicking it over the right way (I ease the lever down until it engages and work it until I am kicking it over from a high position).
When I do that the engine tries to turn over and start, but it just sputters and nothing happens. I do smell gas coming from the pipes, so I don't think it's an issue of it not getting enough fuel... in fact, twisting the throttle makes it worse.
I just bought new plugs because the old ones were blackened from the engine running rich. I gapped them, and checked for spark... everything is good there.
My thought is that the carbs are flooding? The fact that it's running rich tells me that they need some adjusting. Or maybe the contact breakers need to be cleaned to make sure there is a stronger spark getting to the plugs?
Please let me know if you guys have gone through the same thing or have any ideas on what the problem might be. Any help is appreciated.
Steve
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2AM update (which I'm sure my neighbors hate me for).
I think I may have been a little bit of a hypochondriac before, because I just went out and kickstarted the girl on the first kick a bunch of tries.
What I did different this time was instead of standing on the left foot peg and then coming down with my weight onto the kickstart, I just keep my left foot on the ground and just kicked down.
What this effectively did was keep the bike level instead of it leaning to the side. I was even able to start it with the throttle cranked open a little bit (you know, for that bad ass flair). I think I just have to learn the intricacies of the girl and it will be fine. We'll see how she holds up when the cold weather comes.
So I'm new to the carb/kickstart bike and I'm having a hard time getting the 400 started with the kickstart. The electric start works fine, but I am a bit uneasy about relying on that, plus in the future I would like to phase it out and get a smaller battery.
Here's what's going on:
The kickstart engages fine, it grabs hard and there's no slipping. And I am pretty sure I am kicking it over the right way (I ease the lever down until it engages and work it until I am kicking it over from a high position).
When I do that the engine tries to turn over and start, but it just sputters and nothing happens. I do smell gas coming from the pipes, so I don't think it's an issue of it not getting enough fuel... in fact, twisting the throttle makes it worse.
I just bought new plugs because the old ones were blackened from the engine running rich. I gapped them, and checked for spark... everything is good there.
My thought is that the carbs are flooding? The fact that it's running rich tells me that they need some adjusting. Or maybe the contact breakers need to be cleaned to make sure there is a stronger spark getting to the plugs?
Please let me know if you guys have gone through the same thing or have any ideas on what the problem might be. Any help is appreciated.
Steve
-------------------------------------------------------------------
2AM update (which I'm sure my neighbors hate me for).
I think I may have been a little bit of a hypochondriac before, because I just went out and kickstarted the girl on the first kick a bunch of tries.
What I did different this time was instead of standing on the left foot peg and then coming down with my weight onto the kickstart, I just keep my left foot on the ground and just kicked down.
What this effectively did was keep the bike level instead of it leaning to the side. I was even able to start it with the throttle cranked open a little bit (you know, for that bad ass flair). I think I just have to learn the intricacies of the girl and it will be fine. We'll see how she holds up when the cold weather comes.
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