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BVD

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About BVD

  • Birthday 06/07/1991

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  • Current Bike(s)
    1980 XS400 Special

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  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Long Island, NY, USA

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  1. BVD

    Going to London!

    Thanks for all the input guys, I can't wait! Unfortunately, I won't have my bike with me, but I believe my grandmother is hiring a car...yea I was thinking about the Ace Cafe but have to figure out how far it is from my hotel. I think we're staying at the Intercontinental...the Motorcycle Museum looks great as well...on the hotel website it says its located between Mayfair and Knightsbridge. We'll be in paris from the 26th to the 29th, and then will take the chunnel to London and be there midday 29th to 31st. And I will try to avoid being "kettled" at all costs! That must suck standing there for hours upon hours! What if you've got to take a leak?!?! hahaha =)
  2. BVD

    Going to London!

    Hey Guys, First off I just wanted to thank Drewpy...I haven't been on here in awhile, but I received my patch last month and it looks amazing! Secondly, I'll be in London and Paris on a family holiday trip leaving on Christmas. Do any of you lads over the pond know of any interesting motorcycling/automotive types of places and things that I might be able to visit/see while I am there? Thanks guys.
  3. Thanks for the help Ollie! Is there any maintenance required at all for the electronic ignition? Is there any reason why I would ever want to look under there? And come to think of it, I had been idling the bike for a while the night before I pulled the plugs. I never did replace those EXTREMELY small o-rings but fear they must be a culprit! For some reason the bike seems harder to start and takes longer to warm up since the last time I took the carbs apart...maybe a carb rebuild is in order for this winter. And that's awesome, a boxer and a great dane! He must be a tall fella!
  4. Hey Guys, I had my xs400 apart this morning as I was checking the valves; I wanted to check the condition of the points as I have never done this before, but was unable to remove the cover...I was able to remove the screw on the bottom left of the cover, but it seemed like there was something holding it on the right side even though there is no visible screw...it looks like just a big metal plug and I could not figure out how to remove it. Also, while I had the spark plugs out I figured I would snap a couple pictures of them...seems to me that there is a bit of carbon fouling on them...is this indicative of an overly rich mixture? After I had the carburetors apart, I feel like I haven't been able to get the fuel mixture right...I think right now I am 3 turns out on the idle mixture screws, because previously it seemed too lean. Left Plug: Right Plug: The leaves are finally starting to come down. Fall is almost here! My helper Fritz: Thanks Guys!
  5. BVD

    XS400 HIGH IDLE!!

    Just got back from a ride, and now the choke works when in the middle position, revving to 3500 rpm. It still has no effect in the fully out position though.
  6. BVD

    XS400 HIGH IDLE!!

    Thanks for all the advice and suggestions guys. You have all been a great help and I really appreciate it! HoughMade, I tried exactly what you suggested. I set the idle mixture screws to 3.25 turns out, started the bike, yet it still was idling very high. Then I looked at the throttle stop screw and realized that it was screwed all the way in, to the point that the spring under it was completely compressed, hindering it from moving any more. So I then backed it out considerably, yet the idle was still high. So I then shut off the bike, restarted it, and lo and behold it was idling at a reasonable speed. I then continued to fiddle with the throttle stop screw until the engine speed was about 1200 rpm. I then took it for a 15 minute ride and everything seemed great. Whenever I pulled in the clutch the engine happily settled to 1200 rpm, so I happily putted home and then set the idle mixture screw at 3 turns out, and it still seems to be running great. I was really fooling with the throttle stop screw yesterday, and must have turned it all the way in without realizing it. The only thing that seems strange now is the choke. Before I cleaned the carbs pulling the choke out all the way would rev the engine to about 4000 to 4500 rpm. On the middle setting it would rev at about 3500 rpm, and pushed all the way in the bike would idle normally. Even after I cleaned the carbs the choke worked in the same way. Now all of a sudden, when I got the bike to finally idle correctly, the choke doesn't seem to have any effect. I can't start the bike with the choke lever pulled all the way out. If I put the choke lever in the middle position the idle speed will increase slightly to about 1500 to 2000 rpm, and if I push it all the way in, the bike will idle normally at 1200 rpm. But now if I pull the choke all the way out the bike will simply shut off. This seems really strange to me. Anyone have any suggestions? Maybe my choke gaskets are bad??
  7. BVD

    XS400 HIGH IDLE!!

    Thanks for the input Ollie. But yea I agree, sometimes it does'nt seem to make sense when you adjust the pilot screws and the result isn't what you expected. It leads you to believe that the problem is originating from somewhere else. And I agree, it does make it a challenge when you don't know what the previous owner has "rebuilt" or possibly changed for the worse. I can tell that my carbs have definitely been opened several times by the stripped out float bowl screw heads. Is this the screw, washer, and spring you ordered from mikes xs Ollie? $10.00 USD Ea Fuel Idle Mixture Screw with spring, washer and O-Ring Part #48-5011 I notice that it looks to be made of steel or aluminum? I noticed the mixture screws in my carbs were made of brass. I am guessing the material isn't a big concern as the function is the same. Should this be the first thing I should consider replacing if adjusting the idle mixture screws doesn't seem to help? I had both carbs apart yesterday, and the small o-ring looked alright, but it was so tiny that it is really hard to examine it properly. Also, are there complete carb rebuild kits for the mikuni available anywhere? Like ones with new gaskets, jets and the whole nine yards? Or is it necessary to source the parts individually? I notice that mikes xs has rebuild kits, but I was wondering if a mikuni bs34 rebuild kit for one model of bike would be different from one for another bike because of the sizes of the jets and things like that. I noticed with my carbs apart yesterday that my main jet said 135 on it. I also noticed on this jet that an R as well as a little square symbol were stamped. I am assuming that if I were to buy a new main jet I would get the same one, one that was size 135. Are there any other jets where size matters though, or are they universal? I did not see numbers stamped on some of the other jets such as the pilot jet. Also Ollie, when you said, "The caps had also been removed on my bike by a P.O." what does P.O. stand for?
  8. BVD

    XS400 HIGH IDLE!!

    Thanks a lot! This gives me some hope to sleep on! Will try tomorrow morning and report back.
  9. BVD

    XS400 HIGH IDLE!!

    Hello Everybody! I am new here and though this is my first post, I have frequently referred to these forums and found the member's and their advice to be extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Anyway, I've had my 1980 xs400 for just shy of a year now. Generally it has been running very good, but I've noticed that if I go for a ride, it starts to suffer from HIGH IDLE SYNDROME after about 10 minutes when it really starts to heat up. After researching online and in my haynes manual, I decided to take the carburetors apart to clean them since the last owner had it sitting for a long time. I thought the cleaning went well; I noticed there was some gunk on the upper part of the needle, where it connects to the slide and diaphragm, as well as the pilot jet. From what I've read these can both affect idle performance. I also noticed there was some crud on the fuel/air mixture screw which is accessed from the outside (although the bike is 1980 the previous owner must have removed the brass plugs which I think are supposed to be there). After cleaning I reassembled the carbs and reinstalled them on the bike. I connected the fuel line and it fired right up. Also, I made a homemade manometer using automatic transmission fluid, and got the carbs pretty close with that. Then I adjusted the mixture screws to about where they were when I took them out. The bike seemed to be running well, but alas! After I rode it for a while and it heated up the idle was again stuck at around 3500 to 4000 rpms. From what I've read this is a problem encountered by a lot of xs400 owners. Also, when the engine is under load, as in when i am going 30mph and above, it seems fine and is revving as it usually does, around 5500 to 6000 rpm. But as soon as I hit a stoplight, it continues to idle at 3000 to 4000. If I turn the choke on when it is idling high, it goes up even higher. I've read that this high idle is indicative of a lean fuel mixture, but whenever I turn the bike off now (after cleaning the carbs), I get like a pop (I would'nt call it a backfire, not as loud as a gunshot) from the exhausts. Would'nt this be indicative of a fuel rich mixture?? Can anyone help me find a fix?? I think I may have screwed up the setting on the fuel air mixture screw! Can anyone suggest a position to put this at? I've read that the factory spec is 1 1/4 turns out from the needle being lightly seated, but that they were set up lean due to epa regulations. Thank You!
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