kd2727 Posted June 4, 2011 Share Posted June 4, 2011 im sure its an easy issue, but im a first timer with even less mechanical experience than riding experience.... ok...so ive been riding my 96 virago 250 that i bought a week ago, every night.....gotta have the choke on for a bit in the beginning, seems a lil slow to warm up, but eventually she gets on target.... so tonight, i get ready for my nightly trip to the parking lot to murder some u-turns and exciting friction zone education (i refuse to be that new guy who has no business in traffic yet refuses to practice basics)...and even on full choke i can barely get her to idle......if i turn the choke off, the bike shuts off....so even though that sounded off, i got onto the street to feel her in motion and NO POWER...she ran, but very weakly.....and at a steady throttle she would hold steady, then putter, slow down, then jerk back to speed..... im no mechanic, but want to learn to take care of my own bike.....it has new plugs and has been riding regularly for the past month....its ran fine in the week ive had it....just tonite it's doin this......it makes me think dirty carb...but what do i know....i just think if it was a carb problem, wouldn't it have been doing this since i got it? any thoughts are greatly appreciated..... the parking lot beckons for my return..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Airhead Posted June 4, 2011 Moderator Share Posted June 4, 2011 Sounds like muck or water in the carb to me too, have you just filled the tank by any chance? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kd2727 Posted June 4, 2011 Author Share Posted June 4, 2011 Sounds like muck or water in the carb to me too, have you just filled the tank by any chance? sure did....about 5 miles ago....it was the first fill ive done since i bought it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kd2727 Posted June 5, 2011 Author Share Posted June 5, 2011 completely pulled carb....cleaned it thoroughly....reassembled.......still running like crap....wont run unless on full choke, and even on full choke, its underpowered and doggy......GRRRRRRRRRRRRR......what next? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Airhead Posted June 5, 2011 Moderator Share Posted June 5, 2011 completely pulled carb....cleaned it thoroughly....reassembled.......still running like crap....wont run unless on full choke, and even on full choke, its underpowered and doggy......GRRRRRRRRRRRRR......what next? Wont run unless on choke is a classic symptom of a blocked pilot jet, did you remove this jet and see that its clear? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kd2727 Posted June 5, 2011 Author Share Posted June 5, 2011 Wont run unless on choke is a classic symptom of a blocked pilot jet, did you remove this jet and see that its clear? well, my friend helped me with the tear down of the carb...he pulled out all the jets and i cleaned them.....soaked them in carb cleaner than ran the air compressor and blew them all out.... should i pull the plugs? perhaps they will tell me something..... oh, and i checked the air filter today....what a mess...only 25 % was left and as soon as i touched it, it crumbled into dust....im sure some of that was sucked into the carb!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulwhite Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 well, my friend helped me with the tear down of the carb...he pulled out all the jets and i cleaned them.....soaked them in carb cleaner than ran the air compressor and blew them all out.... should i pull the plugs? perhaps they will tell me something..... oh, and i checked the air filter today....what a mess...only 25 % was left and as soon as i touched it, it crumbled into dust....im sure some of that was sucked into the carb!! ok....get a new filter on there and clean the spark plugs then try it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Airhead Posted June 6, 2011 Moderator Share Posted June 6, 2011 ..........oh, and i checked the air filter today....what a mess...only 25 % was left and as soon as i touched it, it crumbled into dust....im sure some of that was sucked into the carb!! Could it be possible that a large enough piece of the filter has passed through the carb and is resting at the inlet valve...blocking the airflow? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kd2727 Posted June 6, 2011 Author Share Posted June 6, 2011 havent gone to the shop yet for a filter, but took a look at the pilot screw...hmmmmmm...cranked all the way down....lol...2 turns and she idles much better....still not up to top shape yet, but gonna work on airflow and plugs today....and if im feeling froggy, pull the petcock, clean it, and MAYBE throw in an inline fuel filter..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NEV Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 havent gone to the shop yet for a filter, but took a look at the pilot screw...hmmmmmm...cranked all the way down....lol...2 turns and she idles much better....still not up to top shape yet, but gonna work on airflow and plugs today....and if im feeling froggy, pull the petcock, clean it, and MAYBE throw in an inline fuel filter..... Don't forget to 'prime' your new air filter with oil, before refitting, most use 2t oil, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kd2727 Posted June 6, 2011 Author Share Posted June 6, 2011 Could it be possible that a large enough piece of the filter has passed through the carb and is resting at the inlet valve...blocking the airflow? ughhhhhh....the condition that filter was in, it's a consideration....the filter itself was trashed, however the screen was intact..so no "big" chunks could have gotten thru....but there was a mess of "residue" and particulates that passed through it for sure..... to check the inlet valve i have to take the cylinder head off correct? good thing im on vacation!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Airhead Posted June 6, 2011 Moderator Share Posted June 6, 2011 ughhhhhh....the condition that filter was in, it's a consideration....the filter itself was trashed, however the screen was intact..so no "big" chunks could have gotten thru....but there was a mess of "residue" and particulates that passed through it for sure..... to check the inlet valve i have to take the cylinder head off correct? good thing im on vacation!!!! maybe not I cannot say, perhaps you could take off the inlet manifold and use a mirror and a small led light or the light on your cell phone to see down the inlet tract. If you see something...how about a compressed air line to blow it out?? Dunno it's your call but have a look while you have the carb off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kd2727 Posted June 6, 2011 Author Share Posted June 6, 2011 maybe not I cannot say, perhaps you could take off the inlet manifold and use a mirror and a small led light or the light on your cell phone to see down the inlet tract. If you see something...how about a compressed air line to blow it out?? Dunno it's your call but have a look while you have the carb off. welllllll....just pulled the plugs....lol.....u tell me, but i think im farked....lol.....oil on the plugs...one was pretty black, the other a wee bit of fresh....... so i cleaned them up, put them back, and holy shit.....first, the no choke idle that was barley running the engine before, even after i cranked the idle screw a couple times...was ROARING.....ruff, but it was screaming at me for turning that idle screw...so i cranked the idle screw back to normal, and it calmed down a bit, but TONS of white smoke for about 5 min....then i took it out....NEW BIKE horsepower speaking...every little throttle input put me back a bit in comparison to my 1/4 to 1/2 throttle cranks that got me nowhere in a hurry.....did a mile and pulled in, turned off, pulled plugs again....they werent messed up to bad at all, but there was fresh oil on the threads.... bad rings? worth fixing, or should i put the for sale sign on today... taking into account, im not a mechanic....this was the first time i even seen a carb in hand let alone having took it down and back.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kd2727 Posted June 7, 2011 Author Share Posted June 7, 2011 any thoughts? on vacation this week and hoping to get some closure to the situation.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeTour Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 I'm thinkin there's still something in the carb.. I mean it can't hurt to clean it again. How does the inside of the tank look? And ya know... maybe you should buy a book or something on this bike because it can't be good to just start cranking the adjustment screws around... And if your worried about rings, run a compression test on it.. both wet and dry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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