T
TheCafeKid
Guest
There are two things you need to do here.
1) Can the "I know it all" attitude.
2) listen to what the people who have been in your position already are telling you.
They/we aren't trying to be d!ckheads. We're trying to save you from taking six months and your entire riding season, and god knows how many dollars of wasted money to do something that could be done in a few short weeks and for quite a big less money if you simply heed the advise that we as collective are giving you. Your guy at the shop that's been tuning motorcycles since the "70s" is just one guy. There are literally hundreds on here that have probably just as much experience and do this on a regular basis, and yet even they still don't know it all. Which is why this place exists.
I personally have rebuilt four of the exact same bike you're messing with now, and I learn something new each time I do it.
So you can chuck any knowledge you have about working on cars or such out the window because aside from having an engine and wheels, these are nothing like a car.
The tolerances are much smaller, especially when it comes to the engine and carburetion. ANY increase in air or fuel will have a very large effect on how it runs.
For starters, don't "forget about the pods" They do matter. The fact is you cannot run the bike with pods without rejetting the carbs for them.
For one, it'll run like sh!t. It will fall on its face and buck and stumble and generally act like a giant POS. secondly, if you run it like that continually you will destroy the engine. To much air causes a very lean and hot burn in the cumbustion chamber and it will eventually burn the valves and worse.
Next, your petcock, or fuel tap, from your tank is likely failed. Or you are running it on the "PRIme" position constantly. The petcock is a vacuum operated style that is designed to only deliver fuel in the "ON" or "REServe" position when the engine is turning over to create a vacuum pull to open the diaphragm inside.
The "PRIme" position is used only to fill the float bowls when the bike has sat for a long period of time. It will flow fuel in this position constantly, and the carbs will not be able to hold the flow back, causing an overflow both out of the overflow tubes on the carbs and too much fuel in the cylinders.
You need to do the basic maintenance on your bike before you can begin to tune it. Meaning the carbs need to be torn down, dipped in solvent, cleaned and rebuilt with new sealing orings. The valves need to be adjusted. The charging system needs to be checked and repaired if found not to be functioning properly.
The intake boots need to have new orings installed behind them to repair any air leaks from years of neglect.
As to the wires going to your gauges, they don't just operate the gauges. Many of the wiring systems on these bikes are inter-connected. Without understanding what you're cutting, it was a bad idea. Simple as that.
So, in summary, you can follow the advise of the literally hundreds of years of combined experience of the people on this board, and end up with a nice running bike probably before the season begins in earnest. Or you can continue to be obstinate and closed minded and assume that no one is telling you what you NEED to hear (vs what you WANT to hear) and six month from now you might have it figured out. But it might also be shoved into the corner of your garage...
1) Can the "I know it all" attitude.
2) listen to what the people who have been in your position already are telling you.
They/we aren't trying to be d!ckheads. We're trying to save you from taking six months and your entire riding season, and god knows how many dollars of wasted money to do something that could be done in a few short weeks and for quite a big less money if you simply heed the advise that we as collective are giving you. Your guy at the shop that's been tuning motorcycles since the "70s" is just one guy. There are literally hundreds on here that have probably just as much experience and do this on a regular basis, and yet even they still don't know it all. Which is why this place exists.
I personally have rebuilt four of the exact same bike you're messing with now, and I learn something new each time I do it.
So you can chuck any knowledge you have about working on cars or such out the window because aside from having an engine and wheels, these are nothing like a car.
The tolerances are much smaller, especially when it comes to the engine and carburetion. ANY increase in air or fuel will have a very large effect on how it runs.
For starters, don't "forget about the pods" They do matter. The fact is you cannot run the bike with pods without rejetting the carbs for them.
For one, it'll run like sh!t. It will fall on its face and buck and stumble and generally act like a giant POS. secondly, if you run it like that continually you will destroy the engine. To much air causes a very lean and hot burn in the cumbustion chamber and it will eventually burn the valves and worse.
Next, your petcock, or fuel tap, from your tank is likely failed. Or you are running it on the "PRIme" position constantly. The petcock is a vacuum operated style that is designed to only deliver fuel in the "ON" or "REServe" position when the engine is turning over to create a vacuum pull to open the diaphragm inside.
The "PRIme" position is used only to fill the float bowls when the bike has sat for a long period of time. It will flow fuel in this position constantly, and the carbs will not be able to hold the flow back, causing an overflow both out of the overflow tubes on the carbs and too much fuel in the cylinders.
You need to do the basic maintenance on your bike before you can begin to tune it. Meaning the carbs need to be torn down, dipped in solvent, cleaned and rebuilt with new sealing orings. The valves need to be adjusted. The charging system needs to be checked and repaired if found not to be functioning properly.
The intake boots need to have new orings installed behind them to repair any air leaks from years of neglect.
As to the wires going to your gauges, they don't just operate the gauges. Many of the wiring systems on these bikes are inter-connected. Without understanding what you're cutting, it was a bad idea. Simple as that.
So, in summary, you can follow the advise of the literally hundreds of years of combined experience of the people on this board, and end up with a nice running bike probably before the season begins in earnest. Or you can continue to be obstinate and closed minded and assume that no one is telling you what you NEED to hear (vs what you WANT to hear) and six month from now you might have it figured out. But it might also be shoved into the corner of your garage...
And once you get over the "fear" of screwing up your only ride, it's pretty therapeutic 
