stalls out under 2000 rpms

[SKD]

ok i got my new-old bike running, the only thing is i cant get it below 2000 rpms without it dieing. i can run it with the choke or run it under throttle but as soon as i get near 2000 rpms she dies. above 2000 rpms it has great throttle response and sounds great but when she gets near that 2000 mark, shes a goner. where should i start. she has new plugs and the carbs are cleaned out, now she came with rusted out 4 into 1 exhaust and i put in a new battery to get her running, but besides that, shes stock as it gets, down to the aircleaner.
1981 gs1100e....

[legaleli]

carbs and valves and airbox

[SKD]

carbs and valves and airbox

do you think maybe the air/fuel mixture may be off? the airbox is sealed up tight as a drum and the carbs are cleaned out. now as far as the valves go, never tried that, hmmmmm, time to get a good manual.

[GSX550]

The idle jets will be clogged. My GSX 250 was the same. Would start off the choke but would not idle unless you opened the throttle (I guess that is the definition of not idling). I pulled them many times, spraying carb cleaner and the like, but the only thing that worked was a piece of wire getting run through them. On a 4 cylinder 250 it was a VERY thin piece of wire!

I ended up unraveling some thin guage electrical wire. You may not need to use so thin a wire on a large bike though. After this she idled perfect.

[1_v8_merc]

I had a similar issue on my 650.

It just wouldnt hold idle below 1500rpms

Eventually I did the valves, and THAT really made it smooth.
But then a couple days later it was back to it's stupid games!

Eventually I re-checked my Idle/Mixture screws, and THAT really got it running correctly again!
I really wasn't 2 1/2 turns out like I should have been, I musta been drunk last time and was doing half-turns instead of full turns.lol
(plus found out my throttle cable nuts were all set wrong too)

I guess it was a bunch of crap in the end.
And the whole time I thought it was clogged carbs.....
(because i never dipped mine, went thru like 4 cans of carb spray though somehow.....and blasted an air compressor thru it a buncha times, hell even my gas tank has flash rust in it.....but the bike still runs flawless!)

[SKD]

ok i think i really need to adjust the valves heres why. i went out and did what alot of you said to do and adjusted the air mixture, tried every which way and came up with 1 1/4 turns out from closed position, runs at about 1200 at the lowest now but i have to really feather the throttle to get it there and if i let off the throttle shes dead. i also noticed, i know not good, that when its down that low in the rpms i have a shiatload of noise, like a slight knocking almost.
whatcha think?

[1_v8_merc]

ok i think i really need to adjust the valves heres why. i went out and did what alot of you said to do and adjusted the air mixture, tried every which way and came up with 1 1/4 turns out from closed position, runs at about 1200 at the lowest now but i have to really feather the throttle to get it there and if i let off the throttle shes dead. i also noticed, i know not good, that when its down that low in the rpms i have a shiatload of noise, like a slight knocking almost.
whatcha think?

Forgive me for I'm about to blabber a little bit.....but it may give you some small ideas to get your idle to hold before doing anything major.

But what do you mean by knocking, like running Out of sync or just clunky-ish or rough?
You might need to sync the carburetors(which requires a set of gauges, or you can make one yourself if you want to save the $80+ it costs to buy one.

But you MIGHT just need to adjust valves like you said, because that can ALSO cause a rough idle and hard/rough/sloppy Revving problem too along with noises and crap......

How much vibration do you get when you rev the bike up to say....4k?
(assuming IF you have the foam handlebars which soak a lot of vibration up......., you shouldn't get too much shaking in the hands....that's how it is on my bike at least, but before my valve adjustment, I could feel TONS of vibration, like a friggin jackhammer almost, and could hear that the engine didn't exactly like it, lol, after the adjustment it was way more silent and silky smooth! Like day and night.... hahaha)

The noise could be exhaust? Or is it all engine....what does it sound like?

Glad to hear your back down to 1200rpm's, that's typically around where you wanna be....although everybodys bikes seem to prefer a slightly different RPM.
----

If you've checked the Idle screw, and can't get it to hold still,
You might want to play with the throttle cable lock-nut....that helped my idle smooth out a little.....i actually didn't discover it till I swapped new handlebars, and the bike wouldn't run correctly till I played with that locknut some-bit.
(there are 2, one at the handlebar and one at the bottom near the carbs)

Also, 1 1/4 turns seems WAY too low!
(according to what everybody seems to interpret as the "GS laws" around here.....it's usually gotta be atleast 2 1/2 turns out.....)
But I guess if it's running better....its running better!

Your problem could very likely be the valves, but I figure I'd just offer some small crap-shoots before you go ripping off the gas tank and valve cover and ****.....

[SKD]

Forgive me for I'm about to blabber a little bit.....but it may give you some small ideas to get your idle to hold before doing anything major.

But what do you mean by knocking, like running Out of sync or just clunky-ish or rough?
You might need to sync the carburetors(which requires a set of gauges, or you can make one yourself if you want to save the $80+ it costs to buy one.

But you MIGHT just need to adjust valves like you said, because that can ALSO cause a rough idle and hard/rough/sloppy Revving problem too along with noises and crap......

How much vibration do you get when you rev the bike up to say....4k?
(assuming IF you have the foam handlebars which soak a lot of vibration up......., you shouldn't get too much shaking in the hands....that's how it is on my bike at least, but before my valve adjustment, I could feel TONS of vibration, like a friggin jackhammer almost, and could hear that the engine didn't exactly like it, lol, after the adjustment it was way more silent and silky smooth! Like day and night.... hahaha)

The noise could be exhaust? Or is it all engine....what does it sound like?

Glad to hear your back down to 1200rpm's, that's typically around where you wanna be....although everybodys bikes seem to prefer a slightly different RPM.
----

If you've checked the Idle screw, and can't get it to hold still,
You might want to play with the throttle cable lock-nut....that helped my idle smooth out a little.....i actually didn't discover it till I swapped new handlebars, and the bike wouldn't run correctly till I played with that locknut some-bit.
(there are 2, one at the handlebar and one at the bottom near the carbs)

Also, 1 1/4 turns seems WAY too low!
(according to what everybody seems to interpret as the "GS laws" around here.....it's usually gotta be atleast 2 1/2 turns out.....)
But I guess if it's running better....its running better!

Your problem could very likely be the valves, but I figure I'd just offer some small crap-shoots before you go ripping off the gas tank and valve cover and ****.....

lol, dont worry about the babbling, i like to learn as much as possiable. gonna go out tomorrow after work and try all of the above, and yes it runs like when your chevy 350 is outta time, that kinda knocking. i will get on these things tomorrow and see what happens, thanks alot for your help, thank god i live in the palm springs are and have all summer long to work on this bike, there no way possiable to ride it here when its 115 degrees outside, but in the spring, winter and fall, shes gonna be my gas saver....lmao, an 1100 is a gas saver, well compared to my 89 suburban with the big block, she is...

[SKD]

oh and this sync tool, best place to get her? should i hit the dealership or go through the internet somewhere like bikebandit?

[BassCliff]

oh and this sync tool, best place to get her? should i hit the dealership or go through the internet somewhere like bikebandit?

Hi,

http://www.carbtune.com/

Check out the carb information I've collected on my website. Also check out THIS THREAD starting at post #127 for carb sync information.



Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[ironsheik]

Pull in the clutch lever and I'll bet the rattle goes away. It's probably the basket and the same thing happens to me at 1k or below while idling...

[SKD]

thabks basscliff, read that whole thread about a week ago, someone actually told me to, great info throughout that entire thread. i found that sync tool and thought, hmmmm there has to be one closer, lol, i guess not. and im sure i'll use it more than once so it should pay for itself over and over...
thanks again for all the help guys...
skd

[SKD]

Pull in the clutch lever and I'll bet the rattle goes away. It's probably the basket and the same thing happens to me at 1k or below while idling...

hmmmm, never even thought of that, will do tonight when i get home. thanks
skd

[BassCliff]

i found that sync tool and thought, hmmmm there has to be one closer, lol, i guess not. and im sure i'll use it more than once so it should pay for itself over and over...

Hi,

You can buy the Motion Pro sync tool from Z1Enterprises.com but it's not as highly regarded as the Morgan Carbtune. The Motion Pro tool uses liquid in the columns. My buddy rapidray even uses a gang of four analog vacuum gauges to sync carbs. Homemade manometers can work well too. It's up to you as far as the affordability/convenience/ease-of-use factor. I'm really happy with the Carbtune.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[SKD]

just a small update. went out and ran her today and she sounds like popcorn...lol...so i finally got the sync tool on its way, with of course the valve cover gasket and valve adjustment tool. and a haynes manual, so when that gets here i'll start from the begininng. adjust valves and sync carbs then onto the electrical system checks, coils and so on..
thanks again guys