Choke doesn't stay out. Why?

[Spiff]

Hi guys, I was wondering if any one knows a reason for why my choke doesn't want to stay in the pulled out position?
I tried to look if there where something missing but I couldn't see anything out of the ordinary.
That doesn't mean it's not as I have little experience with bikes and carbs...

[BigD_83]

You've probably already checked this but, if the bracket that holds the choke cable in position is loose, or the end of the choke cable itself is not firmly held in place, it might not be able to maintain tension in the out position

[BassCliff]

Hi,

If your choke knob is in the center console, there's a jam nut you can use to tighten the friction and straighten the word "CHOKE".




Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[Steve]

If everything is working the way it should, you should be able to pull the knob out to the desired position and give it a twist to the right to lock it in place.

If it doesn't stay there, check the jam nut that BassCliff mentioned.

If that doesn't work, get a new cable and start over.

.

[Spiff]

my choke knob is on the left side of the carbs
Didn't know it could be twisted to stay in place, i'll try that first

thanks

[7981GS]

On your set, there are detent balls that are located on number 2 & 3 carbs.
Perhaps they fell out when they were rebuilt?

Daniel

[Spiff]

So I finally got down to my bike today and here is my choke assy:


It can't be twisted either way, but it looks like something is missing, shouldn't something connect these two?

[BassCliff]

Hi,

I'm not as familiar with the VM carb setup but it looks like the choke cable is missing and that big black knob was "improvised".

EDIT: Mr. hampshirehog is right (see next post). I just glanced at the carbs without realizing that they are, indeed, CV-style carbs (probably BS32SS model - same as my bike). Have a look at the air intake repair guide on my little website for pictures of the choke cable assembly where it connects to the carbs. It may help you.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[hampshirehog]

Those carbs are CV type and should be cable operated - where you have arrowed is where the cable is meant to be. Somebody has modified with that black knob - which looks like the original knob that was on the handlebars. The choke will work, but the locking mechanism is a friction set up on the handlebars - therefore you will have to hold that knob out manually.

[Spiff]

Wich is very annoying since that means I have to sit on the bike until it's warmed up or use throttle until it's warmed up.

I see you can get new choke cables cheap on ebay. But where does the choke knob sit?
I would have to manufacture some kind of bracket or something?

[Steve]

Wich is very annoying since that means I have to sit on the bike until it's warmed up or use throttle until it's warmed up.

Not as annoying as you might think. When properly set up, you should only need "choke" for about 30 seconds.

I see you can get new choke cables cheap on ebay. But where does the choke knob sit?
I would have to manufacture some kind of bracket or something?

Look in post #3 from Basscliff. The picture shows the "choke" knob in the correct location, but unscrewed a bit.
It goes in the hole that comes up through the steering stem. No bracket needed.
When you get a new cable, all necessary parts are included.

.

[Spiff]

hmm, does it sit there on a 750 too? 'Cause I don't have anything there except a nut... http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y41/nexxuz/GS750/?action=view¤t=VIDEO0016.mp4

Do I unscrew that nut and screw on the choke knob assy?

[BassCliff]

Hi,

There should be a chart in your manual that shows the stock routing for all the cables, choke, throttle, clutch, etc.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[BigD_83]

I think one of the issues you are dealing with is that the carbs currently on your bike are not the originals. If I'm not mistaken, that '78 came with VM carbs, and the choke knob would have been mounted directly to the choke rod.

You now have CV carbs, and the routing for the choke cable and position of the choke knob varies by model. For example, the 1981 GS650 mounts where BassCliff and HampshireHog have pointed you toward, but on my '83 650 the choke lever is mounted underneath the left-hand control assembly.

You can check out what MacGuyver did to his choke when he moved it off the stem back down to the carbs. A really elegant modification that he used to clean up his handlebar/dash. I've images stored somewhere of closeups...

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=151817&highlight=choke&page=26

See post #259 in Linear mode

[7981GS]

Hello my Norwegian friend.
Might I suggest that you do something like I did on one of my bikes?
I took one of the mounts that is on the right side of your gauges that the brake hose goes through and
straightened it out a little and mounted it and the stock choke cable on the left side of the gauges like this:



Not the best idea, but it works!

Daniel