rich, lean, or ok?

[jsandidge]

Please look at my plugs and tell me if I am running rich, lean, or ok. I have put about 200 miles on these plugs, mostly around town but a few miles at interstate speeds.

Thanks all!

[kurt112345]

Look a little on lean side

[Griffin]

Looks quite lean, but.

Did you do this after a plug shop at a specific throttle position, or just pull them after riding around at various speeds and throttle positions?

The plugs indicate you are lean on at least one fuel circuit, but unless you check them at a specific throttle setting, there's no way to tell which circuit(s) it is.

[tom203]

Yes, do a freeway run in safe place, hit kill switch,coast to stop and have a look at plugs.

[tkent02]

What Griffin said, do proper plug chops, but also look down inside the well between the insulator and the outer steel part.

Is it white all the way to the bottom? Or does it have some dark or even black way down in there?

And, how does it run? Throttle response, power, does the engine pull smoothly at every RPM and throttle position? How is the fuel consumption?

Stock GSes running perfectly tend to have fairly white plugs, especially the early 802 ones with CV carburetors. There is a lot more to this than you imagine.

[jsandidge]

plug chops

I will do some plug chops, and look all the way down the insulators, I think they are white all the way down. I thought I was running a little rich with the mixture screws at 3-1/2 turns out because I could smell a little fuel at idle. That's where I ended up using the highest idle method. I turned them back in another 1/2 turn to lean it out some. (This was before the pic). It does pull smoothly all the way through at 3 or 3-1/2 turns. Everything is stock, so I figure the only things I should fool with are the fuel level and mixture screws. Is this correct?

[brad83gs]

Just to clarify, when you say 3 1/2 turns out, you mean 3 1/2 turns counter clockwise from the screws being bottomed out in the carbs? yes?

[jsandidge]

that's right

Just to clarify, when you say 3 1/2 turns out, you mean 3 1/2 turns counter clockwise from the screws being bottomed out in the carbs? yes?

Yes, 3-1/2 turns clockwise from bottomed out. I'm trying 3-3/4 out now. Seems good.

[brad83gs]

Hmmm, maybe i should try that. My 1100g runs pig rich, a faint smell of fuel at idle. So, bottom out the mixture screws, then go counter clockwise with them? And thats roughly factory settings? Yes, i have read the carb tuning thread, but it does not say whether you start the tuning from the top of the little cylinder that the screws ride in or the bottom.

[JTGS850GL]

Yes, 3-1/2 turns clockwise from bottomed out. I'm trying 3-3/4 out now. Seems good.

When you say 3-1/2 out, are you saying full turns or 180 degree half turns.

[jsandidge]

full turns

When you say 3-1/2 out, are you saying full turns or 180 degree half turns.

I am saying 360 degree full turns.