airbox

[hjfisk]

I have mechanic coming down to me he says the 2 screws on the right side of carbs above where the carbs fit to the manifold boots are adjustable.I have the haynes manual and says the pilot air screw is pre set and the pilot mixture screw is N/A .Does anybody have these settings from stripping carbs down before. I presume the screws Im talking about are the pilot screws.Would like to have them to hand for when he arrives he said they should be in the manual but there not.Conan

Unless someone has already drilled the plugs out they are not accessible from the factory. And no the service manual has no info on where to set them. And you have CV carbs so there is only 1 screw. You could start at 2 tuns out on it . But it sounds like you have a bigger problem. Have the carbs been cleaned properly? and when you were playing with the jets , are the rubber plugs still over the pilot jets? also is the air box sealed up completely?

[angus]

Airbox not sealed yet he says you dont need it sealed to balance the carbs (Ill seal it up anyway) the plugs on carbs 1&2 are still there but the ones on 3&4 were drilled out,and he recons somebody else adjusted them,he has the original suzuki manual so they might be in it.Which number carb is the screw I need to adjust on Ill try have it set when he comes and let him take it from there.Conan

[chucksuki]

My friend, a little searching of this site will lead you to the answer. Your mechanic is not needed for this job. All that is needed is patience and attention to detail. You seem to be avoiding the obvious thing needed here, go to www.cycleorings.com read up and order an oring kit for your carbs. go to http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/ he drives an 850, you should be able to find your way around. all of our bikes run great because of mr. bikecliff. you would do well to avoid your mechanic, though he means well, I had to fix just about every aspect my mechanic touched on my bike.

[Steve]

The carbs were checked and were clean.

How were they "checked"? If the float bowls were removed and given a visual check, the carbs have NOT YET been checked.
The parts that make them run poorly can not be seen, so they can pass a visual check, but not a single drop of gas.

... local mechanic looked over carbs after I put the main jets back in said everything was fine, ... He thinks since the bike was running sorta ok ish that they just need to be balanced.

Once again, you can not tell by LOOKING to determine the condition of the carbs.
Yes, "balancing" can help, but you can only do so much with dirty carbs.

With the airbox wide open and no filter, it'll always run like crap.

I have been able to get a bike to idle with nothing attached to the carb inlets, but they will not respond to any throttle input at all.
If you fold a shop rag in half, then clamp it over the mouths of the two outer carbs so it is taut over the two inner carbs, not only will the engine respond to throttle, you can actually ride it around the block. This will not be good enough for jetting checks, but it's good enough for a quick check ride.

I have mechanic coming down to me he says the 2 screws on the right side of carbs above where the carbs fit to the manifold boots are adjustable.

You really do need to start working on this bike yourself. Anybody who says there are screws on the sides of these carbs that are adjustable does NOT know these carbs.

I have the haynes manual and says the pilot air screw is pre set and the pilot mixture screw is N/A .

You need to replace your Haynes manual, too. There is no "pilot air screw" on those carbs. You have a "pilot air JET" in the intake of the carb throat. Its only 'adjustment' is replacing it with one of a different size. There is also a "pilot fuel JET" that is down in the float bowl, next to the main jet. Like the air jet, its only 'adjustment' is replacing it with one of a different size.

The "pilot mixture screw" you refer to is usually called the "idle mixture adjustment screw", and was intended to be non-adjustable, due to emissions regulations. However, there is an o-ring around it that deteriorates and needs to be replaced. These bikes also run SO much better if you adjust the mixture screw to be a little bit richer than stock, and I can not remember ANYBODY mentioning anything about getting a citation from the EPA for excess emissions.

Does anybody have these settings from stripping carbs down before. I presume the screws Im talking about are the pilot screws.Would like to have them to hand for when he arrives he said they should be in the manual but there not.

The only screws that can be adjusted are the "idle mixture adjustment screws", they are on the tops of the carbs on the side facing the engine. If your carbs have not been properly cleaned (which requires TOTAL disassembly), you might still have plugs over the screws. As a starting point after a fresh clean and rebuild, many of us suggest 2 1/2 to 3 full turns out from lightly-seated. After the engine warms up and the carbs are balanced, adjust the screws for highest idle speed, which will indicate best running due to a "happy" mixture. They might end up in the 2 to 2 1/2 turn range, but start with a richer mixture (3 turns) and lean it up to the "happy" setting.

My friend, a little searching of this site will lead you to the answer. Your mechanic is not needed for this job. All that is needed is patience and attention to detail. You seem to be avoiding the obvious thing needed here, go to www.cycleorings.com read up and order an oring kit for your carbs. go to http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/ he drives an 850, you should be able to find your way around. all of our bikes run great because of mr. bikecliff. you would do well to avoid your mechanic, though he means well, I had to fix just about every aspect my mechanic touched on my bike.

Unless your "mechanic" is twice the age of your bike, he may not know it nearly as well as he is leading you to belive. Modern-day "mechanics" are just technicians that will replace parts, based on reported symptoms. They don't really do proper troubleshooting to find the root cause of a problem, then determine what it's going to take to fix it.

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[angus]

Added photo(carbs) with red circle around each screw Im talking about.

[hjfisk]

If you want to have your bike fixed and running right you really need to listen to the advice that you have been given. Steve is pretty much spot on with these bikes and carbs. I'm am not good a explaining things but he is . All the info you need has been given to you . And your mechanic does not no what he is talking about with these carbs. You should learn to do these things yourself if you are going to ride a 31 year old motorcycle.

[Steve]

Added photo(carbs) with red circle around each screw Im talking about.

Had a hard time finding any red in that drawing, but those are the "idle mixture adjustment screws", indeed.

Those are the ones that need to be about 3 turns out as a starting point, but if your carbs have not been properly cleaned and had new o-rings installed, I would not even worry about that. It would be MUCH better to start with a clean slate and just rebuild the carbs.

I know you trust your "mechanic", but what he is saying is not building any confidence in my book, you just don't know the difference. There are several of us on the forum that rebuild carbs for other members (myself included), contact any of us to have them done for you, if you don't want to tackle the job yourself. (You can look in the GS Parts and Services forum to see the others.)

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[angus]

Cheers steve Ill pull them off and clean them.