Taking way too long to warm up

[Florida Guy]

Although I have a later model than most here, it's still runs the same, so I'll ask this question....
I have a '93 1100G.
I haven't had my G very long, and have hardly ridden it.
I live in Florida, and keep the bike in the house. Even when it's 80 degrees outside, it takes over 5 minutes before I can fully push in the choke, unless it will stall out. Background: recently had valve clearances adjusted and carbs synced. Next time I took it out for a ride I fouled a plug, probaly due to choking it so much. Cleaned plug and put bike away until yesterday. Same problem.... won't run without choking it to death. I am sure at least one of the plugs are again fouled. I'm wondering if this problem is being caused by me using premium 93 octane fuel? I should have used 87 which is what the bike calls for. The bike has 2,500 miles, so it's like new. Would it warm up more quickly using 87 octane? Seeking opinions.

Thanks, Alan

[Dave8338]

Sweet Bike!!! I' will have me one of them someday. Marvin has a "dune pearl" colored one.......

As far as the "slow warm-up", the octane in the fuel won't really make any difference, as long as everything else is set correctly. It sounds like the problem is in the pilot circuits. How old is the fuel in the tank? What does the air filter look like? Clean? Plugs how new and how many times fouled/cleaned? Are you sure the choke is fully closing?

[Florida Guy]

Sweet Bike!!! I' will have me one of them someday. Marvin has a "dune pearl" colored one.......

As far as the "slow warm-up", the octane in the fuel won't really make any difference, as long as everything else is set correctly. It sounds like the problem is in the pilot circuits. How old is the fuel in the tank? What does the air filter look like? Clean? Plugs how new and how many times fouled/cleaned? Are you sure the choke is fully closing?

Thank you.
Fuel is fresh. Never checked air filter as bike only has 2,500 mi. Plugs are less than 1k mi. I haven't checked yet, but I'm pretty certain I have a fouled plug. This would be the 2nd time. I know it's from leaving the choke out too long.

[trippivot]

just had service work performed and it runs bad?? hhmmmm... could it be?? noooo it couldn't be bad mechanical work???

get your money back and fire that tuner DORK... You have a simple problem and you need more carb work

[Dave8338]

just had service work performed and it runs bad?? hhmmmm... could it be?? noooo it couldn't be bad mechanical work???

get your money back and fire that tuner DORK... You have a simple problem and you need more carb work

My thoughts as well.....

A good carb clean, set, and bench sync will make all the difference in the world. Add to that, a Morgan Tune balance and you'll be flying for several years.....

[marvinsc]

My GSX1100G is Cold natured as has been every inline 4 I have ridden but at 80 degrees You shouldn't need much if any choke. With the mileage that low, that bike has spent a LOT of time in someone's garage which means there is a very good possibility that the small passages in the carbs are gummed up. I think the only proper fix will be a complete carb removal, dissassembly and cleaning. There is an exlellent tutorial in the Garage section here and Chicago Bill has one on the "G" Man forum. Good Luck and keep us informed.

[Florida Guy]

My thoughts as well.....

A good carb clean, set, and bench sync will make all the difference in the world. Add to that, a Morgan Tune balance and you'll be flying for several years.....

The mechanic has been working on bikes many years, and comes highly recommended (although I'm beginning to have my doubts).
The carbs were rebuilt by po and only have about 500 miles. This mechanic is coming over this week to take a look at what the problem might be.

[marvinsc]

Some peoples version of "Rebuilt" is spraying with Aerosal carb cleaner and replacing some o rings. That is a long way from disassembly and soaking in cleaner.

[Nessism]

Problem is that you don't know for a fact what condition the carbs are in. If it were me I'd do a full carb clean out with new o-rings. That said, if the bike runs well after it warms up, the pilot circuits must be open. You might want to run a couple of tanks of gas through it with Seafoam or Techron which will open things up if there is partial blockage. Also, shim the needles up in the carbs (you don't have to remove the carbs to do this) and open the pilot screws an extra turn. These things are easy to do although it sounds like you don't turn wrenches on your own based on your talk of your "mechanic".

Paying a mechanic to work on an old bike is a direct path to the poor house...and loony bin after he messes everything up.

Good luck.

[Florida Guy]

it sounds like you don't turn wrenches on your own based on your talk of your "mechanic".

Paying a mechanic to work on an old bike is a direct path to the poor house...and loony bin after he messes everything up. Good luck.

Correct... not very mechanical. However, when I asked my local Suzuki dealer how much to check valve clearances, they told me 4 hours labor, and they charge $100/hr. The mechanic I used charged me $200.
I don't know how well the carbs were cleaned, but that will be on the short list of things to check.
Thanks.

[psyguy]

4 hours to check valve clearances ?

nice! i'm moving to florida to work as a mechanic!

lol

[Florida Guy]

4 hours to check valve clearances ?

nice! i'm moving to florida to work as a mechanic! lol

And who knows if their mechanic ever saw a G in his life? A lot of mechanics don't know older bikes.
Yes, move to Florida. Even if you charge half, you'll make good $$$.

[Steve]

As far as the "slow warm-up", the octane in the fuel won't really make any difference, as long as everything else is set correctly.

Sorry, I have to express at least partial disagreement here.

Higher octane gas is harder to light and does not burn as quickly. When used in an engine that does not require it and is therefore not needing it, it won't run right. Given the fact that cold engines just don't like to run, anyway, compounding that with fuel that does not want to burn only makes it worse.

If it at least starts when cold, you can presume the valves are at least close to correct. Along with others, I would suspect the idle mixture screws. Are they still a sealed item from the factory? Well, unseal them and tweak the screws. Turn them in slowly and carefully, counting the turns until they seat lightly. Record the number of turns for each screw (they might be different). This will at least let you take it back to a known starting point, even if it is wrong. Most of us end up running between two and three full turns out from lightly seated. When it is getting a correct mixture, you may not even need the 'choke' to start it. If you do use the 'choke', it will be off by the time you get your helmet on and get into second gear.

.

[Florida Guy]

Sorry, I have to express at least partial disagreement here.

Higher octane gas is harder to light and does not burn as quickly. When used in an engine that does not require it and is therefore not needing it, it won't run right. Given the fact that cold engines just don't like to run, anyway, compounding that with fuel that does not want to burn only makes it worse.

If it at least starts when cold, you can presume the valves are at least close to correct. Along with others, I would suspect the idle mixture screws. Are they still a sealed item from the factory? Well, unseal them and tweak the screws. Turn them in slowly and carefully, counting the turns until they seat lightly. Record the number of turns for each screw (they might be different). This will at least let you take it back to a known starting point, even if it is wrong. Most of us end up running between two and three full turns out from lightly seated. When it is getting a correct mixture, you may not even need the 'choke' to start it. If you do use the 'choke', it will be off by the time you get your helmet on and get into second gear. .

The bike starts right up when "cold" (not very cold in FL).
My mechanic said when he comes over he is going to check the idle mixture screws you mentioned above.
I'm thinking of draining the 93 and replacing it with 87 before my mechanic arrives, thus eliminating one possible problem.

When I received the bike, the carbs were out of sync. So, perhaps the po played with the idle screws to make it run well with the carb setting he had. Now that they've been synced, maybe the answer lies in the fact that the idle mixture screws are not correct for correctly synced carbs.
I appreciate all the input.

[80sGSfan]

Cold natured

Mine's real cold natured & the carbs are perfect. My Dad has two, one with great carbs like mine and it takes a while (3 min or so) before you can turn the choke off & ride. His other one hasn't had the carbs torn down recently so its even more cold natured...
All 3 of these G's are low milage (not as low as yours - did you say 2,500?!) and all are in fantastic condition. My point is it's really just a cold natured beast is all - that's the consensus among the "G-Men" too I'm pretty sure. That's a Yahoo group you should check out!
My G is way more cold natured than the '80 850 I used to have and the '82 1100 I have. When the carbs were redone on those bikes they required little to no choke and you could ride off shortly after starting 'em up.

Nice bike you've got there, good luck!