New here, and tech question...

[Anonymous]

I know you did a comp check, but did you check the valve clearances?
And it sounds like spraying the points down caused some problems. Did you reset them (gap) and put some lube on the rubbing blocks? Is the timing set correctly? If the bike sounds wet, you may have fouled the plugs. Are the coils getting as close to 12 volts as possible?
You also said you put new wires on, are they the rights values?

Just some ideas.....

[DMPLATT]

Someone else had a problem of not running on all cylinders and it was a welded crank that spun on him. Sorry, can't remember all the details, but sure someone here more technical than myslef may remeber that problem?

You mentioned GOOD spark on all 4 plugs, and same gas flow in all bowls. I once had a Kaw 250 enduro that would start and run if I used starter fluid, turned out it was a shear pin and the timing was way off.

[Anonymous]

Well,
i swapped all the jets, float, needle and seat stuff from the right 2 carbs to the left two and vice-versa. The problem followed. Took it apart again, cleaned it for a 12th time. And now #1 #3 and #4 were running. And number two was running only luke warm. I put in a hotter plug into #2 and it seems to have pretty much corrected the problem. Took it for a burn last night and runs good. There is still a small occasional backfire from the left tailpipe.

Im going to put a new needle and seat into the #2 carb and see what happens.

G

[Anonymous]

-Will only run with choke 90%-100% on

-Wont take any shot from the throttle, just sounds really "wet" and wants to die

From the 1980 GS1000 shop manual (for slide-style carbs):

When using the starter [circuit], the throttle valve must be completely closed. If the throttle valve is opened, the negative pressure falls and will not be able to draw up sufficient fuel.

I'm sure you know how to use the choke, but the reason I wanted to point this out is because it can be useful for troubleshooting. If you're running on full choke and open the throttle, the bike will die even if it's in good working order.

At the risk of stating the obvious, sometimes carbs just need to be rebuilt, and not cleaned. A rebuild kit contains useful parts like new jets and float valve, which could easily be causing problems. Take a look at the float valves and see if they have any sign of wear (sometimes a slight shoulder on the face of the valve).

Michael