Not GS related but maybe you can help?

[Anonymous]

Hi I have an OLLLDDDD 1977 Honda ATC90 I am having a big problem that I believe is being caused by running way to rich. I am going through a spark plug about ever 2 miles or less. According to the pictures of the plugs in the repair manual I am running rich. The book said to make sure the air cleaner was not clogged "It is good" then it said maybe improper choke operation "I never had to use the choke. It fire on the first pull most of the time" I would upload a picture of the plug but my FTP server is down. The fuel mixture is set and sealed at the factory however there is an air mixture screw. The ATC will not run unless the air mixture screw is turned all the way in "Closed, No air" which dose not seem right but oh well. I set the needle on the crab piston all the way down according to advice I was given to give it less fuel flow but to no avail. Needless to say even though I have cheep champion plugs in it it gets very expensive replacing plugs every 2 miles, especially for someone like me where its not uncommon for me to travel 100 miles or more on the trails during the summer. Anyway thanks in advance for any help you can give. I should also note when I change the plug with a new one the ATC will run perfect "For about 2 miles" also the motor has been modified but I don?t know how as I got it second hand. I know it has a higher performance piston in it and I also know the carb is bone stock, even the stock size jets. Anyhow thanks again for trying to help me figure out my spark plug problems.

[KEITH KRAUSE]

I would take the carb apart and clean it with carb cleaner and compressed air. Replace any hard o-rings inside, check/adjust the float height and return the jet needle and air screw to where they were.
I would also check/clean/tighten the connections to the coil/lead/plug cap and clean the points and check gap and timing.
But first, be sure the air filter is clean. If paper, you should be able to see light through it. If foam, make sure it's oiled properly and with filter oil. If the bike runs OK and the plug looks good after a couple of miles without the filter (and the air screw where it should be), you know the filter was dirty or oiled wrong.
Just regular maintenance stuff. Probably hasn't been done for a while?

[Anonymous]

Well regarding the mainanence its has been done. I got it last year in pieces and purchased the motor and put this whole little bike together with hours of sweat and a lot of paychecks but this has been a problem I have had since day 1. It use to flode the plug with so much gas that it would not spark so I went to a hotter plug and now it trashing the plug after a couple miles. Tomorrow I will turn the air screw out like they said and remove the filter from the air box and see if any of that helps after installing a new plug.

[Anonymous]

Hi, You have a stuck float, float needle not closing, float is "waterlogged' as has a hole in it & sinking to the bottom. Float is not adjusted right. If you had to turn the mixture screw in to get it to run, that tells you the float bowl is overflowing & overly rich when it does. Dave

[Anonymous]

Yes I do have crappy floats. The flotes we took out were filled with gas do to long cracks in them. How do floats get cracked? Is it do to improper float level and the off road abuse causing the float to smack the bowl or somthing? Fortunaly I just about got it fixed today. After several hours and about 40 miles of running on my parents property I took the plug out and it looked great with the exceotion of beeing just a hair to lean but remember this is an ollldddd ATC and the setings I gave it were factory recomendations so there is a lot of fine tuning to do still. Unfortunatly I did so manny things to it at once and did not test it between tweaks so I have no idea of the exact cause of the problem all I know is its fixed now hmmmm. Thansk for all the help I realy apreaciate it.