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[BigRickxs1100]

First I would like to say that I love this sight. I look forward to being a member for a long time. I have a question. I have just picked up a XS 1100 but I do not know which one it is. It started when I looked at it but it sounded rough. I am good with car carbs but this is the first for me on a bike. I have the manuel and when I went into the carbs to clean The main jet had a 95 in it. Is this normal?? The main should be a 137.5 is this why it is running rough. The pilot jet does have the right one in it 42.5. Have any of you ever open up the carbs and came across this? The bike has two into one pipes with mufflers and baffels. Does it need to have the bigger main jets? and do you know where to get a whole rebuild kit. Thanks for looking.

[CatatonicBug]

Welcome to the site! Definitely the right place for any XS info you might ever want (and some you may not ).Funny you should ask about what bike you have, as this info was just posted a few hours ago. Check your VIN against the list posted here, and you'll know what model you have. As for the rebuild kits, it depends on what year your carbs are. Some say to stay away from the K&L kits, but that's what I used, and have had no problems. It's the only kit I found with ALL the parts in it. Here's a link to the kit for my bike, so you can use this info to look for the one for yours.

[renegade_xs11g]

Welcome to Channel 11

This is a very active site....

I've never found a jet with that much difference, compared to recommended...
But, I seen some very big screw ups by people that have no idea what they're doing

To better answer your question, we'll need to identify what machine you have
On the right side, as you'd sit on the bike, behind the head you find a serial number...(a couple of examples 3J6, 4H7) there is a cross reference around here somewhere, that will ID it for you

then we'll need to dig into why its running rough
on these bikes, some things are model specific but
the problem you speak of can be caused by any muber of thing, from carbs being dirty or out of sync, to ignition, to electrical....

if you know, how long has it been sitting? what's the milage? been stored? how long? was it stored properly? inside? outside?

I know this doesn't help a lot, but someone is gonna ask

Good luck, John

[DGXSER]

Pcs..We love pics!!

Welcome to the site BigRick!! Alot of folks have found that they have a mutt or mixed up stuff from many diff years or models. So pics would be helpful in identifying just what you have.

For carbs, from what I have learned so far, and there are far more knowledgable folks here, there are two basic models of carbs. The older models with the exposed mixture screws, and the newer with the mixture screw down inside the tunnel. Another way to identify them is if the inlet bell of the carb has three or four holes, or if there are upper Ts on the carbs for vents. Also look at the pilot jet, if it has a cap over it, keeping it form drawing fuel straight from the bowl and a cross tube to the main jet tunnel. As to the main jets, 95's are way smaller than anything I have read for any model on here. 2 into one is the stock exhaust set up, so most likely would not require rejetting. Alot of other factors play into the jetting as you may know, what air inlet your using is one.

I just finished rebuilding carbs as well, and used K&L kits I got from George Fix on ebay. Worked out alright for me. Really, unless you bugger them up taking em out, most of the parts can be reused with cleaning. The main parts most replace are the fuel float valves and seats, and the gaskets. You may want to get new mains, but what size would be very dependant on the year/style of carb you have. Of course, the pilot will also vary by the year of carb.

As to the rough running, well, alot of things can play into that of course.

[BigRickxs1100]

Thanks all, I feel like a dumb ass it is a 78. Now that I look at it from the link you sent me thanks Catatonicbug the vin is 2h7008731. I will have to look into the carbs a little more DGXSER because I could not find a model number anywhere. It does have pod filters that I will be changing into a custom intake. From what I have been reading alot of you hate when people customize these bikes but yes I will be choping it up. I will have pics up shortly after I figure that out. The bike is in pretty good shape it has a little over 14XXX miles and is real clean. I will also have a lot of parts that I will like to get rid of and I really dont want to mess with Craigslist so if you are looking I might have it. My first task is getting the carbs cleaned and fixed and running good. thanks for the quick reply again I will be talking again soon.

[DGXSER]

Being a 78 that should simplify alot of things. It should, I say should, be all standard parts as that is the only model they made in 78.

Knowing it is a 78, look at the carbs and see if there is an upper T and a lower T between 1 and 2, and again between 3 and 4. Should be there, that would suggest the old carbs and with those the pilot jet gets fed from the main jet IIRC. I don't own one so I don't remember the stock jet sizes. Mains something like 137 and 45 pilots I think. With pods you might want bigger mains. Look in the tech tips for chart on jetting the carbs based upon mods that have been made.

[trbig]

With regard to your main jet.. that doesn't sound like anything I've heard of either. At first, I thought maybe it was possibly a different brand than Mikuni? But I know that Dynojet sizes are even bigger than Mikuni's. (A 115 Mikuni is = to a 120 Dynojet)

So.. even if they are a different breed jet, for @ $10-$12, replace them with the right size Mikuni jet. It makes me wonder if someone changed them to smaller trying to get better fuel mileage to ease their gas bill last year? Who knows.

Oh.. And welcome to the site! You might want to put where you're located in your personal info in case you have some problems. There may be people close by that could help.

*Raising hand* One that hates to see a '78 choppd up. I sure would rather see one of the more numerous models cut if it had to be done. But it is your bike.


Tod

[Christian Rath]

I've been working with BigRickxs1100 on this bike. They are the original Mikuni carbs. He will be running a custom pod filter type set-up. The exhaust headers are stock with two aftermarket slip-ons replacing the two factory mufflers. The aftermarket slip-ons still have the baffles in place, but they will be removed shortly.

What size main and pilot jets do you guys recommend on his 1978 with pod filters and 'mostly' unrestricted exhaust. I understand there will be some fine tuning involved, but he at least needs a baseline start for the jets.

[bikerphil]

I would go with 45 pilots and 145 mains, genuine Mikuni. That would be 1 size up on the pilots and 3 sizes up on the mains from stock. I'd start with the float level at about 25mm. That's just a shade richer than stock setting of 25.7mm.

[DiverRay]

bikerphil has given you a good start. I would try adjusting the float level for the minor adjustments. Go to 26mm, and all the way up to 28mm to lean it out a little. Most of the time you do NOT need to move the needles from the center position. My one '79 with the Kerker and drilled air box is up to a 45 pilot and 142.5 mains, float at 27mm. Should be close for your bike as well. HTH
Welcome to the site, and don't worry about people NOT liking you chopping the bike. It's your ride, it needs to fit YOUR STYLE.

[BigRickxs1100]

Thanks guy's I will try the 145 mains and see what happens. I am sure that it will get me going in the right direction. I have also started the tear down and will be posting some parts on the classified section. Thanks again for all the help and if you know a good place to order them from let me know.

[DiverRay]

mikesxs.com is THE place to get jets. They come in pairs, as he sell parts for the 650 "only". If you have two bikes, you need four jets. They are correct, and the price is good, IMHO.

[BigRickxs1100]

Thanks DiverRay, I went to the sight and got everything I needed. And it was pretty cheep.