"COLOR TUNERS" input please

[79XS11F]

My color tune plugs arrived early this morning and i just tuned up the bike. I started by confirming the timing which is good. I synced the carbs and they are good.
I set up all 4 color tune plugs and I have Bunsen burner blue across all 4 cylinders at a hand held idle of about 1100 RPM. The engine will not idle on its own with these plugs in there. When i give the throttle a twist all 4 cylinders are Bunsen blue with yellow just starting to show and it is short lived. Now at the site where i bought there color tune plugs they suggest that the Yamaha XS1100 runs better with the pilot set to 1/2 way between where blue ends and yellow appears.
I have my pilot screws turned out 2 full turns at this point and still no yellow in the flame at idle. Should I just keep turning those pilots out until yellow appears and then back off a bit? OR should i be thinking about a pilot jet change at this point?
Any input from those whop have used the color tune system would be helpful
Thanks

NOTE .. These puppies are REAL NEAT and I don't know how i got along with out them in the past.

Rob

[79XS11F]

WOW .. I didn't see any sign of yellow flame until I was at 3 full turns out on the pilot screws. I dialed them all back to a setting of 2 and 3/4 turns to get her right. It is raining here so I will not be able to road test her but she is idling nicely and the throttle response is much improved. After I color tuned her I re-synced the carbs which was necessary. They had not changed by very much but needed a fine adjustment none the less. She actually sounds nice and smooth on the main stand but a road test will need to be done.
Rob

[Axel]

carb sync and color-tune

I think you'll be amazed . My process required a YICS tool but otherwise sounds the same . Our engines seem happier rich and can run less than perfect lean as mine was . After the sync with a Morgan Carbtune we used a single color-tune plug (four must have been sweet) and a then a resync . It was like a new bike .
It turned my lazy cruiser into a sportbike . Axel

[Axel]

as well

I did turn up the idle screw to perform the operations then turned it back down as it was running so smoothly .

[79XS11F]

Hey ... thanks for input Alex. I wasn't sure if it was right to adjust the idle for the testing so I just held the throttle with my hand. I couldn't wait for responses earlier or the engine would have cooled off on me.
She was however running well enough at the end of the tune up to idle on her own with the color tune plugs in her but it was at low RPMs.
Rob

[79XS11F]

I just came in from the garage and can't believe it. I set the chock to 1/2 and the engine fired right up and went to a smooth 1000 RPM idle. I can't take her for a run but on the idle alone I have been trying to get it like this for a few months with no luck. So I'm a happy camper for now.
Rob

[skids]

Maybe your air filter is soaked in gasoline. (just kidding! )

Originally posted by 79XS11F
I just came in from the garage and can't believe it. I set the chock to 1/2 and the engine fired right up and went to a smooth 1000 RPM idle. Rob

[79XS11F]

POST COLOR TUNE TEST RUN

All I can say is OH MY GOD .. I better do some brake work. My bike is the handful that I remember these bikes being when I first got one in 1980. She fired right up and idled at 1000 RPMs. Once hot the idle moved up to about 1200 but remained VERY smooth. I dialed her back at the end of my test run and well see if she still starts and idles as nicely the next time I go for a ride.
The engine is now running so smooth that it sounds new. I am now getting 69 MPH at 5000 RPM in 4th gear. That's 9 MPH faster then before she was color tuned. She has a $hit load of torque and a pile of speed that comes on quick and smooth. In 4th gear it was just the slightest twist of the throttle to be doing 80 MPH for passing. I can't wait to get my 1179 hop up engined bike together and tuned as well as this one.
All I can add is if your having carb issues and your SURE you have them good and clean ... Color tune it and you'll never look back :-)
Rob

[pggg]

I haven't bothered with colortunes, probably because you can't get them down here without costly mail- order dramas, no-one seems to use them here much, I do my carbs' idle mixture with 4 or 5 clean sparkplugs to get them first set, you have the motor hot, sit it idling 3 or 4 minutes, hit killswitch, haul out plug(do them one at a time) you know when it's tending toward rich, within minutes the clean plug is getting sooty, twist the idle screws half twists then replacing with the next clean plug till you like what you're seeing. Like that colortune says, tending slightly brownish,darkish, it smooths away any rough running when cold but you still don't want them over-rich. After setting all 4 I'm still always adjusting and fiddling the idle screws within, say, half a turn either side, just for something to do, tweak them for summer/winter anyway.

[79XS11F]

There's no doubt that some can get very good results by plug testing and for a rare few just listening to the engine but I am not that gifted at carb tuning.... I wish I was. The 4 color tune plugs were costly but in the end I will still be ahead as compared to having to go to a shop.
More good news from this mornings test start up. With the hot idle turned down after last nights test run the engine still fired right up with only 1/2 chock and idled pretty smoothly but at a reduced RPM. Right down in around 950. Given that it was only about 50 degrees this morning that is more good news for me. Looks like no more full chock warm ups until fall.