colortune kit....worth the $70???

[79XS11F]

If your engine, intake and exhaust is completely stock ... use the manual. If you have made changes ... color-tune it. After color tuning my carbs my engine had never run better.
Rob

[79XS11F]

Originally posted by 81xsproject
It is very much NOT worth it. Others may love it, I never cared for it. Great idea, bad design. My wideband O2 sensor/controller proved what I already suspected. The Colortune sucks and will make you set your carbs WAY rich. Not to mention that it ONLY works for idle. JMHO

That's not true ... My color tune kits have instructions on tuning through the mid range which is the most difficult place to tune carbs because all the jetting have an effect on mid-range operation. It will show you if your needle is to high, too low, wrong size etc.
Rob

[Schmeerman]

Hey neighbor!

Ross. If you like, we can get together (probably after the holiday) and see if I can help you get your bike tuned. I just finished cleaning and tuning my carbs on my XJ1100, so it is still fresh in my mind. I do have a Colortune and found it very helpful. As you can see, I am not very far away from you. Reply here or PM me if you like. I am no guru, but I am fairly handy with a wrench and would be happyto help.

Mike

[TADracer]

Originally posted by 79XS11F


That's not true ... My color tune kits have instructions on tuning through the mid range which is the most difficult place to tune carbs because all the jetting have an effect on mid-range operation. It will show you if your needle is to high, too low, wrong size etc.
Rob

Being the open minded guy that I am, Rob has a point. The mid range is the hardest to tune.

While I do not particularly care for the colortune method I must say that all these different tools and tune-up methods exist for one reason....each method and tool is right for somebody. So I say, if it works for ya....do it!

[planedick]

Wanna try it?

I have one I used once that I will sell you for $25 plus shipping. I have found that tuning by ear works best for me.

[ross]

i didn't want to start a fight...

hey there folks...thanx for all the replies once again....i see the opinions of the "family" are mixed at best....i never thought this thread would keep on keepin' on....

DiverRay.....i thank you very much for your wisdom....i have set the float heights at 24mm off the top of the gasket (i guess that would be 25mm per the manual)....have done the "triple clean" about 5 times and did the vacuum sync and got them all dialed in good per the gauges....i would love 2 get the mileage you are getting...hopefully i will be able to work it out....btw, if ya can, could you send some of that warm weather this way.....here it is memorial day weekend and the only way to go riding in the morning is to pull out the cold weather gear....was 38 this morning at 8 am...brrr..

79XS11F.....the "rebel devil" is completely stock....


i have not messed with the needle as it is set at the middle position....i'm open to all suggestions to increase the "pucker factor"....

Schmeerman.....hey there neighbor....nice 2 find a local that can relate to my problems.....i hear ya about after the holiday.....i used 2 live in warren until i moved out here....currently i work in roseville across from MCCC south....i'm very confident you and i will be getting 2gether and seeing what you think...2 heads gotta be better than one....ya just might see something i have missed...i have no problem traveling your way and could even bring along some refreshments as a form of payment for services.....let me know when is good for you and we will work it out....for me, any day after 5pm and most weekends are free for me....then after we get her running, it sounds like a good reason to go for a ride 2gether and see what she does....thank you very much for the offer!!!...

TADracer....i agree...if it works, use it...i have tried almost every suggestion to get it right and still not there.....h*ll, if i had to use 2 "dodo" eggs and a elephant trunk to get it right, i'd give it a try....

planedick...thanx for the offer...i just may take you up on it.....gonna get 2gether with Schmeerman (who has one) as soon as we get our plans 2gether....if it works, i will be contacting you asap.....

somehow, some way, i'm not gonna let this s*cker get me down....like i read on a members signature, "if a man made it, a man can fix it"......thanx once again 2 all who have replied....ross

[psycoreefer]

Maybe we could do a Mich tune-day

Ross and Schmeerman,
If you guys decided to get together and tune carbs I'd like to get in on it too. I've had mine off about two dozen times in the last two weeks and Its still not right. I'd love to see some other xs's and get a little help with the mixture, seems most of my problems are with the idle mix as it runs like **** after 3500rpm. I'll even bring the beer! PM/email me.

[ross]

hey there psycoreefer....will let u know when and where, but ya gotta a long trip across the state just to get here...but WTF, if you are bringing the beer, it sounds like a very nice michigan tune day is in our future....ross

[dbeardslee]

Here's my 2 cents worth on colortune. I have one and I love it, however, it takes a little getting used to. If you do what most people do, you adjust the needle screw out until you see yellow flame and then back in until you just see bunson blue. This will usually result in an over-rich mixture. Hidden back in the colortune manual it says if you are adjusting the carb on an '85 or older bike you should adjust out to yellow flame, turn all the way in (counting the turns) 'till the bike wants to cutout then adjust to the position that is in the middle of those settings. I've tried it that way and it works better. OK, so that's like 4 cents worth.

[Flatlander]

I would like to know more?

I would like to get in on this also..........I have no idea what a colortune is? I've just asjusted them 1 1/2 turns out. The waiting 15 seconds sounds great if you have a good/great running bike, but I'm in the middle of just getting this thing to the run good point.
I've been looking for this colortune idea and all that I can find is to do it by ear.?. I clicked on the two to see something and........nothing happened.?. Am I doing something wrong? And what is behind the yellow and blue?

Hey dbeardslee,
Adjusting half way inbetween yellow and closed on a 85 or older model, that is more twards the lean side right (just not too acurate of an adjustment)? That would explain the bunson blue on later models.?. What color at the half way point are you finding?

Oh, and one more thing, has anybody made one of these colortuners? I've seen and made my own syncronizer for a fraction of the cost of a manufactured one. Since I can't remember ever seeing one I really don't know what I'm asking here, so please forgive all the questions.

[psycoreefer]

Yeah, I've tried the by ear trick and I guess my ears aren't trained because I can go a solid 3/4 to 1 turns either way from 1 1/2 turns and not hear any difference. going further then that makes it run really bad or stall.

Color tune lets you see inside the combustion chamber while the bike is running so you adjust the mixture screw until the combustion flame is a desired color. The idea is that a proper mixture burns a specific color, and because you can see how its burning you can get a perfect mixture. I've never seen one in person, but I really doubt you could make one unless you have a lot of super nifty tools.
I've always envisioned it as a glass spark plug so you can see through it.

[boyat68]

Flatlander:

My understanding is that "ColorTune" is a sparkplug replacing tool that you use in each cylinder to view the color of the explosion of the combustion cycle. It has a quartz window built into the plug substitute that views the flame front. The wisdom of this board is that you tune our bikes XS11s to a more yellow flame rather than the blue flame suggested in the literature of the ColorTune. an example can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-g6Y9i4Crck

The other wisdom of the board is the cost and complication of using the device vs the simpler task of adjusting the air screws of the idle circuit 1/4 of a turn at a time and listen for the change in RPMs and smoothness of the engine.

[dbeardslee]

Flat - yes that's more towards the lean side, but that's not to say go in from the starting 1 1/4 position. You usually have to go out first on the colortune to see the yellow flame and then back in to get to bunson blue. There's a range where you'll see the bunson blue flame before it starts going to the whitish blue flame which indicates lean. I always take mine and get it set at idle and then run the rpm's up around 4k and check the color there too. It's normal for them to go yellow when you apply throttle, but it shouldn't stay yellow. I try to get them so they're in the middle of the bunson range. Not only can you see the color of the flame, you can also see if it's missing. Also, they are easiest to work with in relatively low light. That way it's easier to see the color changes. If you try it in direct sunlight it's really hard to tell. Like I said, it takes a little getting used to. Here's a link to Gunson's site . They're the ones that make the colortune. There are downloadable manuals there for a fuller explanation.

[bikerphil]

colortune

Here's a 14mm colortune...

[Yahman]

Randy mentioned using an old Sun tach, how would you hook that up to one of our bikes?