Finally got my bike going!!!! few small problems and some pics

[firstxs1100]

hey folks i finally got my bike going. with about a month at the shop, i know i could have done it myself, but got frustrated, ran into some extra money and let the pros do it. anyhow i have it now and the right turn signals won't work. the bulbs are good but no signal. i can hear the left signal flasher working but nothing when i try the right ones. left ones do work. next problem is in the higher gears it seems to have kinda of a chug chug chug going on until it gets past an undertermened point then it goes away. when in fifth it does it and then if i switch to 4th it aint there. sometimes when i am in fourth it does it and then either i give it more of what it wants or switch to 3rd and it goes away. i am usually at around 2800 rpm when this happens. just rode this evening for the first time so it might just need a good hard throttle twisting action a few times or run for a good while. i dont know does this sound familiar to anyone its a 79 standard as far as running it starts right off with no problems. the battery got week so i pulled out the kick starter and it started with a half of kick. which impressed me.

[madmax-im]

Niiice

Nice bike and congrats on getting it running...nothing wrong with paying a pro to get it done...Your problem sounds like its the carbs...if you have a flat or dead spot then the bike will feel like its bogging down.2800 rpm's is slow for this motor.Optimal performance doesn't begin until you've reached 4000 rpm's.As for the signals...check all the wiring..if its all good then perhaps the signal relay(flasher)is bad.I'm sure others will chime in and perhaps can be of greater assistance.

[dbeardslee]

FirstXS - Bike looks very nice. On your turn signal, I'd take a look inside the control on the handlebar. Sounds like it isn't making contact on one side.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey FirstXS,

Like Max said, you're lugging the engine at that rpm in those higher gears. In the lower gears like 1st, 2nd, and even 3, it would be okay to cruise around 3K rpm, but suggest keeping it above 3500 for 4th or 5th. With the 4-1 pipes, you can loose some of the lower rpm grunt as well.

What work did you have done, carbs, engine??

Yep, either the signal switch in the handlebar, or could be as simple as a bad ground for the lights on the right side, the rear can corrode under the fender where it is!
T.C.

[firstxs1100]

I want more chrome!!!!

thanks for all the nice bike comments. i thought it was a kinda plain bike. maybe it's not??
anyhow i had the carbs done. everything to me seems fine with the carbs. when i am in fourth and it starts kinda jerking and i switch to third it goes away completely. would this be a sign that i am lugging the engine or maybe the clutch slipping?? i think i should try getting on the interstate and just blowing everyone off the road and see if it still does it in the high gears or not. i guess this bike is kindof a crotch rocket in disguise. do i assume this correctly. by the way i was only doing about 50 or so when in fourth and fifth gear but i was not trying to speed up just trying to keep it cruising. also i did notice that when i changed into higher gears the clutch seemed kinda like it went in once and then a split second later it went further in. does this mean that i need to adjust the clutch. i also need to do the little hole cleanout on the front brake cause i can push my van easier than i can push this bike. at one point in time it seemed to free up then it went right back to being stubborn again. again thanks for all the comments it makes me feel like i have something more than i thought. oh and i only got about 700 and some time in it.

[fredintoon]

Hi first,
you know the flasher unit itself works because there's only one of it and your leftside flashers work. If your rightside flashers don't light up at all, could be the handlebar switch or the wiring. If they light up and stay on the bulbs are OK but they have too low Wattage because someone has fitted 22W automotive bulbs instead of the 27W bulbs the flasher needs before it will flash.

[firstxs1100]

turn signals

i'll tear into them tomorrow and see what the problem looks like in the handle. i do know that these bulbs are good because i switched the wires just to see if they would work from left signal to right signal and they worked so it must be something in the controlls.

[trbig]

The bike shouldn't have a problem with lugging if the carbs are right. A normal XS/XJ shouldn't have a problem in 5th going 20mph, or anything above that. What it sounds like to me is a clogged idler circuit. @ 3k rpm, the mains start kicking in. They are much larger jets and rarely get clogged. So.. it sounds like you're running down below 3k and having problems.. until you downshift and raise the rpm up enough to get into the mains possibly?

Also.. from the pic on the left side of your bike, there's a cover under your carbs that looks a little rough on the surface. Not trying to pick it apart, but carbs that leak will sometimes drip down on this cover causing the marks you see. Sometimes they drip into the air filter... and sometimes your oil. A needle valve not seating and causing a flooding problem could cause what you are feeling also.. Either way.. sounds like carb cleaning time.


Tod

[firstxs1100]

trbig

i just got the bike back from having the carbs completely rebuilt. 4 new kits in them. if it was a dead spot wouldn't it do this below 3000 rpm in 1st gear also??? the spot on the bike is from a fire where i tried to set the carbs myself. stupid mistake that just about cost me the whole bike. you can see the same smudge on the right side also. at the time of me setting the carbs it did drip on these plates but not for very long.

[trbig]

Maybe I misread things.. but yeah, if it's carbs, you should have the dead spot no matter what gear it's in. That makes me think electrical then.. especially if it's not doing it constantly. Do a search for pickup coil wire repair.

Tod

[Ken Talbot]

i just got the bike back from having the carbs completely rebuilt. 4 new kits in them.

This makes me think somebody has plugged in a set of jets that is now way too rich for your bike. Many guys have bought and installed new kits, only to take most of the new bits out and put the old jets back in. Prom wrote up a great post a while back outlining the potential pitfalls of using K&L carb kits. Check out this post

[firstxs1100]

ken???

if it is running to rich. will the plugs be real dark??

[madmax-im]

if it is running to rich. will the plugs be real dark??

I would think so...BTW the plugs should look gray...not black or dark colored.

[dbeardslee]

Isaac - If it's running too rich the plugs will generally be black and sooty. If it's adjusted properly the insulator in the center should be light brown.

From the pics it looks like you're still running the stock coils with the integral wires. I know when I changed my coils I thought I would keep the old ones - just in case. I went to put them in a coffee can, and when I bent the wires they snapped right in two. 30 year old wires just aren't a good thing. Additionally, they don't get the full 12 volts to 'em at low rpms if there is a ballast resistor installed. A set of mikes xs coils and wires allow for removal of the ballast resistor, and provide twice as much voltage to the plugs.

What kind of plugs are you running? Stock should be NGK BP6ES. I've seen people put bp7es's in thinking they were a heat range higher, when in actual fact that's a heat range lower. Be thee aware that the NGK numbering scheme runs backwards. I've had great luck with their iridium plugs - NGK BP6EIX. They're about as close to foul-proof as plugs get.

A colortune plug comes in real handy in situations like this. Could be something as simple as the mixture adjustment being off (seeing as how you just got 'em back from a rebuild and assuming they used the right jets). Colortune allows you to see inside the combustion chamber, so you can really tell what's going on in there.

Just some more stuff for you to think about . Check your PM's, I'm sending you a message.

[firstxs1100]

will this plug make it not run right???

dbeardslee asked me what type of plugs were in the bike. i looked and it has nkg bpr6es type plugs in it. is this type of plug the wrong type or could i tell a noticible difference in running if it ain't the right plug. please comment on what the R means and what effect it would have on the running of the bike. the plugs do have the tip removed!!!???