Interesting start-up problem.

[Lucien Harpress]

My bike is currently about 98% complete when it comes to work that needs to be done. It's quite rideable, and the small issues like low-speed stuttering seem to be showing up less and less as I ride more frequently. However, there's a few things that may (or may not) need to be looked at.

Right now, it's starting the thing. She'll run fine on half-choke, and on no choke within a minute or two of warming up. To get it started, though, I need to crack the throttle to get it to fire initially. Once it's revved for a few seconds, it settles down nicely. If I don't touch the throttle, though, the bike will never start (even if I give it full choke).

Is this standard operating procedure for these bikes, or do I have some sort of adjustment just a bit off?

[fredintoon]

Mine does that too

Hi Lucien,
same here, I have to use full enrichment and hold the twistgrip a little bit open to get a cold start. I like to have the idle at ~950rpm to minimize that nasty crunch going from neutral to 1st and to get a hot idle that low I suppose I can't expect to have the thing run with the throttle closed when it's cold.
You could try setting the throttle stop screw just a tad more open?

[DGXSER]

SOP to me

I am sure there will be lot sof folks who tell you if you got it tuned just right it will start at the touch of the button with about half choke at summer temps. However, I have found that in the warmer months of the year, I get a similar response to yours. It will start and stumble right out with no choke, and then with half choke it will stumble out unless I crack the throttle for just a second. After that, it will idle up to mid 1000 range. And I keep the choke out till I get about 1 mile down the road and then I can feel the throttle getting spongy and shut choke off and she takes off stronger with no change in throttle position.

In the winter months, I need full choke for about 30 seconds or so then half for the first five miles or so. Then it runs fine at no choke.

I am sure I am probably running a little rich, but I would rather be rich than lean. And as of today with the recent 750 mod, I got 40 MPG on a mostly highway run of 80 miles, on bad gas at that. So I feel pretty good about where I am at. Ohh, and the bad gas was determined by it getting a horrible sputter and miss at low rpm range, between idle and almost 3k rpm after a fillup. When I got back home I put two gallons in at a known station and after running the bowls out, the sputter/miss went away.

[Cobia]

My XJ now starts w/out the assistance of the choke. Before I upsized my pilots, I always had to use the choke until it warmed up. Now, I just open the throttle a bit to start it and then set the cruise control at about 1.5k rpms to let it warm up. In about 30 to 45 secs it will rev up to about 3k rpms and typically it will be warm enough to ride.

[mxmikie]

mine did the same thing ..... then i got rid of the ign resister and i installed vf1000 honda coils and replaced the plug wires with tripple insulated mercury outboard plug wires(copper tinned) and new plug wire caps now i just touch the starter button and it starts instantly with no choke