New owner

[XJOK2PLAY]

Hey Drake...

I cheat.... I use my throttle lock.... LOL

[CatatonicBug]

That's what I tried to do, but being new I was a little unsure of how to attack the right one (let go of accelerator with the right hand or reach across with the left hand) and I figured I'd be safe and pull over so I didn't accidentally kill myself in the process. The engine never completely stopped while doing this, but it did completely stall later.

Have any other standard tank guys had this issue before?

Thanks again

I have to agree, switching the right side petcock while moving is a bit nerve-racking. However, you can usually pull the clutch lever and coast for long enough to reach down and turn the knob. If you don't know where the knob is by feel though, that can be a little difficult. Better safe than sorry, and pulling over was probably a smart thing to do this time.

There is no suction to get the fuel to flow in the line. It's all gravity, with a little siphoning effect along with it. The pressure of the fuel in the tank should be more than enough to get fuel flowing, unless you have a clog somewhere along the path.

You might try taking the petcocks out and checking on the screens, and the vacuum valve. The petcocks on the Standards are vacuum-operated, so unless it's in the Prime position, the engine has to be turning for fuel to flow. If the diaphragm operated by the engine's vacuum is not opening the flow enough, along with the possibilty of the screens being clogged, you will have a noticable restriciton in the fuel flow.

[draketrumpet]

One thing I noticed on my petcocks when I took them out of the tank was the screens had "Laquered up". You couldn't see it on the screen but a good shot of Gumout and you could see it clear the screen.

If there was old gas in the tank from before the previous previous owner had the bike it may have sealed off most of the screen, thus kept most of the tank full of gas from getting to your carbs.

I may be way off but it was a surprise to me.

That will be a good thing to check when I go through those in the next few months. However, I'm having trouble envisioning how that would affect it when the tank is low/on reserve and not when it is full.

I just put some seafoam in this last tank to help keep the carbs clean (PO went through them twice while he had it for his 40 miles, and replaced the fuel lines and cleaned the tank too). If I understand how that works, it only helps with buildup from the carbs down to the chamber and not in the tank/petcocks/fuel lines though.

[draketrumpet]

Drake,
There's been plenty of times I've been riding... and stretching those miles between gas stations... when it would begin to run out & stall, and all I did was reach down and switch BOTH petcocks to reserve... after a few seconds... everything was fine again.

That's what I tried to do, but being new I was a little unsure of how to attack the right one (let go of accelerator with the right hand or reach across with the left hand) and I figured I'd be safe and pull over so I didn't accidentally kill myself in the process. The engine never completely stopped while doing this, but it did completely stall later.

Have any other standard tank guys had this issue before?

Thanks again

[latexeses]

One thing I noticed on my petcocks when I took them out of the tank was the screens had "Laquered up". You couldn't see it on the screen but a good shot of Gumout and you could see it clear the screen.

If there was old gas in the tank from before the previous previous owner had the bike it may have sealed off most of the screen, thus kept most of the tank full of gas from getting to your carbs.

I may be way off but it was a surprise to me.

[XJOK2PLAY]

Drake,
One of the first things I learned early on about my bike was it's fuel range... how far I could go on a fill up before she began to stall...

Now, true enough, I have an XJ which comes w/ a low fuel warning light. Fortunately, it's very accurate... I might get 10 or 15 more miles when it comes on before it begins to stall.

There's been plenty of times I've been riding... and stretching those miles between gas stations... when it would begin to run out & stall, and all I did was reach down and switch BOTH petcocks to reserve... after a few seconds... everything was fine again. At least on the XJ, reserve gives you about 1 gallon to completely empty. If you've figured out your gas mileage you get, then that tells you how soon a station better appear on the horizon before you're walking / pushing that 650# bike...

But, you don't have to stop to switch, and I wouldn't recommend switching before you run out... especially if it's a long ways to the next station!

Some bike models will vary a bit, according to how much fuel a particular model's tank holds in relation to overall mileage per tank... (XJ's are 5.1 gl. total.) So, around 4 gals. (@38 MPG mine usually gets...) or 152 miles before she sputters and I switch to reserve.

YMMV. (Your Model May Vary.)

The "Choke" is an enrichment circuit, that adds a little more fuel, unlike a standard type choke on a traditional carb that closes a butterfly valve to reduce air / increase fuel.
HTH's ya.
Bob

[draketrumpet]

Another newbie question: Fuel tank, petcocks, fuel lines and filters

Ok, so when I changed my oil and started the bike up to circulate the new oil and after a minute, bike sputters and dies. I figure it was the fuel since I was getting low. Finished packing up, flipped the petcocks to reserve, and she started right up and drove me to the gas station.

Today, I realize I'm about to need to fuel up again. I figured I'd go for a 15 mile ride on the bike since it was almost 70 degrees and would be a shame not to and fill up on my way back into town. So, I get as far out as I'm going, and everything is as well as ever. Hop off, walk around a few minutes, hop on, start bike, take off down the highway and then bam, I feel like I'm running on half an engine. I pull over and switch the petcocks to reserve and take off again (without turning bike off or anything else), but no change. It's a few more miles in to the station and I limp along, and died in the parking lot once and eventually coax her in next to the pump. Fill up with fuel, pay for fuel, rehelmet, switch petcocks back to 'on', decided I'd pull the choke just in case, and push the starter. Sputters for a second, then fires up to the 3-4k rpm I expect with a hot choke. Ride home behind a couple HD's that completely ignored my existence (guess my Monster wasn't pretty enough for 'em )

So, my thoughts are these, and I'm hoping you all can either confirm or better instruct (and then I'll feel even more stupid when they tell me in the MSF course in a week, but that's life):

• If I think I'm going to need to switch into reserve before I get to where I'm going (usually the gas station, I presume), should I just flip it there before I get any signs of running out of fuel?

• If I am out and about and run out before switching, do I need to turn the bike off and restart it to help get the fuel coming back through the line?

• I'm guessing that's why it didn't go back to normal when I just flipped the petcock to reserve, as it probably didn't have as much suction as when it is starting

• Would just pulling the choke out while it is already running pull enough fuel down to get the other half firing again?

TIA

So happy warmer weather is here

[trbig]

I've got the pod filters on mine and ride it in the rain all the time with no problems. You'll need to completely remove the air box and those back rubber boots. There are good pods out there and bad ones. As stated, do a search.

That being said, the stock air box is designed for these motors and you will make more HP with it than you will with the pods. It directs the airflow straight into the carbs versus the pods grabbing the air from wherever. But yes, they are easier for carb removal.


Tod

[draketrumpet]

Ahaaa....

I had been wondering what "pods" were, but was just going to ask later when I got further along in tuning things up. Thanks.

[DGXSER]

The top ones are referred to as "POD" filters. Do a search for POD or PODS and I am certain you will get 1,000 or more hits. Ivan did a write up once on using the factory inlet tubes form an air box to make intake boots for POD filters. He referenced it pretty recently to.

Opinions will vary but here is mine, POD filters will not add enough to the HP of the bike for you to feel it. POD filters make it really easy to access the carbs compared with pulling the air box back and wiggling the carbs out of the hole they are in. That is the most quoted reason for folks going over to POD filters. Me, I still run the factory air box.

[draketrumpet]

Air Filter question

What is the purpose of these:


As opposed to a normal air filter:


I'm not sure, but can you take the rubber boots off of the back end of the carbs and put the top ones on? Has anyone done this, and if so, do you have pics? Does the increased chance of seeing inclement weather my bike is exposed to mean I should not put the clip on ones on?

[draketrumpet]

LOL.. The big O-ring wasn't too big.. As I told you, you just have to get it to stay there by smearing some grease around it. I re-use them many times usually, so no worries. Just save that O-ring though since many filters don't come with them.


Tod

*Sigh* So many things to keep track of and I left my notes at home. My head is too small, I should look into some of those memory expanders that go around the hips I hear some people talk about

[trbig]

LOL.. The big O-ring wasn't too big.. As I told you, you just have to get it to stay there by smearing some grease around it. I re-use them many times usually, so no worries. Just save that O-ring though since many filters don't come with them.


Tod

[draketrumpet]

Successful change

I really need a garage. That was cold. Though now I can time my changes with anticipated warmer weather.

The larger gasket was actually too big for the slot in the filter cap. Luckily the old one seemed to be in good condition, but I'll have to watch that.

I don't know what the PO had in there, but the engine seems to run quieter/smoother with the 15w-50.

Thanks for all the suggestions, tips etc.

Now the next two projects I want to undertake are the timing and the petcocks. But for those I will wait until it is warmer. Are there any little things that you all suggest I should look at in the meantime? Keep in mind this bike has only been ridden about 40 miles in the last year before I got her. The PO said he picked it up from someone who didn't ride it any more and cleaned carbs and tank before selling it to me.

[cywelchjr]

Seafoam is decent (don't waste your money on any other brand), but really, until you actually take the carbs apart and chip the gunk out, that type of cleaner can't do much. Think of those cleaners as like using mouthwash on your teeth. Unless you actually get a toothbrush in there (or a dentist's tools), you're only touching the surface.

I would have to disagree on this. If the bike is pretty much running ok, but is not right on, the seafoam can clear things up. It can (as can any carb cleaner) make things worse as well if stuff further up the chain comes loose and clogs a smaller port. But, as long as anything can get through, seafoam has a reasonable chance of cleaning some of the stuff out of there, and might even get almost all of it.