Hard to start

[eagle1]

79 XS1100SF very hard to start. Runs battery down sometimes
but once the bike is running it runs well.. Carbs have been rebuilt, vaccum lines have been replaced,fuel lines and carb holders have also been replaced HELP

[fxrer]

Eagle1

Welcome to the forum. Even though you said your carbs were “rebuilt”, the description of your problem sounds very much like the same problem I had with my ’80 SG, even after I had cleaned my carbs. My bike was VERY hard to start when cold. After cranking the starter for many seconds (even with the enricher on full), it would barely catch on one or two cylinders, cough and sputter for 30 seconds or so until the next cylinder would catch, and another 30 seconds before it ran (roughly) on all four. When warmed up, it ran fine.

The problem, as diagnosed to me by Ken Talbot, with a super clear picture in a post back on 4/16, was that I had clogged enricher circuit jets. Go to this thread for more information

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread...8512#post48512

After following Ken’s expert advice, I removed all four float bowls, and cleaned those jets - Two were so clogged, I had to use a needle and lots of carb cleaner, but I finally got fluid squirting through all four of the circuits (I sprayed down in the pickup hole and it came out through the jet).

After that, it was 2 seconds of starter and, vroom, it fired off in an instant!

Good luck, and keep searching on this forum - there is no better source for good trouble shooting information than the guys here!