idle question

[Wewaman]

Question: Why won't my Valk start up without the choke on and stay running? 

I have rebuilt the carbs, and sync'd.  Did a desmog also rebuilt the petcock. 
I have put about 3000 miles on since doing all the work.  It will start without the choke but will not stay running even when it's 90 degrees outside when I get off work. 

Is there something that I can do to remedy this situation?

Thanks in advance for your input and suggestions,
Wewaman

[98valk]

idle mixture screws not opened to what the engine wants, or idle speed screw not adjusted correctly.

[The emperor has no clothes]

Do you mean it won't idle at all or just when you first start it up? Mine has to warm up slightly before it will idle without throttle or choke.

[Wewaman]

It will idle after it warms up.

[The emperor has no clothes]

I think that's normal. You can give it partial choke to keep the idle up if you want. I usually just give it a little throttle if it's not cold out. It's very seldom cold here

[Ricky-D]

Ambient temperature has very little influence

when referencing the engine temperatures.

***

[Wewaman]

OK thanks for the lesson     I will just use the choke at every initial start up. 

Next question...     When I apply FULL choke (lever ALL the way down)  it cranks fine, revs up to about 2000 rpms   then when I turn choke off,  the left side does not release and I have to apply slight pressure to the enrichment slide with my finger to get it to release.  The right side works like it's supposed to.  I have tried adjusting the cable in both directions but it stays the same.   It only happens if I push the lever all the way down, as long as it doesn't get pushed to the bottom of the allowed travel it will release fine.

Wewaman

[Ricky-D]

Spray all the connections and linkages with a silicone spray and lubricate the cable with a little oil.

This is something that is a good maintenance procedure and need to be done.

***

[Wewaman]

  will do 

Thanks Ricky-D 

Wewa

[BlueValk]

Question: Why won't my Valk start up without the choke on and stay running? 

I have rebuilt the carbs, and sync'd.  Did a desmog also rebuilt the petcock. 
I have put about 3000 miles on since doing all the work.  It will start without the choke but will not stay running even when it's 90 degrees outside when I get off work. 

Is there something that I can do to remedy this situation?

Thanks in advance for your input and suggestions,
Wewaman

You absolutely should be able to start your bike and have it idle without the choke in 90 degree temps.  And "yes", ambient temps have a whole lot to do with happy idling.

Maybe your ECT sensor is disconnected or not working correctly.  It will add some timing advance and increase your idle "automatically" while the bike warms up.

The connector for the ECT is behind the right neck cover.  Try putting an ohm meter on it and compare it to the manuals numbers.  With it still connected, you should read about 2k ohms.  Too high or too low of a reading will make the ICM ignore it, and your idle will be too low when "cold".

Don't give up, there is something wrong here ...

[PhredValk]

Wewa, what RPM does she idle at when warm? My girl idles at just under 1000, but at first start only idles at 4-500 and usually sounds like she's gonna quit. If your warm idle is 7-800 she may need some choke on first start.
Fred.

[Bighead]

Question: Why won't my Valk start up without the choke on and stay running? 

I have rebuilt the carbs, and sync'd.  Did a desmog also rebuilt the petcock. 
I have put about 3000 miles on since doing all the work.  It will start without the choke but will not stay running even when it's 90 degrees outside when I get off work. 

Is there something that I can do to remedy this situation?

Thanks in advance for your input and suggestions,
Wewaman

You absolutely should be able to start your bike and have it idle without the choke in 90 degree temps.  And "yes", ambient temps have a whole lot to do with happy idling.

Maybe your ECT sensor is disconnected or not working correctly.  It will add some timing advance and increase your idle "automatically" while the bike warms up.

The connector for the ECT is behind the right neck cover.  Try putting an ohm meter on it and compare it to the manuals numbers.  With it still connected, you should read about 2k ohms.  Too high or too low of a reading will make the ICM ignore it, and your idle will be too low when "cold".

Don't give up, there is something wrong here ...

Nah I don't believe it! I bought my 97 new and it has to be choked when it hasn't been running for say 8-10 hours and has been that way since day 1 it only had 10 miles on it when I bought it. It will start without the choke but it will die unless you give it throttle.

[The emperor has no clothes]

Question: Why won't my Valk start up without the choke on and stay running? 

I have rebuilt the carbs, and sync'd.  Did a desmog also rebuilt the petcock. 
I have put about 3000 miles on since doing all the work.  It will start without the choke but will not stay running even when it's 90 degrees outside when I get off work. 

Is there something that I can do to remedy this situation?

Thanks in advance for your input and suggestions,
Wewaman

You absolutely should be able to start your bike and have it idle without the choke in 90 degree temps.  And "yes", ambient temps have a whole lot to do with happy idling.

Maybe your ECT sensor is disconnected or not working correctly.  It will add some timing advance and increase your idle "automatically" while the bike warms up.

The connector for the ECT is behind the right neck cover.  Try putting an ohm meter on it and compare it to the manuals numbers.  With it still connected, you should read about 2k ohms.  Too high or too low of a reading will make the ICM ignore it, and your idle will be too low when "cold".

Don't give up, there is something wrong here ...

Nah I don't believe it! I bought my 97 new and it has to be choked when it hasn't been running for say 8-10 hours and has been that way since day 1 it only had 10 miles on it when I bought it. It will start without the choke but it will die unless you give it throttle.

+1, both my standard and I/S are both like that

[Wewaman]

Wewa, what RPM does she idle at when warm? My girl idles at just under 1000, but at first start only idles at 4-500 and usually sounds like she's gonna quit. If your warm idle is 7-800 she may need some choke on first start.
Fred.

PhredValk  Mine is just like you said , Just under 1000 when she warms up but around 4-500 at first start.  I just give her partial choke like meathead says and all is fine.  

 BlueValk I will check what you suggested because I did have to remove that cover when I removed the carbs, just to make sure it's still connected.  Thanks,  

  The only reason I'm asking is because there are 2 guys at work who don't need to choke their bikes after we get off of work.
1 is a 1967 Triumph and  1 is a 2011  Yamaha R1

Thanks for all your  knowledge,

Wewaman

[Jess from VA]

Nah I don't believe it! I bought my 97 new and it has to be choked when it hasn't been running for say 8-10 hours and has been that way since day 1 it only had 10 miles on it when I bought it. It will start without the choke but it will die unless you give it throttle.

+1, both my standard and I/S are both like that


Both my Interstates are the same; always need choke on cold starts in any temp (unless I stand there and feed a bit of throttle... which can easily stall the bike so I use choke), though it requires less warm up on choke in warm weather than cold.  

Perfect tune, desmog, plugs, valves, new and tight o-rings, carb synch made no difference... well, the bike ran better, but I still need to choke for best cold start.  Cold idle with no choke 900rpm, once warm 1000rpm.

[Wewaman]

Thanks Jess I will try to increase my warm idle to 1000 and see what that does. 

[nogrey]

Wewa, what RPM does she idle at when warm? My girl idles at just under 1000, but at first start only idles at 4-500 and usually sounds like she's gonna quit. If your warm idle is 7-800 she may need some choke on first start.
Fred.

PhredValk  Mine is just like you said , Just under 1000 when she warms up but around 4-500 at first start.  I just give her partial choke like meathead says and all is fine.  

 CA I will check what you suggested because I did have to remove that cover when I removed the carbs, just to make sure it's still connected.  Thanks,  

  The only reason I'm asking is because there are 2 guys at work who don't need to choke their bikes after we get off of work.
1 is a 1967 Triumph and  1 is a 2011  Yamaha R1

Thanks for all your  knowledge,

Wewaman

I'll do my best to keep this short. On my '01 interstate, it always required a little "fuel enrichment" to get started. Once warm, everything was fine. Still, the fact that my brothers identical Interstate would start right up on the same warm day without the enrichment bothered me. Finally, I purchased a carb balance kit and balanced my carbs. Now mine starts exactly like my brothers does. Never needs enrichment on a warm day. Even after sitting all week.
Now on to my '97 tourer. It also has the "enrichment needed" issue. I know that it can be better because it has been better in the past. This is not a sync issue because I've done that. There are many issues that avail themselves in a similar fashion. Poor starting can be many things. I'm running through them now. Like others, the carbs have been completely gone through. I personally believe my issue is  going to be a bad "o"ring, or improper pilot setting, or a bad slow jet(s), not sure at this point. Only thing I am sure of is that these machines, when properly tuned, will start on a warm day with no enrichment, and idle fine. I've had more than 20 Valkyries in my garage that "prove" that (to me).

[nogrey]

Thanks Jess I will try to increase my warm idle to 1000 and see what that does. 

That should not be necessary.

[Jess from VA]

Thanks Jess I will try to increase my warm idle to 1000 and see what that does. 

That should not be necessary.

FWIW, I believe proper idle is 900, but I have a Kury LED meter on my bike, and when idling at 900 at start it often is in the red (working off battery), once idle is at 1K, it's always in the green. I really doubt a 100 rpm idle increase is any big deal, but my electrical system likes it better.

[The emperor has no clothes]

Thanks Jess I will try to increase my warm idle to 1000 and see what that does. 

That should not be necessary.

FWIW, I believe proper idle is 900, but I have a Kury LED meter on my bike, and when idling at 900 at start it often is in the red (working off battery), once idle is at 1K, it's always in the green. I really doubt a 100 rpm idle increase is any big deal, but my electrical system likes it better.

same here

[Wewaman]

Well I have been to busy riding and working to worry about or even adjust my Idle, 
But it used to start without using the choke (enrichment)  So I was just looking into what I might need to do to get it back to that.
nogrey I'm with you in that I think there is something still out of kilter somewhere.  I have tried using a couple cans of Chemtool B-12 which has made some slight improvements, but not in the starting without idle department. 

Then again I might just have to join the Jess and Bighead club 

Thanks again,
 Wewa