Like the topic states, how bad is it to leave the fuel switch in the ON position forever.... The previous owner told me if I put in Reserve or Off, the bike will start leaking gas... and he said he just always leaves the bike fuel switch to the On position.

My problem is, ever since I bought the bike, it would never start in cold weathers... I just tried it right now, and its not even that cold maybe 65 -70 degrees F. I just recently got the bike serviced, including oil change, carb clean, new air filter, and spark plugs. I thought that would solve my problem, but it still doesnt start and the choke does jack ****.

Any tips would be helpful. Should I take it back to the mechanic and see if they know whats wrong with it or did I just buy a fucked up bike

Im scared to take it to school now because I get there in the afternoon and leave at night... when its cold...

Thanks

 

Are you sure the choke is working? As in - the cable pulls a little lever that opens the plungers on the carbs? Does the bike start in the cold if you leave the fuel 'off' ? It sounds like the choke isnt being pulled open.

 

What the owner said could absolutely be true... especially on older bikes

 

ya I believe him. I just don't know what I can do about it. Can it be fixed? Is it a big deal?

My choke is working. It is attached to a cable but I don't what its attached to, but I assume its attached to right area. The bike doesn't start with the fuel off. (Atleast not as of right now, never tried before).

I've used the choke before and it has worked. It starts off at like 3k rpm rather than 1k. When I first started the bike today, it started at 1k rpm and then just slowly died after like 5 seconds of idle.

I should have just bought a Fuel injected or newer bike haha.

 

Yeah getting caught out at night would suck now that we're going into winter. does your petcock not work? if not bite the bullet and get a replacement. how does your choke/enrichment circuit work? cable or vacuum? If cable you may need to adjust for proper usage. if it is vacuum then you need to find the leak. you may have a leaking line OR you may have a diaphragm enrichment circuit in which the diaphragm is torn or leaking

peace
Schu

post Script... there is not one thing wrong with a carbed bike or car!

 

this is why I hate Cv carb's

besides being a lame cost cutting excuse for a real carburetor they are prone to the skirt tearing, which cause a massive air leak and eventual failure

This may be what your diaphragm circuit may look like... it may be torn



It would most be sitting in the middle of your carb set

 

If it starts and then dies out after a few seconds, to me that sounds like you aren't getting fuel. Sometimes when i'm being stupid, I start my bike with the fuel off, and it will start poorly, then slowly die out. Make sure fuel comes out of the main line when the petcock is cut on.

Also, when the tank is running low on gas, you need to leave it on reserve. If there isn't enough gas in the tank, the "ON" setting won't have any gas to give.

 

Stop f*cking around and get some real carbs

 

You can't possibly miss up the choke... it is mounted directly to the carb bank(Left in the picture)...

Forget remote chokes

 

can leaving the fuel switch on off really make an old bike leak gas? i thaught it was purely an electric switch, and would have no effect whether its on or off as long as the key is out.

 

Not on bikes with a petcock, it is not electronic... it is mechanical

 

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh hhhhhhhhh. i hate my bikeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

 

what kind of bike is it?

It sounds more and more like the choke isnt working.

 

+1, what bike you riding?

 

You can tell if the choke is working by pulling on it - there should be tension.

How old is the bike?

Nothing wrong with leaving the switch in ON, as long as it's not for a long period of time.

 

the bike is a 1990 yamaha fzr 600

There is tenision when I pull the choke backwards though. There's mild resistance.

 

is that a remote choke? if so you could be simply exeriencing cable trension instead of choke opperation.

 

i got the bike to run on the first try this afternoon after letting it sit for half a day. I kept the choke on, but as soon as I turned it off, it started to lose idle and eventually die out again.

Also, when I rev the bike, there seems to be a popping noise that I never heard before.

I was gonna ride the bike to the local mechanic shop, but as soon as I geared up. the bike wouldnt start again hahah. *frustrated*

 

Maybe your idle needs to be adjusted. Or, running rich...?

 

fuel sarvation/lean... you need to adjust your airfuel ratio and you may have a flow issue under normal running conditions. does it sputter under load?

 

Hmm after talking to a few ppl/boards, they all say something about air fuel ratio either running rich or too lean, and adjusting my idle..

So.. I guess I'm going to just take it into the mechanics (if i can ever get the bike start)

Thanks for all your help guys. <3

 

Well have you done a plug check? My vote is lean

 

i havnt but I just got the spark plugs changed by a shop like a week ago. So I'll be very sad if it is the cause of my frustration..

Oh ya, I just added AAA motorcycle towing to my account, but it doesn't take affect for 7 days... but it beats paying 75 dollars to tow a bike 2 miles..

 

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MSchu is talking about looking at your plugs to determine if you are running rich or lean. If you don't know how to do this, do a google search. Its a trick thats been around since the early days of hot rodding.