2002 1200 S, idle question and the idle adjustment knob? Please help!

[DOGDOC97]

Hi everyone; I  was on here way back when I first bought this bike; roll forward 8 years and very little miles, too many bikes; it only has 3300 miles, yes, no mistake, so every year I ride  a little but the last two years the carbs are cleaned etc. because I don't ride enough and its all gummed up. So this week, I have a hydrolock, drain the oil, drain the gas, 4 new plugs, techroline and some other "motor magic" my pilot buddy swears by. fires up first start for 3 days in a row with little choke and runs like the screamer I recall it is....now, UNTIL the motor warms up and with choke off it wants to shut down, so my buddy turns the idle knob a half turn or so, hold around 1400 RPM, then when I ride and come to a stop it is of course running over 2200 RPM, obviously you should NOT have to adjust the idle like this so..but I back it down and hold perfect around 1400;.should I leave it on half choke for a few minutes; I worry that fouls plugs; do the carbs need to be synched, one guy said use "seafoam" and his idle problem went away,is 1400 RPM right, it never quite idled well on its own till it got hot, glad to be back, dogdoc, atlanta

[pmackie]

UNTIL the motor warms up and with choke off it wants to shut down

This is pretty normal on all Bandits...they usually run lean, so they normally need the choke (actually an enricher circuit) for the first 2-4 minutes. Anyway, no problem using the choke/fast idle lever for a full 5 minutes or so. In your case, it is likely that the pilot circuit is partially plugged, making the bike run even leaner than normal, resulting in you needing even more choke than normal. If you actually put some serious miles on the bike, this will likely clear up on it's own (with the detergent in the fuel slowly cleaning up the carbs). If you use a major brand premium, they usually have double the treat rate of detergents, which will help.

Anyway, I would suggest turning the idle screw back down, and using the choke/fast idle lever until the bike is warm...

Just for curiousity sake...what is:

I have a hydrolock

[Dragbike]

Just for curiosity sake...what is: "I have a hydrolock"
The engine cylinders fill up with gas, instead of the engine being an air pump it is a Hydro pump
This sometimes tear parts up, real hard on the starter, valves, pistons ect...........

[DOGDOC97]

thanks drag bike, now the bike is making a "pssst, psssst" noise when warming up; seems to be at the carbs, right under the seat??????

[rider123]

That little puffs sound under the bike when its cold is the bike running a bit lean when warming up and backfireing back through the carbs. Nothing to worry about as these bikes are jetted horibbly lean when stock. Enriching up the mixture screws a 1/4 turn may help a bit. As far as idle adjustment is concerned wait until the bike is fully warmed up to adjust it. There is no point in adjusting it when its cold as its going to rise as the bike warms up. If you are running it when cold, just hold the throttle a little bit when stopped until the bike warms up and it will start to idle on its own. Hell I have a holeshot jet kit and it still needs a bit of choke even on a warm day when absolutly cold to start.