carb problems

[PKarl]

so our last ride was october last year bike ran great .parked in garage went to move it for storage in december ran like crap figured bad gas didnt have time to mess with it then so it sat so now april i start on it..drained all gas out put new gas in with seafom changed fuel filter run it let sit ran more let it sit runs horrible not idling unless turn idle in or keep choke on so i pull my vaccum gauges out and sync the carbs. so by this time i have played with different settings on pilot jet synced carbs and they sync perfect..two questions now the center screw that syncs the right to the left is bottomed out cant turn it any more but the carbs are all pulling same amount of vaccum does that matter ? second question it runs smoothly when hot runs like crap and starts hard when cold im pulling about 6 lbs vaccum at idle on all carbs like i said when hot its great when cold have to turn idle screw way in then as it warms up turn it back out..what am i missing here?

[GrandpaDenny]

when you drained the fuel, did you drain the carb bowls?

[PKarl]

Well yes and no i drained the fuel bowels several times before i drained the fuel then drained fuel put new in the fuel looked fine have a clear see thru filter on it and its looks very clean

[ekap1200]

By chance , did you inspect the air box for rodents ? . How did it first start up after sitting for a long time. Perhaps you may have a fouled spark plug. What brand , if any , fuel conditioner was in the tank ?
Gene.

[PKarl]

nothing in air box but filter i had been adding i capfull of 2 stroke oil everytime i gassed up doesnt sound like its missing but do plan to check plugs..when i changed plugs i added 1 can of seafom to 4 gals of gas put about half of it in its about all gone now

[ekap1200]

Well I wouldn't recommend adding 2cycle oil its really not needed. As for a full can to 4 gal, of seafoam , well I have always just followed their recommended dose of 1 oz per gal. Messing with the fuel screws made no change ? Did you put them back to where you found them ? What is the condition of the plug - caps ? And while at the caps you may want to check the plugs. Are you sure the choke is working ? Are you using a professional set of gauge's to sync the carb's ? It's always good to check the gauges accuracy to each other from time to time .
Have you had the bike out on the road ? Sometimes a good ride may clear out whats ailing it. My grandfather used to tell me, IT CANT BREAK OR GO OUT OF ADJUSTMENT JUST SITTING.. if it ran well before you shut it down then changing adjustments may just add to your problems.
Gene Kap.

[buzzcut]

Just had a think...different bike but it had run really well in the fall, total crap in spring. Even shop could not do anything with it. Discovered the airbox had cracked and letting in way too much air. Just a thought....

[GrandpaDenny]

Too much seafoam will cause running like crap. Use the recommended amount. Even in worse-case scenarios, like when you're dealing with kronked-up carbs and trying to get by on the cheap, a half-can per full tank is the MAX to use. Even that is probably too much.

[JimK]

You state it runs great when hot. So I believe because it’s hard starting and runs bad when cold your problem is in the enricher (choke) circuit. The enricher circuit adds fuel when cold. There are plungers on the carbs that rich out the mixture when the choke lever is engaged. If one or more are plugged or not working properly the mixture when cold will be way off and the bike will run poorly. As it warms your not using the choke circuit anymore the engine runs as it should. The enricher circuit works different than an old style choke. The choke would restrict the air passing through the carb, an enricher adds more fuel. I think Kawasaki calls the enrichers, starter plungers.

[SgtSlag]

SeaFoam specifies 1 oz. per gallon, for fuel addition purposes. A can holds 16 oz., so 1/2 can is only 8 oz. OP used 8 oz. of SeaFoam in 6.5 gallons of gas -- not terribly excessive: 1.23 oz./gallon, instead of 1.0 oz./gallon. I've run higher, as a one-time flush-out. It ran a little rough. I agree, the scripted 1.0 oz/gallon of gasoline is preferable. Occasional use (1 dose/month during riding season), as a preventative measure, is also highly recommended. Marvel Mystery Oil (MMO) does almost everything that SeaFoam will do, and it costs roughly 1/4 the price of SeaFoam, per oz.; I only use SeaFoam as a fuel preservative for off-season storage now, since MMO is so much less expensive. Cheers!

[PKarl]

Well it starts fine really i choke it whole way it cranks maybe 10 seconds runs a few seconds shuts off the crank again it starts and stays running with choke on then as warms up can start backing choke off if i back it off to soon it will idle very low and sometimes shut off till i turn idle up then when its hot the idle is way high like 2000 rpm high and have to turn it back down..i havent got back to it yet maybe later this week i will plan tp pull plugs put new sparkplug caps on new fuel and filter and see where im at