The - NFG's First Monster - thread.

[mostro900]

Engine braking is a good thing and I enjoy it on my 900. Just be careful with it as well. No slipper clutch and nearly every morning as I come down the road and it's still a bit cool, rear wheel always locks up for a fraction of a second. Personally, I'm in the habit of doing that and I miss it when I don't get my 'itty bitty skid' in every time I go up the road, but that being said, it can cause you some concern when you down shift quickly and at speed and your rear starts wagging it's tail.

I would suggest that practicing your hard braking is a good thing. Pick a nice clean, clear of traffic area and work through it.  On this site there are some great threads on riding advice and maybe pick up a book to read(I am loathe to recommend Keith Code's Twist of The Wrist book - hit your head with a hammer instead. Try Sports Riding Techniques - good, well written book.)

[NFG]

Yeah, I need practice with the hard breaking and takeoff.  I have trouble getting it going under pressure on steep hills.  Newbie nerves, I reckon.   <blush>

Gotta find a nice quiet parking lot near here...  I think the industrial area over the hill will suffice. 

[Betty]

Gotta find a nice quiet parking lot near here...  I think the industrial area over the hill will suffice. 

Industrial areas (off-peak) can be good just me mindful of all the extra shit that accumulates on the road in such places which may be unkind to your tires ... both punctures and slippery stuff may become a problem.

[NFG]

Had a good time, spent most of an hour roaring up and down a completely empty road.  Hoons had laid down spirals of rubber at one end and it was good cornering practice trying to follow them.  Stopped and started probably fifty or a hundred times, and got into the habit of using the front brake a lot harder. 

As I was leaving I passed a security guard vehicle coming my way, not sure if it was related but maybe an hour of noise was too much for the factories nearby?  =D

Good fun.  ^_^

[Jukie]

glad you have a good time bonding with your bike NFG.

[NFG]

Having trouble with the bike starting last night.  I'm pretty sure it's not related, but I was doing a little research and maintenance on the speedo/light cluster, opened it up, cleaned it up, put it back together.

The next time I go to ride it, it doesn't run smoothly anymore.  Stalled at idle once, runs choppy, backfires and lurches at low speed.  I thought perhaps it was out of gas, maybe the fuel light doesn't work, but I filled it (only 11 litres, it holds 18 I think?) and it didn't really sort anything out...  my next thought was 7 litres of water in the tank (!!), as keeping the revs high it seemed alright, went for a 10km ride and it was as smooth as you'd like from a rumbly old bike...  Though still not as smooth as my bad memory and limited experience would expect.

But this morning it's the same thing: backfiring when coasting down a hill, unsteady idle, lurching at low speed.

Since I'm confident nothing in the instrument cluster would have this effect, I'm looking for other ideas. 

Anyone?  =D

[dragonworld.]

Sounds like you have a crook plug!! These carbed models are prone to this, particularly if you run anything else other than bog stock 90 RON fuel. The higher octane stuff fouls the plugs REALLY easy.  

Also on our old 750, it doesnt like to be warmed on the choke!! It prefers to be started on choke and then warmed on throttle only with the choke released.   This can also lead to a "dirty" plug. Get a couple of plugs and give it a try??

Idiosyncratic old bag she is.

[NFG]

Aha, that sounds entirely plausible, I was using the choke to warm it up.  And I did put higher octane stuff in it.  Was seeking mostly to avoid ethanol, but I confess that's a reason I thought of after the fact.  <_<

Will check the plugs.  Are there any guides around, re: plug selection?

[dragonworld.]

http://www.ngkspark.com.au/sparkplug_tech.php


Check out this link, it'll give you an idea of what you need. 

[NFG]

Interestingly the sparkplug socket in the underseat toolbox was too small for the plugs... 

Having had a look at it with my father (an old mechanic) he decided it was running too rich, so that's our first thing to check.  Air filter's clean, and covering up the individual air intakes with a hand made no appreciable difference to the way it ran, hence: getting too much gas...

It was as if the choke was still out, but pulling it out made it run quite a bit faster, so that doesn't seem to be the cause.

Will check the plugs as soon as a suitable socket is found. 

[dragonworld.]

The plugs will look fouled like its running too rich. And running the high octane fuel it gives the impression of richness. If when you put the new plugs and correct fuel in, and its still runs rough and carries on at 60-70k in top gear at steady throttle, you might need a pair of needle jets. The Mikuni CV carbs are  notorious for wear on these jets.

See http://www.factorypro.com/products/jets,needles,emulsion_tubes,pilot_jets.htm

[NFG]

I can't tell you how much I appreciate the advice.  Even if it's wrong (and I'm not suggesting it is!) it gives me a lot of clues.

Thanks very much.  =D

[dragonworld.]

Your very welcome and I hope it helps steer you in the right direction. [moto]

[NFG]

OK, yanked the plug.  Seems to be right in line with the 'running rich' theory, according to my old mechanic father.

I found this little helper, and I wonder: should I lean on in and try to adjust this myself?  Would it likely be only the idle that's running rich?  Or is this something that would bring closer the date of my first service?  =D

[bazz20]

give your carbys a birthday every one carries on about jets ect but neglect the air jets which are open too the elements and get new needle and seats and dont forget too synchronize them as well , you can build a syncro for less than 40 bucks if you want a fancy one or just use two clear hoses and some water  , fuel octane rate will not cause richness been down road with omc out boards when they started blowing up bazz