Soggy Choke Linkage

VMAX  Forum

Help Support VMAX Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Radioguylogs

Well-Known Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2018
Messages
488
Reaction score
315
Location
Presque Isle, Michigan
I rebuilt my Gen 1 carbs a few weeks ago.

I found #3 pilot jet was plugged.

I bought the bike from a dealer. The dealer mechanic said he rebuilt the carbs but it was obvious he couldn't remove the #3 pilot jet because it was badly buggered and still plugged.

Too bad he left big pry marks on the throats of the carbs and cracked the air box. The air box had packing tape over the missing and cracked corner.

I have all of those problems taken care of and now the bike runs purr-fectly when it is warmed up. This bike is addictive.

My remaining issue is the carb choke linkage. When I reassembled the carbs, the 2-4 vs 1-3 travel of the enrichers was not in sync. I bent the rod that connects the front and back pairs until I got them as close as I could.

However, when I actuate the enrichers to start the bike, the linkage has a soggy feel. It feels like all four enrichers are not perfectly in sync. It still starts instantly. When I go to half choke 30 seconds later, the difference among them exaggerates. It still runs, but not complexly smoothly. Once it's warm and I turn off the choke, everything is perfect.

I suppose this is just characteristic of the bike? I wouldn't be surprised if someone had designed a sturdy plate to replace the rod between the front and back banks. Even then, it would hard to make each pair move in perfect sync.

This "problem" is not a big deal because bike starts easily and it is only using the enrichers for a couple of minutes....but I have to think others have noticed the same thing...
 
I've not ever heard of that being an issue before.
Are you absolutely sure that all the linkage and "fingers" that pull the actual choke plunger are all correctly installed? A previous owner may have fudged something.
You can check our the carb rebuild sticky for some in depth photos of how it all goes together.
Make sure the plungers move freely.
If you know its all together correctly, all the locating screws are tight, etc... I'm not aware of any recourse short of bending the fingers or rods as you noted.
 
I've not ever heard of that being an issue before.
Are you absolutely sure that all the linkage and "fingers" that pull the actual choke plunger are all correctly installed? A previous owner may have fudged something.
You can check our the carb rebuild sticky for some in depth photos of how it all goes together.
Make sure the plungers move freely.
If you know its all together correctly, all the locating screws are tight, etc... I'm not aware of any recourse short of bending the fingers or rods as you noted.

Mike:

Thanks for your reply.

I did read all the carb rebuild sticky's (again and again) before and after I rebuilt the carbs. I printed them and kept them out on our pool table with the service manual along with my segregated carb parts. I noted the "crows feet" or "finger" brackets are not all the same, and I was careful to put them back in the same respective positions. However, I can't say for sure they are correct. They do work. Maybe I'm being too picky about the springy feel of the lever.
 
Mike:

Thanks for your reply.

I did read all the carb rebuild sticky's (again and again) before and after I rebuilt the carbs. I printed them and kept them out on our pool table with the service manual along with my segregated carb parts. I noted the "crows feet" or "finger" brackets are not all the same, and I was careful to put them back in the same respective positions. However, I can't say for sure they are correct. They do work. Maybe I'm being too picky about the springy feel of the lever.

The feel of the lever is controlled by the tightness of the lever screw. It does have a tendency to get lose in time, and not feel As long as the enricher plungers are all in when running, and warmed up, all is good to ride.
 
As-mentioned above, just ensure that the plungers are smoothly operating throughout their entire range of motion, and that the fingers are adjusted/bent so that the plungers will move together. The screw holding the choke adjustment should stay where you set the choke, if it doesn't, tighten it a -bit. It sounds like you are where you need to-be, pretty-much. Too-bad you had to find-out that if you want it done-right you need to do it yourself.

Pilot jets are cheap, I'd buy 4 and have them for replacement, because their slot can easily be ruined, and then you probably would have to drill it out to remove it.
 
Before I re-installed the carbs on the bike, I did play with the choke on the bench. The plungers do move freely and they go in all the way. They generally come out all the way, but each one is not always firmly in the full-out position. The linkage just feels springy when in the full-rich and half-rich positions.

I'll take a another look at the lever screw, but it seemed pretty good. The bike only has 5,000 miles on it. I did pay attention to the nylon washer sandwich as shown in the manual. The lever does stay in the desired positions without slipping.

I did buy four new pilot jests and installed them. :)

I am beginning to think it's normal. It works, just seems mushy.

-Mike
 

Attachments

  • Starter Lever Exploded View.JPG
    Starter Lever Exploded View.JPG
    43.4 KB · Views: 10

Latest posts

Back
Top