Topic: Tuning tips for Noobs

[darkside1994]

Hi,

I bought an 82 nighthawk 650 a few months ago and I finally got it running, after much work by someone who has never done any of this before- carb rebuild, tank liner, new fuel lines, petcoc cleaning, chains, etc. and now I am to the point where this bike runs a good idle, from adjusting the throttle valve adjust screw, I think it's technically called the fast idle screw(?) however I want to tune these carbs for a nice, smooth, lean run. This is the next thing I need to do because all the basics are in place,and the fuel system is clean and ready to roll. I k ow the Sparks are good but they keep getting dirty from an untuned, rich mixture, anyone have any tips on how to tune a carb for proper burn and smooth operation? Also, keep in mind I'm on a bit of a budget since the fiancée doesn't like the bike too much. Thanks in advance

Allen

[BomberMann650]

Welcome to the forum Darkside.

Do you have your service manual and vacuum sync meters yet?

[flybox1]

+1
download the manual for your bike iin the FAQ section.
start with ALL of the 3K mi tuneup items.

Welcome.

[kaptainkid1]

The idle screw should be turned out 1 1/2 turns per carb.
Also you'll need to sync your carbs. Should buy or make a carb sync meter. Generally they're $60 delivered from ebay.
Some times people who take apart carbs don't all ways put them back together correctly.
Example some needle jet have clip adjustment to aloud the right fuel mixture and if you didn't clip them back on the right level the bike could be running lean or rich. Check the manual that could be an issue for running rich.
good luck on fixing the problem.   

[Airborne 82nd]

You need to take care of this before you do anything else.

 the fiancée doesn't like the bike too much.
Good Luck

[darkside1994]

Thanks for the help. I have a haynes manual that guided me through the rebuild, and I've got it to where it will at least idle without the choke, but it seems my main problems are just the sync and throttle adjust. I found an older guy in my area who has 2 or 3 of these older honda bikes who said he would tune them up for me, as he has all the vacuum gauges as well as the experience.

I figure if I can get it running well enough to ride it around the neighborhood, I can either bring it all the way back to life, or find some chump to buy it off of me for a profit, at the very least :]

[BomberMann650]

Thanks for the help. I have a haynes manual that guided me through the rebuild, and I've got it to where it will at least idle without the choke, but it seems my main problems are just the sync and throttle adjust. I found an older guy in my area who has 2 or 3 of these older honda bikes who said he would tune them up for me, as he has all the vacuum gauges as well as the experience.

I figure if I can get it running well enough to ride it around the neighborhood, I can either bring it all the way back to life, or find some chump to buy it off of me for a profit, at the very least :]

The old neigbhorhood motorcycle guy is my favorite acquaintance to have.

Reminds me, I haven't seen my towns living legend in a while since his wife died.  I hope he's alright.

[alacrity]

Thanks for the help. I have a haynes manual that guided me through the rebuild, and I've got it to where it will at least idle without the choke, but it seems my main problems are just the sync and throttle adjust. I found an older guy in my area who has 2 or 3 of these older honda bikes who said he would tune them up for me, as he has all the vacuum gauges as well as the experience.

I figure if I can get it running well enough to ride it around the neighborhood, I can either bring it all the way back to life, or find some chump to buy it off of me for a profit, at the very least :]

haynes manual is... well it's NOT the factory service manual. Just download it from this site and use it. It's also helpful (I've found) to take the time to print out the entire parts fiche with a "big" pic for each page of it and the full list of parts.  I have a binder for these pages next to the binder I have for the service manual with updates and TSBs for the model I am working on. It's the best way to always be on point with your current and next steps.