Blackroadie wrote:
Almost sounds like no fuel supply all of a sudden.. i.e. Fuel pump takin' a crap, something plugging the line, etc.

If I were having the problem you describe as Musky suggested look at your last adjustment the pms as it is the easiest and then I would make sure I had no leak between the carb and the backplate or the manifold and the carb and since I was there look at the carb overall again since you have it down and are going on a trip... to me backfiring on acceleration is lean carb ,air leaks or could be an ignitor problem also ...maybe I missed it ....when was your last fill up as white smoke in a car indicates a bad head gasket so perhaps water in the gas?????...Coug

By the way one quick way to tell if it might be gas is to cut the gas off at the petcock and run her on quick start and if you think it might be a lean condition when she acts up try opening the enricher a bit ....Coug

In such a short distance it isn't warmed up yet, and it will do that when it's cold. Mine does that on cold mornings for about 5mi then clears up without a problem sometimes. Try letting it warm up more before you ride off, that might help.

Well, after getting the bike home I added some SeaFoam to the tank and started it up. Idled fine but popped and sputtered and backfired like a cannon if I revved it up. Did the paper thing again using a dollar bill and it definitely doesn't try to suck it into the pipes. And again, the force of the exhaust ripped the bill. Sprayed some carb cleaner around the intake manifold and no sign of any leaks. I was able to tighten each of the head pipe mounting nuts though, so I was hoping that was my problem. NOT!! Tried to ride it around the neighborhood but the damn thing died again. After setting for about 5-10 minutes it started again and I was able to get it home and tear into it.

I can't say for sure, but I don't think this is SVS. Pulled the plugs and all look pretty good. Front ones looked real good and the back ones were just a little darker, but not sootie at all. I would think that if it were SVS the plugs would be fouled.... maybe??? I don't know. Pulled the carb apart and checked for a blocked pilot or main jet; nothing. Float isn't hanging up either. Pulled the needle, slide and diaphragm and all looked good. Didn't see any sign of a hole in the diaphragm. Drained the tank and put in fresh gas and tried to start it. Nothing!!! Just crank crank crank and finally a HUGE backfire..... bike!!!! By now the battery voltage was down to about 12.2 so I pulled it and put it on the charger and will try again tomorrow. bike!!!!

If it were a horse I'd shoot it!!! Any more ideas??????

Aaron

Not SVS. I would have guessed fuel starvation such as dirt in the fuel system ... but you say you checked the jets.

Check both fuel filters. Maybe you had some crap in the tank and they are plugged.

Doc

maybe I missed it, but how many miles on the plugs?

javawave wrote:
maybe I missed it, but how many miles on the plugs?

Not sure of the exact mileage without looking at my maintenance log (which is at home), but the plugs were replaced a year ago in May. So I'm guessing somewhere in the range of 8,000-10,000 miles.

Didn't have a chance to do anything this morning before leaving for work, but the battery is fully charged (12.98 volts) so I may take it and have it "load tested" this afternoon just to eliminate (or confirm) it as a problem. It's the original (3 years old), so it's definitely seen better days. Don't know if a bad or weak battery would cause the type of problems I'm having, (other than turning over and not firing) but it can't hurt to get it checked. And after checking the service manual, I am at the interval for changing the plugs. So maybe it's a combination of a weak/bad battery and worn plugs...........

Doc,
As for the fuel line and petcock being blocked, I may have accidentally eliminated these as problems. Last night before pulling the tank I was draining the float bowl on the carb. Well, the gas just kept coming and coming and coming, and I'm thinking, "How much gas can that thing hold???" Then I realized that I hadn't put the petcock in the "Off" position. And since I'm running pumpless, it's gravity fed, so I was just draining gas straight from the tank. So I'm definitely getting gas from the tank to the carb.......

3:30 can't come soon enough so I can get home and get back to work on some important stuff!!

Trying To Get In The Wind,
Aaron

8000-10000, most here agree that the roadies like plugs sooner than that. Big Bear has a thread where his was acting like yours, just took new plugs.

I would definitely change the plugs. After so many miles the electrodes tend to break down from the heat, causing resistance, etc. A good load magnifies the problem right away. A thought anyway.