Question Hey Bill, I have a 1972 Honda XL 100 And its been sitting for about 18 years, so i cleaned the carb. and i got it started, but it took a while, so i have been riding it and i thought it was running right until i started cranking it a little more, and when i do that it tries to die, or sounds like it. so if i don't crank between 1-4 gear its all right but when you get to 5th you have to slowly give it gas. So what do you think the problem with the carburator? I think its either the air & fuel mixure is wrong, or its not firing. Thank You so Much For Your Time.
Jack
AnswerJack... the most common problems with these bikes are:
The cams get loose in the head, so you can't time them correctly. If there is more than about .006" sideplay in the camshaft, you are going to have a tough time getting it to fire correctly.
The spark advancers get stuck/seized up and you don't have any spark advance
The points haven't been set for ages and the gap is next to nothing. Gap should be .014"
The valves are too tight... Check to see that they are at .002" COLD intake/exhaust.
People think that the ignition system is a magneto... This is a BATTERY POWERED ignition.. needs a GOOD 6v battery to run right.
If you carefully cleaned ALL of the carburetor, including the emulsion tube cross-drilled holes, opened up all the air bleed passages in the carb throat and also the bowl vent in the roof of the carb body, then the other items need attention first, before you try to "adjust" this problem with the carburetor settings.
Bill Silver
