Unofficial Royal Enfield Community Forum

Royal Enfield Motorcycles => Bullet Iron Barrel => Topic started by: jedaks on October 10, 2013, 12:38:42 am

Title: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: jedaks on October 10, 2013, 12:38:42 am
Hello all.
My '04 Iron Barrel has started doing something wierd.
It starts and idles just fine. I always let the cold engine warm for a few minutes before riding.

When I roll the throttle in neutral, or engage 1st gear to move off, the bike wants to stall out and sometimes gives a little fart or backfire. The clutch lever is fully engaged and playing with the throttle will keep it alive (if I'm quick enough).

That sounds like a lean condition but I can find absolutely no leaks anywhere around the carby or the header pipe. I siliconed in the header pipe a year ago and the seal still looks perfect. A squirt of WD-40 all over the carby and header pipe does not change engine idle speed at all.

What would anyone recommend? Clutch adjustment? I've tried all that and no changes. And like I said, it still happens in neutral.

Once I am able to get going and the engine gets up to temperature the problem goes away.

Thanking you all
Title: Re: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: D the D on October 10, 2013, 01:01:00 am
Has the weather gotten colder where you are?  May just be you need to leave the choke on longer or you haven't been using it.
Title: Re: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: cyrusb on October 10, 2013, 01:02:05 am
Another cause of a lean condition is a plugged carb. Have you cleaned it? When it's cold and needs to be rich, just a small amount of crud would do it.
Title: Re: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: jedaks on October 10, 2013, 01:30:32 am
Hello and thanks for the replies.
I live in Australia so the seasons are reversed. We are into spring with summer coming on quick. My jetting is the same, summer or winter with only an air screw adjustment needed.

I should have mentioned that I completely cleaned the carby and jets. All good there. I'm using radiator hose as an induction pipe. No cracks or leaks noticed.

This happens after 2-3 minutes of idle time, so the engine is not really cold. I'm still using the Mickarb, which is fine for my purposes.
Title: Re: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: cyrusb on October 10, 2013, 01:38:36 am
Ah! The Micarb! Hows the slide to bore clearance? My 05 was wore out a year after I got it. Quality control is all over the place, and I'm sure there are some good ones still out there, but really, mine was rubbish from the factory. Could not richen it up, thats how bad it was. That problem stared me in the face for allmost a year before I figured it out. 
Title: Re: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: jedaks on October 10, 2013, 02:13:06 am
I suppose I should look into a Keihin or Mikuni to replace it anyway, as the Mikcarb is now 9 years old.

Anyway, I'm assuming the consensus is a lean condition somewhere?
Title: Re: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: single on October 10, 2013, 03:12:55 am
Yeah.And,yeah.
Title: Re: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: ace.cafe on October 10, 2013, 03:13:57 am
yup
Title: Re: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: D the D on October 10, 2013, 03:49:54 am
Get a genuine Mikuni and throw the Mikcarb in the bin.  Never could  get mine to hold an idle or act like it wasn't lean.  Plenty of info on jetting Flatslides in several threads.  Some of us got dialed in quick.
Title: Re: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: jedaks on October 10, 2013, 06:45:27 am
I think it's time to say good bye to the Mikcarb. I must have got a good one because it's given me good service. I like the look of the Keihin/PWK/OKO 30mm.

Also..I mentioned I siliconed in the header pipe (I did have a small leak before I did that). Is it possible it needs redoing? That silicone seems like sturdy stuff.

I can change the carby first, as it needs replacing anyway. If the symptoms persist I can mess with the header pipe.
Title: Re: Stalling out when moving off
Post by: edthetermite on October 10, 2013, 01:23:32 pm
Try adjusting the carb idle and mixture screws. Mine was doing something similar and it was reduced by adjusting these. Even in warm weather my engine takes a bit to warm up so I leave the enrichener on for a bit.