Idle speed

hello all,

I recently cleaned my carbs, fresh plugs and oil, in my ‘87 radian. I know I shouldn’t have, but I gave the idle speed screw a twist trying to get a smoother idle and it seems to keep trying to chug on the inner two cylinders. Can’t find much literature on this matter so I’m hoping someone can point me in the right direction. Not how I was planning to start the weekend. I appreciate any input. Is it like a mixture screw in the sense I can start at one point and blend until it’s right? It doesn’t wanna stay running long enough to do this however.

 

The idle speed screw controls the throttle plates. Turning it clockwise increases idle speed, counterclockwise decreases idle speed.
It sounds like you lowered the idle speed. Turn the knob clockwise until you get the idle to around 1200 RPM on the tachometer.

A smooth idle speed is dependent on the idle mixture, and synchronizing the throttle plates via the synchronization screws (assuming that the fuel heights are correct and that the valve clearances are in spec).

The following link is just to help provide clarity. Since the bike runs you won't need to do the bench synch.
HOW TO: Bench-synch your carbs

What you should do is a running synch after you have the idle speed and idle mixture set, and the engine up to operating temperature.
XJ550 SECA Carburetor Balancing
Feel free to ignore the advice to block off the YICS passage. It's not absolutely necessary.

If you don't get all four to fire at idle by turning the idle speed knob clockwise a turn or two, then we'll have to revisit what was done during the carb cleaning.

 

Took more patience than I thought I had, but she’s back to normal plus some since it can actually breathe now. I really appreciate your help, I will certainly retain that info for future reference.