Eric_The_Jew

Thanks for the tips and the excellent link, guys!

Regarding the plastic side covers along the sides of the tank that you said simply pop out.... Mine appear to be interlocked with the side fairings and front fairings. Are you sure you don't have to remove the side fairings first to get these covers off? Thanks for the tips.

Sorry for the stupid question, but I haven't received my service manual yet and need some help. To remove the fuel tank on a carbureted Blackbird, what steps do I need to take? Also, the bike obviously doesn't have a petcock. When I remove the fuel lines, will it piss fuel all over the place, or does it have one of the vaccum operated shut offs to prevent this?

Well, I have a '98 bird that has slightly clogged pilot jets, and I was about to pull the carbs this weekend until I saw this post. I have run two entire bottles of Chevron Techron concentrate through the gas, with ZERO results. I will give the SeaFoam a shot before I yank the float bowls. This stuff betta work!!! People have been telling me, "There's no chemical that's gonna clean your jets once they're gummed up.....you had might as well pull the carbs and clean them the old fashioned way." Let's hope Sea Foam proves them wrong.

Thanks for the tips, 97bird. Like I said, I haven't even had my tank off, so I don't even know what it looks like under there, but I wasn't expecting it to be nearly that easy. I was expecting the bowls to be way out of sight and tucked waaay underneath the airbox. I can't wait to clean up my pilots, because my bike is a bear to drive around town with all the lurching and bucking and such. One more question.....does the bird's float bowls use the cheap gaskets that break when you pull the bowls? Should I order some new ones before I attemt to clean the pilots?

97Bird....please tell me how you removed the pilot jets with the carbs still on the bike. My bike runs very rough on the pilot jets (I know they are varnished up) and I would like to clean them. You said it only takes a few minutes to pull the pilot jets even if you leave the carbs on? How did you get the float bowl phillips screws off without stripping them out? I haven't had my fuel tank or airbox off yet, so i'm not even sure how the carburetors are situated or angled. Thanks for any help.

I'm idling at 1,100 right now, but I know that's not the problem. It sounds almost like it's running on three cylinders at steady cruising throttle (when it's on the pilot jet). I know now that I most likely have a clogged pilot. I bought a bottle of Techron today. I'll give that a shot, but I have NEVER had luck with any type of fuel additive when it comes to dirty carbs. It's more than likely gonna need a good old fashioned carb cleaning.

The pilot screws will limit what the total that the jets can flow. With a larger jet, you have the ability for greater flow. The screws work more or less as limiters. Cool ? Gotcha.....but one more question. When you are turning the pilot screws, are you adjusting airflow (like an air bypass circuit) or are you adjusting fuel flow?

Pardon my ignorance, but what's the difference between going up sizes on the pilot jet as opposed to turning the "pilot screws" to change the mixture?

Can one access the pilot jets on this bike without pulling the carbs off?

Okay, I saw the sticky where the '99 and up service manual is posted, but who has the service manual for the carbureted ones in a PDF file?

Did anyone pour the stuff directly in the carb or throttle body throats like the instructions say to do? Just curious what would be better about doing it this way as opposed to mixing it in the gas tank.

Did you clean the carbs yourself?? What circuit was dirty? (e.g. needles, pilot jets, etc. etc.)

Well, I finally picked up my Bird today; a pristine 1998 model, bone stock, with only 6,500 miles. I love the bike, but the carburetion seems "fluffy" at idle and just off idle. The idle sounds somewhat rough, and while riding around town riding at very small throttle positions, it lurches and feels a little rough. I know these bikes are jetted lean (the pilot screws) from the factory, but has anyone else experienced this rough running? I'm trying to decide if this is how the bike ran from the factory, or if I might have bigger problems, such as needing a carb synch or carb cleaning. The previous owner said the bike never sat for more than four months (short winters here in the Southeast). Any suggestions?

Hi Eric, my 98xx (bought it brand new in 2000) marks 122k. today. I know that i am still a rookie to compare with other veterans out there. I just want to prove the fact that our Bird is one of the most reliable 2 wheels, that's all. Last November Mr. Shawn (member of BARF) checked, adjusted the valves the very first time of its lifetime and was surprised that only 4 of them need to be replaced. Beside routine maintenance, i have had replaced 2 stators, 2 rr, 1 battery, 1 water pump, 1 igniction key & 1 CCT. BTW, i used Shell Rotella T 15-40 and WalMart ST6607 filter from the first day after i did some research from the net. I doubt if she ever need to be replaced, but when that day comes, i will be looking for nothing else but another XX since my 122k. still smokes those "Fast and Furious" wanna be. Very, very impressive! I've read a lot about the Super Tech oil filters as well, and they appear to be quality items (despite what the price would lead you to believe). Do you have to add any oil in between changes?

It is very possible the a/f ratio checked out fine on the dyno, but don't let it fool you. When your bike is on a dyno, most likely the dyno operator is only checking the a/f ratio at 100% throttle all the way to redline. However, it could be off-the-scale rich at idle and other part throttle positions. This probably explains why your tailpipes are sooty black; most likely your bike is rich around the 2-5% throttle position range (where you spend most of the time just cruising along), but fine at 100%.

What I would like to know is if the '03 genuine Honda regulator/rectifier will plug right in to a '97 or '98's wiring harness. Can anyone verify this??

Wow, i'm REALLY impressed with what i'm seeing here. I had a Bandit 1200s, and those valves would get tight within 5,000 miles. Granted, the Bandit used a screw and locknut setup, but if the valves kept getting tight, then it was an issue of the valve face or valve seat wearing quickly. What kind of valves seats does Honda use on this bike? They must be tough as shit, because 25K and 50K miles with NO adjustments needed is almost unheard of on a high performance bike.

Are you on your 3rd cam chain or cam chain tensioner?

So Marchesini makes wheels for our bikes?? Where have you found this?

Just wanted to see what kind of mileages people have on their bike. I've already seen several members who have over 50K, but it would be interesting to see if anyone has surpassed the 100K mark. Please list any noteworthy problems you've encountered if you're part of the high mileage club (e.g. carb rebuild, cam chain replacement, etc. etc.) Thanks!

According to the wise man who posted this sticky, there were no changes whatsoever from '97 to '98 http://www.cbr1100xx.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=31635

Never mind....I found the answer.