my bike wasn't running right, so had the tank cleaned, new fuel, new fuel filter, carbs cleaned and reset, and new plugs fitted. it now revs perfectly in neutral, but as soon as I try to ride it it splutters and cuts out, especially at low revs, even when the bike is on the centre stand and first gear is engaged it still struggles to rev properly, until back in neutral where it revs perfect again. could this be electrical,

mike kempster, June 2018

Hi Mike, i get what you're saying but at idle only the pilot jets 'are in play' and indeed if any one was blocked then you'd experience rough running, this could mean the fuelling between 1/4 and 1/2 throttle at fault, btw all the jets and bits should've been put into a separate mesh carrier into the U/S cleaner, i've spoken to a bandit owner (owns x2) who suggested the CDI unit could be faulty, also are the carbs the correct ones for your bike? they'll have a code number stamped on them as ID, Robinsons Suzuki may help. What colour are the plugs??

chris p duck, July 2018

Hi,
From experience if it was something electrical like the side stand switch or engine cut off, the fault would show as an immediate shut down, not a misfire then shut down. You have described a pretty comprehensive rebuild of the fuel system, therefore I would look at this. Clutch drag with the bike in gear can provide enough resistance to cause the engine to die if it is only just getting enough fuel to run in neutral. I'm afraid you will need to revisit all your work but you can exclude the tank/filter/vacuum valve by connecting a line from a fuel supply separate from the tank line. If the bike still shuts down as described then you are probably looking at the carbs and associated pipes (leaks etc).
Cheers now

Oldgrubber, July 2018

hi Chris, I have not done the repairs myself, but the person who did fixes bikes in his spare time, although he does not touch electrics, but he has cleaned carbs for a local Suzuki dealer, so I assume he knows what he is doing. he said he had never come across this problem before. if the jets are still blocked would it not feel like it is missing even in neutral ? thanks for taking time out to help with my query, greatly appreciated. I will pass your thoughts on. thanks again.

mike kempster, July 2018

it sounds as if one or two or all the pilot jets are blocked which would cause the bike to run like that, assuming the carbs were reassembled correctly, if you had the carbs ultrasonically cleaned all the parts and all jets have to be removed first did you clean all the jets before re-assembly? check that clean petrol runs from the tank, it might still have crud inside it.

chris p duck, July 2018