Still sputtering/chugging

GoldenMotor.com

KarenH

New Member
Sep 21, 2014
55
0
0
Orange Park, Florida
I hope my motor sputtering/chugging is from the last time I got gas, though that does surprise me because I got it at Gate. Or . . .

The idle adjustment screw that goes in the carburetor might be the problem. I lost it somewhere. Today I found a screw at home that fit the hole and am using it. I remembered that the original screw had a spring on it too so I took the spring off of a ball point pen and am using that on the screw I found that fits. I might just need to keep tweaking it until I get is adjusted so it doesn't sputter, if that is the problem instead of the gas.

Any thoughts?

I sure am learning a lot about my bike, both the motorized part and general bicycle repair too. Tonight I had to replace inner tube for the first time, but I did it!

Other than periodically checking for loose screws, nuts, bolts, what other general maintenance do I need to do on a motorized bike?

Karen
 

DaveC

Member
Jul 14, 2010
969
1
18
Boise, ID
I hope my motor sputtering/chugging is from the last time I got gas, though that does surprise me because I got it at Gate. Or . . .

The idle adjustment screw that goes in the carburetor might be the problem. I lost it somewhere. Today I found a screw at home that fit the hole and am using it. I remembered that the original screw had a spring on it too so I took the spring off of a ball point pen and am using that on the screw I found that fits. I might just need to keep tweaking it until I get is adjusted so it doesn't sputter, if that is the problem instead of the gas.

Any thoughts?

I sure am learning a lot about my bike, both the motorized part and general bicycle repair too. Tonight I had to replace inner tube for the first time, but I did it!

Other than periodically checking for loose screws, nuts, bolts, what other general maintenance do I need to do on a motorized bike?

Karen
Biggest problem is it isn't a screw, it's a needle and it meters the flow of fuel at low RPM's. It will continue to sputter due to getting too much gas. If you can't find a new needle then a new carb is the only fix.

Sorry about the bad news :p
 

Kioshk

Active Member
Oct 21, 2012
1,152
10
38
Connecticut
Today I found a screw at home that fit the hole and am using it. I remembered that the original screw had a spring on it too so I took the spring off of a ball point pen and am using that on the screw I found that fits.

Any thoughts?
Your innocence and lack of mechanical knowledge are adorable. My thoughts are that I'm glad you're not a commercial-airline mechanic. ;) You DO get major points for "gumption" and "sticktoitiveness"; I admire your attempt at memory-based-repair.

The idle-screw is proprietary, so I doubt the one you used is adequate to maintain proper idle. The spring is also proprietary, and keeps the screw from moving around due to vibration. That said, the idle-screw is the least of your carb problems, although not having it is a major irritant; idle is not critical to a properly operating engine. I expect you have an NT carb. If so, these excellent devices are so CHEAP that you'd be better off buying a new one on eBay for $10 than trying to find replacement parts. Buy a new one and remove that problem from the equation.

Keep learning and don't give up! These kits are excellent engineering studies...you'll soon start having "ah HAAA!" moments.

PS:

Congrats on the inner-tube replacement! It seems like a simple task, but it's a VERY important skill around here. You'll soon level-up to actually PATCHING a tube!
 
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KarenH

New Member
Sep 21, 2014
55
0
0
Orange Park, Florida
I was also wondering if the sputtering could be from too much oil in the gas/oil mixture?

Thanks Dan, I didn't know that about it being a needle meter. I've only had the bike since September. I've managed to do and learn quite a bit in that time. And I'm always ready to learn more.

Thanks Kioshk for the complement and encouragement. There have been times when I thought "there is no way I'm going to figure this out and get it running again" in the recent past. Thanks to this website and the help of fellow riders, I have surprised myself!

Where can I order a new carb other than bike-berry if possible. I'm not happy with them.

Karen
 

crassius

Well-Known Member
Sep 30, 2012
4,032
158
63
USA
I've made those idler screws for the NT carbs when I needed shorter ones to clear frame tube on extended manifolds. No big deal if you file the tip into a pointy extension that fits into the ramp in the slide & is smooth enough to be turnable without lifting the slide erratically
 

maniac57

Old, Fat, and still faster than you
Oct 8, 2011
4,484
22
0
memphis Tn
Sounds to me like it's running rich, which is totally normal for a china engine. After break in, you can jet the carb to fix this.
I agree with the others, new carbs are dirt cheap.
I run my new engines with the needle clip second slot from the top. (Search to find out what this means as I don't have time to type it all out)
I run 40:1 right from day one, but some prefer 24 or 32:1 during break in period.
16:1 like the "manual" says is FAR too much oil!