The International CBX Owners Association

For those that missed my intro in the newbie section, I have been entrusted to look after/sort out my boss's CBX.
First off, I know it has been stored for at least 3 years, after a nuts and bolts resoration, anyhow, first thing I done was to drain the old stale crappy fuel out of it,and put fresh fuel in, this worked on an old CBR600! I have changed the plugs and air filter for new items, the thing I need advice on, is, it has started after 30 seconds or so on the starter, which I was chuffed about, but it will only rev on full choke, turn the choke off and it does'nt want to rev and stalls, I think the carbs are probably gummed up, what do the ones in the know here reckon?

TIA Kevn

Hi Kevn,
Yes, sounds about right, these carbs don't like to be left for long periods, can be a bit tricky to clean properly, there is a lot on the forums about them, but I'm just about to send mine off to be cleaned by a club member who I trust.

regards.

Hi Kev,

Yup, the idle passages are very small and get easily gummed up. The only way to make sure they are clear is to strip and clean. Take a look here http://www.motorcycleproject.com/text/booknook.html#1 this booklet is very detailed and definately worth getting - Mike knows his stuff.

btw

Kevn, another well respected CBX wrench (Preston Marks) has advised others in this situation to put a can of STP fuel injector cleaner in a tank of gas and go for a good ride if you can. It may not work but then again it may, and that's a helluva lot easier than removing those carbs . Lemme see if I can search up his post on the subject...

OK, this was Preston's advice:

A $10.00 try

Fill than with non-ethonol fuel add a container of STP
fuel treatment in the silver bottle ( good for 21 gallons,
5.25 oz) Complete fuel system cleaner, Deep-Cleans Fuel system.

Have recommended to many callers. Many have had success.
$10.00 cheaper and less work.
Roll the dice Very Happy

Thanks for the advice everyone, I think the STP route could be the first thing I will try, it will indeed save a lot of work, especially as I am doing it at work in between my normal day job!

Hi Kevin,

If the fuel cleaner doesn't work, I recommend sending the carbs to Goss, if he isn't too busy. For what he charges for a rebuild and only having to do the job once it's a no brainer if your boss is willing to pay for it to be done properly.

Cheers
Chris J.

There are several other "fuel cleaners" that could work, if the STP product is not available. I have used "Seafoam" for that. Results are not really great in most cases. The CBX carbs need cleaned properly. Especially the slow jets and the accelerator circuit. Running cleaner in the fuel may not get this.

Right, I have cleaned the idle circuit and the bike idles! but, today I started it up for the first time in a couple of weeks, spun over fine, then a few hours later, my governor wants to hear it running, I hand him the keys and, just a click from the starter solenoid! bloody typical! battery has a full charge.
Seems to me as if the starter motor is jamming! any ideas people?

TIA Kev

Try the magnetic switch under the right hand side cover...happened to me. Cleaned up and worked for awhile but eventually got a new one.

Use a big fat screwdriver to short those two terminals on the solenoid momentarily and if the starter happily spins then it's likely the solenoid, and that's a common failure. Obviously you don't want to be touching the metal of the screwdriver when you do this, right?

It could also be a faulty battery with a dead cell. Some show a full charge without load and once you load them up with the starter, they quit.

Again, thanks for the replies, will have another look today.

NobleHops wrote:OK, this was Preston's advice:

A $10.00 try

Fill than with non-ethonol fuel add a container of STP
fuel treatment in the silver bottle ( good for 21 gallons,
5.25 oz) Complete fuel system cleaner, Deep-Cleans Fuel system.

Have recommended to many callers. Many have had success.
$10.00 cheaper and less work.
Roll the dice Very Happy

so to verify I understand this correctly, add the entire container container of STP for 21 gallons and not just an applicable portion for the 5 gal tank?
Great tip if it works, removing and cleaning carbs is a serious pain in the butt.

I've been adding a container of Motul system cleaner to a full tank of gas every month would that not work the same as STP? Or is the STP better for already clogged passages?

Yes, that was the jist of Preston's advice. The entire bottle.