Suzuki Bandit running problem, can someone help?

[Sev]

Famous last words if I ever heard them.

[eyeeatingfish]

I did a number of things today.
I checked the air filter, clean
I let the motor run with the gas cap open to see if there was a vacumb problem, the bike still stalled.
I took the petcock off and inspected it, no dirt or anything on the intake filter.
Then i pulled out the carburetors and i opened up the top and bottom, checking the float, the little plunger attached to the float, that long needle that is attached to the diaphram on the top. I didnt pull out all the screws, i just puleld out the mainjet and inspected them. Clean. The other recessed small one i didnt have a screwdriver that would fit. Well one was too skiny and wouldnt turn the screw well.
The insides all appeared clean, couldnt find any gunk/residue/slime/anything. I put it all back together put the tank back on, started it up and let it run. The motor sounded slightly different. Maybe a little bit rougher but nothing bad. Sure enough the problem surfaced after a few minutes of being on.

Back to square one. Im probably going to take the bike into the shop, not sure what else to do.

I did notice the oild was above the F line. Would too much oil cause any of the problems i mentioned? Keep in mind that i had driven a few hundred miles since my last service/oil change.

[thespirit]

The bike just dies as it's idling? Do you have clear fuel lines or black ones? I always use clear, that way if I'm having a problem I can at least see if fuel is getting to the carbs. It almost sounds like it's not getting fuel after the float bowl drains out.

When you took your carbs apart, did you clean them out, or just look at them? You can't just pull the jets out and if they are clear, think that it's clean. The passages inside the carbs are usually what gets plugged first. You have to clean all the passages out in order to clean the carbs out.

If you used Seafoam, then I doubt it's just water. Seafoam is usually pretty good at dispersing water.

How far above the full line is your oil? If it's really far above, you should drain it out. Having too much oil can be as bad as not enough.

[eyeeatingfish]

I didnt blow air through all the ports and stuff, was running out of time. I should have just left everything out and done more today. It was fairly clean. I wiped off any residue and cleaned the seals.
Even if one carburetor was clogged wouldnt the bike still run on 3?

The fuel lines are the stock black ones. The guy at the parts counter told me he didnt think the fuel lines were the problem. They havent been replaced to my knowledge. The bike has 40,000 miles.

[thespirit]

I didnt blow air through all the ports and stuff, was running out of time. I should have just left everything out and done more today. It was fairly clean. I wiped off any residue and cleaned the seals.
Even if one carburetor was clogged wouldnt the bike still run on 3?

The fuel lines are the stock black ones. The guy at the parts counter told me he didnt think the fuel lines were the problem. They havent been replaced to my knowledge. The bike has 40,000 miles.

If one carb is blocked, then it will run like crap, but it may still run. If all 4 are, then it won't run right, but may or may not still run.

I don't think your fuel lines themselves are the problem, either. I was just curious if you had clear ones so that we could verify that you are getting fuel from the tank to the carbs. This could be something as simple as a bad petcock on your gas tank. Your tank has a prime position, right? Have you tried moving it to the prime position when it starts to quit to see if the problem goes away?

When was the last time you changed your plugs and plug wires?

Have you checked the voltage at the battery when it starts to die to see if you are getting a really low voltage?

[eyeeatingfish]

Havent checked anything electrical. I dont have the tools to do that.
I havent tried the prime setting either, maybe ill try that today. So that is basically just letting the gas drain free instead of it sucking it up right?

[thespirit]

Right. Some petcocks are vacuum operated, some are not. If you have prime, On, and Reserve, then you have a vacuum operated one. Lack of vacuum can cause it to stop allowing fuel to flow. A bad petcock can also cause it... It's just odd that it works for a while, then quits. So, I am not saying this is the problem, but I would like to rule it out.

Have you taken any of your spark plugs out? After idling and it dying, take one of your spark plugs out immediately (be careful, it will be hot), and check to see if it's wet or black.

[eyeeatingfish]

I tried running my motorcycle on all three settings. As it started to die i changed it, then changed it again nothing remedied the problems. I didnt check the spark plug but they are only a few hundred miles old.

Strange thing that happened was some gas leaked when i started it. I looked down and found some hose to the air housing that was not attached. I dont know if the fuel came out of the hose but i put it back on and it didnt leak anymore.
When i got it running i also noticed white smoke comming out of the tail pipe. Not a whole lot but quite noticable. Not sure what was up there, it didnt go away either. I dont know if something got dirty inside when i pulled off the carbs or what.

[eyeeatingfish]

I tried running my motorcycle on all three settings. As it started to die i changed it, then changed it again nothing remedied the problems. I didnt check the spark plug but they are only a few hundred miles old.

Strange thing that happened was some gas leaked when i started it. I looked down and found some hose to the air housing that was not attached. I dont know if the fuel came out of the hose but i put it back on and it didnt leak anymore.
When i got it running i also noticed white smoke comming out of the tail pipe. Not a whole lot but quite noticable. Not sure what was up there, it didnt go away either. I dont know if something got dirty inside when i pulled off the carbs or what.

[thespirit]

I tried running my motorcycle on all three settings. As it started to die i changed it, then changed it again nothing remedied the problems. I didnt check the spark plug but they are only a few hundred miles old.

Strange thing that happened was some gas leaked when i started it. I looked down and found some hose to the air housing that was not attached. I dont know if the fuel came out of the hose but i put it back on and it didnt leak anymore.
When i got it running i also noticed white smoke comming out of the tail pipe. Not a whole lot but quite noticable. Not sure what was up there, it didnt go away either. I dont know if something got dirty inside when i pulled off the carbs or what.

Hmm. If gas is coming out of that hose and you connected it to the air box, there is a possibility that it's putting more gas into the intake than it should be, causing it to run rich. White smoke usually means there is some water or moisture getting into the engine somewhere. Is your bike water cooled or air cooled?

What did your plugs look like when you took them out? Were they wet, black, white?