>>Chris,
>>I always find that my throttle gets jammed, very stiff on my Fantic 80,
>>whats the best thing to do?
>>
>>James
>>kenbeales "at" express.globalnet.co.uk

At 09:09 AM 1/26/98 -0500, Chris L Johnson wrote:
>What to do? Maintenance, attention to detail, an inquisitive mind, and a
>willingness to risk learning to work on your own bike, plus dirty finger
>nails.

Not if you wear something like latex rubber gloves! All the hi-tech auto technicians in the better repair facilities wear 'em. :-)

>Take off the throttle pipe assembly, the throttle cable, and take out the
>throttle slide. Inspect, clean and or replace both the throttle pipe and
>the cable. Lube the cable with a light oil before reassembly. Check the
>return spring in the carb. It may be too weak, or sticking. You can do
>this (after you fix the cable) by pulling on the cable with your fingers
>to feel the action of the slide. It should be smooth.

I find that the most common problem with a sticky throttle is a skanky cable. I've seen some crusty items residing on quite a few machines. A little kink, some dirt or greasy sludge, or RUST can be a culprit. I'm amazed at the cables some guys will sport on their bikes just to save the $15 for a new one!

>One very common problem with throttle action is, after a crash, the
>throttle pipe is pushed farther onto the handlebar. The end of the grip
>then will drag on the handlebar tube, making throttle action stiff and
>sticky. Correctly position the throttle with respect to the handlebar,
>by allowing about 1 mm of slack between grip end and handlebar tube.

You can help this problem by putting a set of bar plugs on your bike. No guarantee this will never happen again, put it reduces the chances.

Personally, I don't like to grease the tube/handlebar surfaces. IMHO, it just attracts dirt, and I'm too lazy to clean it on a regular basis. (Cleaning things cuts into my highly prized T.V. time :-)

>Upon reassembly, always check throttle action before you start the bike.

Oh, VERY good advice. Always do this ANY time you dink with things in the carb, throttle, or under the tank. I've gotten a case of the big eye and the "O" shaped mouth, followed by a few carefully chosen explicatives on several occasions. Ya just never know when it will happen. And BTW, at 10,000 rpm, kill buttons are essentially useless, the "put the choke on!" thing doesn't work, and kicking it in gear and dumping the clutch with the front brake locked is a serious WFO throttle faux pas. Your only hope is to yank the hi tension lead off the spark plug and, oh baby, that's an experience everyone should participate in sometime.

>Open the throttle all the way, then let it go. It should snap shut on
>its own and you should hear the slide in the carb hit the idle adjust
>screw stop with a small click. If not, throttle action is not there yet,
>or the slide is not returning all the way, in which case, start back at
>square one. If the throttle is not returning all the way, your bike will
>go screaming off into the sunset when you start it, your eyes will get
>very large and your mouth will take on a distinctive "O" shape.

:O

>Chris (CJ) Johnson
>Director of Engineering,
>College Park Industries, Inc.
>(810) 294-7950 (at CPI), (616) 664-4173 (home office)
>papazit "at" juno.com

Stan McVey

I've found a throttle problems are usually the cable. The first thing I do on a newly accuired bike is to check the cable routing. Most cables run under the tank and thats where people put several tie wraps, you only need one loosly applied so the cable stays put while the tank goes on.

While checking the throttle action put a finger on the idle adjust screw, you should 'feel' the carb slide hit the screw. Also remember to check while at full turn left and right.

Steve