Hi,
I've been reading this forum for a while, but now would like to ask my first question. I've got a 2001 Sportrax 250ex, all stock. Has been running great for the 2 yrs I've owned it. Just this weekend it started running rough. At idle and low speeds it seems to run ok, but the choke needs to be on just a little or else it will stall. At higher speeds the choke needs to be pulled out all the way or else the engine will just stall. The gas is flowing fine, plug is in good shape, fresh gas in tank. Could this be a carb in need of cleaning or something totally different?

If anyone has any thoughts, I'm listening.

Thanks,
Eric

 

welcome! do this. Take the carb out and rebuild/inspect it. possibly grit (eww) in the bowl/plugged jet(s) you can do this without taking any plastics off. -10mm open end, needle nose, phillips. just did it to my brother's bike for fuel mixture reasons. lemme know if ya need anything else. REMEMBER to turn off that gas and clean 'er up nice before you even touch a tool to it.

 

Finally got around to taking a look at this problem. I took the carb off, opened it up and it looked clean. Not really knowing what the jets are, I did some research on them. After removing and inspecting them, I noticed the thinner jet (slow jet?) was completely clogged. I used a thin wire from a wire brush to poke through and clean all the holes then soaked in carb cleaner. Put it all back together and the thing runs like new! Very easy job to do, even for a novice. Thanks for the tips.