ok guys, does anyone know the valve clearances for an 04 sp 500 ho intake and exhaust???? mabey one of you guys has a book that says...well thats all i was wondering. thanks....could this be the problem that the machine will not idle or has irratic idle??? carb is clean..

 

Tight valves can make it hard to start cold and could affect the idle.

Set them on .004

 

thanks cornbread2 so 4 thousands.....see it takes half choke to start and then it runs but not good idling that is...after it is warmed up whith the choke off it slowly comes down from a high idle of about 1500rpm down to about 850rpm then dies...seems to run good all but idle circuit...pilot jet clean and ok...just seem idle circuit is slow to respond like if you increase the idle with the screw it takes a long time to bring the idle up and it will not idle at an ok speed of 1000-1100rpm....any other ideas guys??? ok thanks...oh yeah and throttle cable tight too...new spark plug with good spark...85hrs

 

You could have a carb problem but if you have never adjusted the valves they need to be checked.

They sometimes tend to tighten up when the engine is newer and after the first adjustment a 500 seems to do fine after that.

You need to adjust the valves the first time around the same time as your first oil change and at least once a year after that.

 

The idle adjustment needs to be set with slack in the throttle cable. About 1/8th inch should do. Adjust the slack and then work on the idle with the adjustment screw on the carb. This should cure your initial ills.

If the machine will still not idle after this adjustment, check all of the vent hoses for plugging. Make sure that all of the carb vent hoses are indeed venting.

Draining the carburetor float bowl will also be of benefit.

Make sure that the boot connecting the carb to the manifold is also snug.

Also check and see that the air cleaner is clean and the box lid is tight.

 

thor, the tension on the throttle cable is ok and I set the speed with the remote screw adjustment on the bottom of the carb it is just slow to react. the carb boot going to the engine is tight with no cracks, air filter just cleaned. and i have taken the carb apart like 5 times now because cleaning the pilot jet used to make it idle ok and now cleaning it does nothing, so there is a bigger problem than that...oh yeah and i have checked the vents and they are clear...i dont know what to do here besides check the valves....well ok thanks guys for your previous input!

 

THought the valves should be set at .006 on both.If they get tighter then it wont idle good or strat easy.

 

Are you sure the idle jet is clean......it is very small, and doesn't take much to clogg it up........


As for adjusting the air/fuel(idle) screw on the side of the carb.......How I do it(doesn't mean its right)......is I turn it a bit(1/4 turn) and then hit the throttle(make sure its in Park or N)......and let the motor rev up a bit(just to change rpm's).....and then it will come back down the the setting you just set on the screw......

 

yeah i mean i really cleaned out the pilot, I let it lay in carb cleaner then put 100 psi to it.....and there is no air/fuel screw on the carb...there is a air screw but it is in the float bowl and it has a brass plug to prevent unautherized access to it. so what should the valves bet set to .006 or .004??? cus i am going to do it...ok thanks guys...

 

Thought that most of the models were at .006, but can only say for sure on mine. That's what the manual says.