Hey guys.. we love our two strokes.. but boy are they finicky!
I've got a 89 quadracer 500..been running good and starting 1st/2nd kick..but now the only way i can start it is by push starting, and even that way its hard to start.. I'm running my mix at 40:1.. and the only thing i get out of a kickstart is an occasional backfire that wants to tear my leg off...
i also noticed that when I get it started via push start, the bike won't idle down by itself.. i need to bog the motor down using the clutch to get the idle to drop.

any ideas if it could related to the hard start?
I definately have gas and spark or else it wouldn't start when i push start it. got a new plug also... airfilter is k&n and clean...running an FMF pipe..

Thanks guys!

 

Sounds like the health of your motor is deteriorating..

The high idle usually means a lean condition, either jetting or more likely since it's hard starting, a leak... crank seal or ???
have you had it apart lately?
Lean motors are hard to start also... does it still have good compression?

Do a leak-down and find the problem... if you keep running it that way, it won't last long.

 

pull starting usally means low compression . do a compression check to see what it is . like dune said ... the not idleing down is an air leak somewhere . and a lean condition . and again like he said if it need to be pull started .. dont keep doing it cuz it wont last much longer and then you take a chance of destroying the tranny .

 

thanks guys for all the replies.. the idle down really isn't too bad and only occasional.. im really thinking air leak somewhere.. i'm going to pull the reeds and check them.. if they are cracked/missing that would cause problems too right?

i'm also thinking my starting technique might need work.. its like 20 degrees here in mass right now, and i've only had this thing for a little while and it was during warmer times... i'm also not real used to kick starting 2 strokes.. the last one i had was 125 and that was a few years ago.

this is what i'm doing to start it:

1) fuel on
2) choke on
3) push just past tdc (kick is about level with foot peg)
4) kick

i'm not doing any priming kicks or anything.. any thing im doing wrong?