Five months ago I bought a 1987 Savage from a guy on Craigslist. It has a fresh coat of paint, but was all in pieces. I have slowly put it back together (I've never done anything like this before), and I've hit a few snags here and there, i.e. a few missing cables, screws, bolts, washers, brake pads, etc.

Anyway, its about 90% done. I spent Thanksgiving weekend wrestling with the stock carb. Here's what I've done so far.

- Cleaned the heck out of the carburetor multiple times.
- White spacer mod, including the Ryca jet kit making the Main Jet 55 and the Pilot Jet 150.
- Straight exhaust. Not sure of the brand because I picked it up at Bobs Used Motorcycle Supply here in Phoenix. (Which is a great place to get used parts)
- Raptor Petcock.
- Cone air filter.
- Float needle is new, as are the gasket, jets, and the screws on the top and bottom of the carburetor.
- Adjusted the mixture screw according the the Progressive Guide found on this site. (Many thanks for that BTW!)
- Vacuum line on the carburetor is plugged.

HERE ARE THE SYMPTOMS
The bike starts and runs perfectly... for about 3 seconds. Then it chugs until it dies, which takes another 5-7 seconds.

I haven't had time to test the Coil or the Stator, yet. Although, I have been told it might be bad fuel.

I tested the fuel flow from the Petcock, and it flows beautifully.

Anyway, any help would be appreciated. The weather here is perfect for a good ride, and I'm anxious to get back in the saddle.

I have two fuel filters, along with a box of spare parts. I have no plans to install them. I do have the original conduit thingy that went from the carb to the air box. I will give that a try. Maybe pick up a gallon of Premium on the way home.

Thanks for the help. Hopefully, I will have an update soon.

Straight exhaust...?  It otta run, I guess,,don't expect good performance or easy to tune.
Usually, when something is throwing me confusing signs, I shoot stuff in the intake. Ill prove it has fuel.
And, yeah, if the gas is iffy, ditch it. Regular is all you need.

I just found this on another Motorcycle Forum. Could be worth a try.

"As is typical of many riders trying to analyze a problelm.............
Don't make this harder than it IS.

The symptoms you describe all point to a high voltage (spark) leak somewhere. Plug wires and boots would be the first choice; if the plugs are old, them too. When damp, the spark jumps to ground somewhere BEFORE reaching the plug. I have even seen it go down a crack in the white insulator of the plug itself.

ONLY AFTER that would I suspect coils next.

It is possible that something in the ignition module (CDI) is sensitive to moisture......but not likely.

Good luck. Keep us posted."

I've never checked that screen. According to the schematic it looks tiny.

To be honest, I've got one friend who says it's electrical. I've got another friend who says its fuel. I've never built a motorcycle before so I am unsure. I will check the screen.

Over the holidays I tried replacing the carb itself with one that is stock. I got the same thing - it started but then sputtered to a stop.

I tried replacing the jets on my first carb with stock jets and it sputtered to a stop.

I am convinced its a fuel issue. It fires up and runs fine for 1-3 seconds and then sputters to a stop.

I bought a petcock from a local dealer, which I thought was the Raptor. It may be one of the cheap Chinese knockoffs I've been reading about on this Forum. I have to check.

The spark plug is new and has no deposits on it and no discoleration. I gapped it according to the manual.

I tried running it without the air filter - same thing.
I have tried it with the stock exhaust - same thing.

I'm running out of things to try.

Steve H wrote on 01/06/16 at 14:52:05:


...unless the issue is in the carb.  If the issue is before the carb then this would certainly prove it, though.

Question:  After it sputters and dies can you start it right back up or do you have to wait awhile?

Steve H wrote on 01/06/16 at 15:32:00:


Very good point.  That it came with two carbs raises questions for me though.  Either the PO was experiencing a similar problem and was experimenting with a solution or the original carb had a problem.  At a glance this certainly has the look of an air/fuel problem.  Coil?  Maybe, but out of all the times coil has been suggested in my experiences, it has been the problem exactly 0% of the time.