Idle Question

[chewgravel]

This may sound completely ridiculous, but this is the first 2 stroke I have owned. It is an 01 Suzuki RM125. The bike starts fine. But after the choke is pushed in, the bike will not idle on it's own. I have to stay on the gas a little to keep it running. When I am done with a ride, I don't need the kill switch, just let go the throttle and it dies. Now, I am thinking "that ain't right", but the manual does not cover that issue. It just has a warning about idleing too high. My 4 stroke just has an idle screw that I could lean over and adjust. Not sure if I should mess with something like that on this bike? If there is one, it is not in an obvious place.
What I have checked is that the plug is fine. Not fouled even though I am just learning to find that powerband and stay there. That and the fuel mixture is correct. It seems to run fine. The only other thing that seems NQR is that if I let it stall after riding a bit, it is harder to kickstart. Any advice appreciated. I may sound like an idiot, but promise to learn from your words of wisdom.

 

[Yfox05]

I have a yz125 and it also does that. I am not sure but I think that it is not supposed to idle by itself. You are supposed to stay on the gas and rev it up. I am not 100% sure on this though, I am new at this too.

 

[acanz]

On the carb on my 88 CR250, if you turn the choke knob clockwise it increases the idle speed and counter-clockwise decreases the idle speed if I remember correctly (it does change the idle speed, but Im not sure on the direction you turn it). I dont know if this will work on your bike, I have a Keihin carb and not a Mikuni carb that usually comes stock.

Yfox, it is supposed to idle. Every 2-stroke MX bike I have ridden idles fine if its set up correctly.

 

[biglou]

I've ridden 2strokes (including my own) set up to just barely NOT idle as I was told it gives better off-idle throttle response. More snap. Of course, the caveat is that you have to blip the throttle occasionally to keep it running when not in motion. But yes, you should be able to adjust your idle screw to get an idle out of it if you want.

 

[Rcannon]

The adjustment can be sensative. You really need a manual. If your not careful it is easy to set the airscrew and idle adjustment in a position where they fight each other.

Better yet, go mess with them both. You'll figure it out. LOL

I set my idle fairly high. I then adjust the airscrew to the perfect position. The idle is then brought down to a point where the bike will idle for 15-20 seconds. This never causes any riding issues. If I set the idle too high it will cause a dead spot while accelerating.