fixed my fuel issue, ever seen head pipe turn orange?

[conig]

OK, so last week I installed my cobra pipe and took my trike out for 2+hours for a ride on some trails. Do to the overload of fuel it would not idle but would fire with a simnple kick and run very strong.

While riding it the paint on the first 4 inches of the headpipe burnt off, I didn;t think anything of these, remember this is setup with a ton of fuel black smoke when ever on the thouttle etc. a couple stumbles from being to rich

So last night I take my carb apart to move the needle clip up to lean myself out a bit a notice something. When I rebuilt the card I had installed a high flow jet were the lowflow goes and a high flow jet in the correct position. This explains my fuel issues. Corrected the jet issue and buttoned her back up.

Installed the carb and kicked her over, I had not yet connected the air box. OK now I have idel, rev the engine a cuple times and everything seems good, smooth rev. I couldn;t take it for a ride given were I live and the time of night. So its idleing and doesn;t seem to be lean and I LOOK DOWN IN THE DARK AND NOTICE THE FIRST 4 INCHES OF TH4 HEADPIPE ARE ORANGE. WTF.

I figure my plug is to hot, so I go to a stock d8es-l NGK let the engine cool, after about 5 minutes of sitting this orange pipe is cool to the touch. Fire her up again and cut the lights out, after a short period of time, I can see the orange glow again. WTF. turn the trick off and call everyone I know with random engine experience no one s has seen this.


Does anybody have the cobra Quiet series on there big red? weird thing is it only turned colors were it burnt the paint off running rich as heck(which should have kept it cooler) Is this just the pipes material? you can't see it at all during the day, but working by flashlight after it was turned off I noticed it.

I'd like to go riding saturday but want to be sure something isn't really messed up.

help out guys, like you always do.

[almac16]

I've seen cobra and stock headers do this, usually not so quickly but definitely after some riding.

[Chris McDaniel]

I didn't catch what model 3 wheeler this is, but you don't have a major problem. The mixture screw on a 4 stroke is called a fuel screw and the one on a 2 stroke is called an air screw. Your bike has too rich of a mixture which will make the headpipe glow red hot. Try backing the screw out in half turn increments, in between adjustments snap the throttle till it is as responsive as you can get it. Start out by, turn the screw all the way in till snug, then back it out 1 1/2 turns and start adjusting from there. Remember this, the colder outside the richer you want to go, the hotter it is the leaner you should go, turning in is making it richer, and turning it out is making it leaner. The say if you aren't adjusting it, it isn't right.

[conig]

thanls guys.

oh and sorry its a 1985 es 250 big red.

[trikerider2oo7]

thats 250ES Big Red not es 250...dont mean to sound like an @$$hole but just thought i would learn ya somethin

[conig]

actually I new that but work a late shift and havn't had enough coffee yet. dont think your an a hole either.

[OldSchoolin86]

I didn't catch what model 3 wheeler this is, but you don't have a major problem. The mixture screw on a 4 stroke is called a fuel screw and the one on a 2 stroke is called an air screw. Your bike has too rich of a mixture which will make the headpipe glow red hot. Try backing the screw out in half turn increments, in between adjustments snap the throttle till it is as responsive as you can get it. Start out by, turn the screw all the way in till snug, then back it out 1 1/2 turns and start adjusting from there. Remember this, the colder outside the richer you want to go, the hotter it is the leaner you should go, turning in is making it richer, and turning it out is making it leaner. The say if you aren't adjusting it, it isn't right.
Chris, that screw only adjust your mix from idle to just a little off. The needle does the mid and the jet does your top end. If it was over heating and turning the pipe colors i doubt it was from idling. Most likely the whole set up is lean. He opened up the exhaust for more flow and now with the extra air flow he's needing more fuel.

conig, becareful Like your too lean now. Get a bigger main jet and move that needle back up a notch. Too much fuel is the last thing a glowing pipe could be from.

[conig]

thanks thats what I was thinking. I tohught about a rich condition turning the pipes colors and it bothered me. an exhaust gas probe gets hotter with a lean condition.

I didn';t really realize it until I looked at my EGT gauge on the way home in my truck.

[conig]

another weird thing is the engine itself doesn;t seem to be getting hot, just the pipe. I can touch my hand to the cooling fins without getting burnt.

oh, how about trying out a colder plug by one or two stages?

anyone know what number I need?

[Dammit!]

Just a wild gues but, possibly it needs a valve adjustment?

Edit: I had an '81 XL100 dirt bike that did that by the way. You could light cigerettes on it.

[conig]

great something I have never done......let me see if I can fund it in the scanned files at 3wheeler.org for a 250sx.

[conig]

if the valves were out of alignment wouldn't the trike run rough? or sputtery?


It runs perfectly smooth.

Also what I don't understand is with a hghflow jet installed in the low flow position I was running rediculously rich, looked like a semi truck leaving a stoplight. black cloud puffing from the pipe. extremely too much fuel. but the paint still burnt off in the spot thats turning orange. which makes me think it was doing it then.

does anyone think it could be that the pipe may use a lower grade of metal? I've heard of other peoples cobra pipes looseing paint in the same area or the whole pipe.

if it wasn;t dark I never would have noticed and its pretty faint.

[83185s]

hmm sounds like my prob with the 185s...all it does is overheats..i can get about 5 miles before it does it the first time..like cruising speed half throttle in 5th...u know not fast or slow and after about 5 miles it will automatically shut off and then i wait about 5 minutes to cool it down then i start it up and get maybe 3/4 mile then it does it again..its makin me really mad but i dunno what to do about it i try makin it richer but it does the same thing and i cant hit the gas or it will die but when i turn it lean it makes it get hot quiker and i can hit the gas all the way but sometimes it will like auto matically turn the choke to full..i dont have to touch it it just does it..what could that be for mine...the same prob hes havin

[conig]

mone hasn't overheated and shut down jet though. I don't beleive mine to be heat, hopefully we will both figure it out.

[Chris McDaniel]

Conig, sounds like you know alot, tell me, how do valve fall out of alignment? and how did you get your high flow jet in the low flow position? I don't have a tractor style 3 wheeler, maybe you have a rare carb that nobody knows about, the kind that takes special skills to work on. Maybe your trike is a diesel and the smoke is normal? Hows that reverse gear?