Hard to start mikuni 22

MiniBike Paul

Well-Known Member
#1
My built clone is hard to start, but runs perfect and idles perfect once running.

120 main jet, 15 idle.

Air screw is out 2 turns, what exactly does it do??

Hope there is an expert who can shed some light on this! Thanks in advance!
 
#2
try adjusting the idle screw it self, I had the same problem and I messed with the a/f screw and the Idle adjustment and got it pretty close.
 
#3
I'm in the same boat right now, got a 22mm mikuni and I just ordered at 130 main and 12.5 pilot jet and i've gotta hook up my throttle cable still.

Right now the carb has got the 95 main jet that it came with and it will only run very roughly with the choke on.
 

125ccCrazy

Well-Known Member
#4
I'm in the same boat right now, got a 22mm mikuni and I just ordered at 130 main and 12.5 pilot jet and i've gotta hook up my throttle cable still.

Right now the carb has got the 95 main jet that it came with and it will only run very roughly with the choke on.
If it will only run with the choke on then the pilot is too small, go with a 17.5, a smaller pilot will run worse, prob wont start at all without the choke being fully closed..
 

vette66_00

Active Member
#5
17.5 pilot seems to run a mild built clone pretty good. 125 on the main. Always starts first pull with choke on. I let it run for about 30 secs before turning the choke off seems to help.
 

MiniBike Paul

Well-Known Member
#6
125ccCrazy and 66 Vette - you guys are absolutely correct.
I spent 1/2 hour on ther phone today with Mikuni's main carb guy. The pilot jet is very involved with starting; going bigger on an engine that will not start is the ticket.
Also, as you guys may know, screwing in the idle air screw (the vertical one just in front of the bowl) limits air so richens the mixture, also helpfut for hard starting, although he cautioned about leaving it out at least a turn.
I ordered 17.5's and a 20 (mine has a 15.) and will see if it fixes the hard starting
 
#7
If it will only run with the choke on then the pilot is too small, go with a 17.5, a smaller pilot will run worse, prob wont start at all without the choke being fully closed..
I'm not sure what size my pilot jet is right now, i just picked the 12.5 as a starting point because that was what was suggested on AGK's website... They came up with a 130 main and 12.5 pilot jet as their best combination.
 

125ccCrazy

Well-Known Member
#8
I'm not sure what size my pilot jet is right now, i just picked the 12.5 as a starting point because that was what was suggested on AGK's website... They came up with a 130 main and 12.5 pilot jet as their best combination.
the 15 stock is either right on or too small in the majority of cases especially if you have any mods.. I'll bet money you put that 12.5 in there it gets worse..

I found a deal on ebay about a week ago, got a pack of 5 pilot jets from a #10 through #22.5 for $9.99 shipped..
 
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#9
Air fuel out 1 1/2, needle one up from middle notch along with a 17.5 pilot and 122.5 main. Worked perfect with my old stock size valve mild ported head and 265 cam. Timing I ran a 6 degree key.

The only problem I every had with starting was when I had an intake leak.
 
#10
the 15 stock is either right on or too small in the majority of cases especially if you have any mods.. I'll bet money you put that 12.5 in there it gets worse..

I found a deal on ebay about a week ago, got a pack of 5 pilot jets from a #10 through #22.5 for $9.99 shipped..
Is 15 the size they all come with?
 
#12
Got mine running nicely today with a 130 main and the stock 15 pilot jet. Needle clip in the middle and i'm not sure what I had the idle screw set at. My problem was it didn't seem to make any power and when I opened the throttle all the way it would quickly die.
 

125ccCrazy

Well-Known Member
#13
Got mine running nicely today with a 130 main and the stock 15 pilot jet. Needle clip in the middle and i'm not sure what I had the idle screw set at. My problem was it didn't seem to make any power and when I opened the throttle all the way it would quickly die.
sounds like too much air and not enough fuel... Do you have good fuel flow? is the float set right?

if those two things are ok try setting the clip on the next lowest groove and see if that helps.... all the ones I ran I always had to drop the clip to get better throttle response..
 
#14
125ccCrazy and 66 Vette -
Also, as you guys may know, screwing in the idle air screw (the vertical one just in front of the bowl) limits air so richens the mixture, also helpfut for hard starting, although he cautioned about leaving it out at least a turn.
On the 22mm Mikuni that screw is not an air screw. Turning the screw out will richen the mixture not lean it out.

With Mikunis there are two different style carbs in terms of the idle screw. If the screw is placed on the outlet side of the carb (towards the engine) such as the 22mm, it controls fuel. So open = more fuel.

If the screw is placed on the air filter side then is is an air screw, so open = leaner.
 

125ccCrazy

Well-Known Member
#15
On the 22mm Mikuni that screw is not an air screw. Turning the screw out will richen the mixture not lean it out.

With Mikunis there are two different style carbs in terms of the idle screw. If the screw is placed on the outlet side of the carb (towards the engine) such as the 22mm, it controls fuel. So open = more fuel.

If the screw is placed on the air filter side then is is an air screw, so open = leaner.
no thats not correct
Mikuni carburetor operation and tuning
 

125ccCrazy

Well-Known Member
#17
Yes,but a TRUE Mikuni Vm series has A/f on the side,the AGK/NR kind of mikuni has the A/f under the carb bowl it will be on the intake side. The Idle adjustment will be on the right side of the carb. Take a look,here is the one 95% of I seen ran on this site.

Affordable Go Karts - Carburetor tuning

Here is the VM
http://www.mikuni.com/pdf/vmmanual.pdf
Right, both are air screws that regulate air mixture, depending if it's on the front or rear of the carb will determine if "IN" or "OUT" is leaner or richer and vise versa, one works opposite to the other.... Neither is a fuel screw, thats what the jets and the needle's jobs are.. I may be wrong but the only carbs I know of that have a fuel screw are diaphram style carbs and not float carbs..
 
#19
After reading this post yesterday I went out and messed around with my carb. Its a 22mm with a 15pilot jet, needle with the clip one notch down from center (richer) and 127ish (its been drilled) main jet. The engine does start hard when cold, meaning about 5-10 pulls. After reading the above, this would leave me to believe the engine was running lean. I started the engine and warmed it up then tried turning the screw in to richen the fuel mixture, but anything less then 1.5turns out the engine would stall. It seemed to run the best at about 2.75-3 turns out, which indicates it is running too rich and a smaller pilot jet is required. This goes in line with AGK's recommendations of a 12.5 pilot jet. I wonder how it is some of you are able to use a 20 and have it run fine?

A check of the spark plug looks as though it is running lean overall, though I have not done a full throttle run and then checked the plug as my road has about 1/2 to 1 inch of sand on it right now and a 50mph run didn't seem like the right thing to do until it gets cleaned up. Its been about 50 degree's here lately. I'll need to buy some jets and start playing around some more, though I'll need to order them because they are hard to find around here, especially the pilot jet.

This all being said, the engine runs good once started and will idle nice and smooth all day long.
 
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#20
what do you do about when taking the bowl off the rubber gasket gets out of size an have to wait till it gets back to size usually a day???? where can i get more of the mikuni 22 bowl gaskets?
 
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