That's a tricky one buddy, but just fiddly not complicated. Take the bottom ends off the throttle body, and back out the slack from the middle adjusters, then pull the cable length through and unhook the 'hammers' from the twist grip wheel..then to get them out of the switch block casing, there is a little brass collete on each one down in the bottom, just tug them out and they snap back in.it sounds odd, but look at it, and it will make sense.. again, let me know if you get stuck cheers, Del.
You are too kind mate... thank you for your kind comments... i just try to save folks a few pennies and help them learn a bit at the same time.... take care.. Del.
Hi there badjad, well done for getting involved yourself, and yeah, you will have that problem with no freeplay..you need at least enough so the twist grip wiggles back and forth about a quarter inch without effecting the engine..And, if your bike is fuel injection you cannot adjust your tickover, it is set by the ECU, you can have it reprogrammed by the dealer, but it only drops it by a tiny bit. modern Harleys tick over faster these days, set it too low and you'll loose oil pressure. Del.
I just bought a Harley. I knew very little about them.One thing I did know was, I was not going to take it to a Harley dealer if I could help it. To expensive. I have been watching your videos while I have been getting it into shape. They have been a great help.
yeah, i like to keep mine almost with nil free play, i like the instant feel of the throttle right there... but as most people cant tell when its too tight, the 5mm freeplay is always recomended....if you are in tune with your bike and keep it tip top... then go for about 2mm maximum, it makes it feel much crisper and more responsive... same drill as in this video, do the pull cable first, then just take the slack out of the close cable...
$22 for the kit, and did it all myself! I went to my shop and the guy was too overwhelmed with work and said, it's just 3 screws, you can do it! So, I bought the kit, found the 3 screws and did it in 5 minutes. You dude are KOOL!
Love your videos. They're very helpful and pleasant to watch. This is exactly what I needed to learn. Thanks! That is a beautiful sportster. That air cleaner looks fantastic.
Hi mate, sadly we don't have a carb motor to show this on....but i think you're right, its probably a float stuck down, just take the float bowl off, and check the thing is moving, it may even be worth slipping the whole carb off the bike and cleaning it all out, get a gasket set first, and follow the manual for strip and assembly, its not hard, just take your time and work on a very clean empty bench.. let me know how you get on, good luck, del.
Hi there....my word, you say nice things..lol.. thank you very much for your kind comments, its nice to know that people appreciate the gibberish i post up..lol.. The air cleaner is made by "Kuryakin" and is called the "velociraptor".. it is a new model for the sportster, but has been around a while for other Harleys... take care buddy...cheers. Del.
Greg, you're more than welcome my friend, its a little tip and helps keep our bikes safe and on the road...im glad it helped you buddy...ride safe.. Del.
Hi buddy, by 'gap' do you mean freeplay at the twist grip? If you do, this is correct and as it should be...it demonstrates that the cables have sufficient slack to not be pulling the throttle either open or closed while at rest, but to eliminate the movement in the twist grip you can twist the grip shoe in very slightly from underneath, so it just takes up the movement, but does not impede the snap back...it's the little flower shaped plastic wheel under the switch block!..hope that helps, Del
ReneeKid U guys r awesome & make everything so easy & save us all money thank u!!! I had my panel board put in only 3k miles I’ve be sick after $220 in NY was almost killed they cut off my clutch cable lucky ride 25 years fixed that but now bike is starting high revs then stops quick but Harley dealer almost killed me w/stopping clutch cable from moving, now after winter this high revs on start $220 to messed up my bike up! So thanks for all u do!!!
Hi mate...yes you can, it will opperate quite normally without it...but if your throttle return spirng snaps, then your engine will remain wide open and that could be very dangerous... the closing cable is a safety measure, and there to shut the motor off if anything goes wrong.. so its your call, if its just for image and clean lines then like the saying goes.."what price looks"
Sir! You are a great asset to the world of motorcycles. I am an army vet, which means I'm army smart (actually kind of dumb) I've watched a lot of your videos and I'm always amazed at how I am learning something new. You're the single reason I have saved so much money by doing the work you have taught me through your videos. I wish I could thank you in person for your help and excellent advice on how to.. Anyways a thousand heart filled thank you's to you and your wife for taking the time to show us something realistic and full of genuine factual information! My name is Ryan and I live in Coral Springs FL.
Hi Ryan. Thank you so much for your glowing endorsement sir, It's wonderful to know that we have been able to reach out and help you in so many ways, We started out all those years ago to do just exactly that, there are so many simple, ordinary house keeping jobs you can carry out at home yourself and dont have to pay to have done.. This old video is 6 years ago now, and we've come a long way since then thanks to Patreon support and a dedicated group of Patrons that help us keep the channel going, and keep us reaching out to riders around the world. The videos do take a lot of time, filling every spare hour around our day jobs, So to get such kind thanks is really encouraging, Thank you again my friend, and keep in touch... All the best.. Del. :-)
Moonfleet41 I do have a small question, I think I hear some rattling coming from my right side of the bike, maybe the crank case if I got it named right, just under the air intake and just above the exhaust. What could that be.
Moonfleet41 yes sir, it's a 15 sportster custom, I recently tuned it with the FP3 and put a stage one air filter, I also did a thorough once over of all screws and bolts to make sure that they are tight.
Hi Mark...you are too kind Sir... i just post up my gibberish for others to use if its of help... the bandit was meant to be just matt black, but as you can see, it got a bit out of hand...lol... and Penny says thanks for your lovely comment... check out her channel.. 'PennysPitstop'... cheers buddy... ride safe... Del.
Hi mate, provided you have installed the cable correctly in it's track down on the carbs and it's properly installed inside the twist grip then the slack adjustor just needs to be wound up to take out the extra length - there's one at the handlebar end to fine tune the adjustment, but the bigger one is down on the carbs... just wind it out so it's longer which makes the outer casing longer overall and gives the inner cable less slack and room to move, have a fiddle about with it, good luck Del
Lots of good detail presented by the most articulate instructor... lead mechanic over at Delboys Garage! Oh, got to give some credit for camera girl zooming in tight on that throttle stop shot! :) Good one sir.
Hi mate, yes, very much so, that is way too much slack ... you must have no more than a 1/4" free play at the face of the twist grip, you can achieve this by adjusting the cables, first back off all the slack in the closing cable & then adjust the opening cable so you have the correct slack you need (1/4") - then simply adjust up the return cable to take out the slack, do a final check, making sure it doesn't pinch anywhere & that the throttle is closing completely - hope that helps, Del
Ha ha, thanks gary, you are too kind sir.. Penny Pitsop says thankyou kindly as always.. i did manage to get her to speak on her own video..justy once...it took me all afternoon and about 8 takes..but she got over her nerves in the end...like Matt, she has lots to say beleive me, but not on camera ...check it out mate.. 'PennysPitstop'....
It is, naturally, as is just pulling the clutch in....but there is always a moment of panic when a throttle sticks wide open, and if you're in a bend...well, its each mans choice, what ever works for you.
Use the old time honoured rust removal trick... drop a couple of handfulls of nuts washers in the tank, a pint of water, stick the cap on, and shake the shit out of it....... the metal stuff will rip all the rust off, then once you are happy that its clean enough, empty them all out, and wash the tank out with petrol until its spotlessly clean... works every time mate... good luck, Del.
Thanks so much! Didn't know you would make this video so fast. Can't wait to do it tomorrow. I'm so glad I found your channel on RU-vid. Have a great day my friend.
Hi Rob, ha ha, i think you could turn your hand to pretty much anything, if the amazing results on the RatBird are anythong to go by....and when i win the lotto ill nip over and we can share info on custom building....it'd be like the Teutals with class....!
Thanks mate, another job to do over the weekend I reckon. Not sure if its just me but I don’t think it felt so slack until I recently cleaned all the throttle body and lubed the cables. I like your style, 0 - 1mm sounds perfect to me. P.S I long time ago (a bike ago infact) I bought some goop following your recommendation. This morning I managed to pick up a huge nail in my rear tyre, the goop didn’t work because I still have the goop in the bottle indoors. Lesson learnt, going to use it now.
Delboy, appreciate your vids. I just found that the play in my throttle is really bad. it makes almost a complete rotation before any juice gets to the engine. is this due to too much slack in the return cable?
If its 2000 bike, im pretty sure its a carb' engine, and if the carb is leaking fuel you can buy a rebuild kit that includes all the seals you need and a new diaphram...its not too hard to fit them, they often come with instructions, and if not, the a full run down will be in the Harley manual on how its done.... hope that helps buddy, give the dealer a call and see how much the kit is.. good luck mate.. Del.
Doing videos is getting impossible as I am barely keeping with we-mails these days ... if the cables are sticking then the 'bind' could be in the twist grip, it's common for the wire to jump off the disc in the switch block and sit against the housing & make sure the cables are routed as directly as possible with no tight curves, it's just trial and error, mate, so be patient and take your time ... Del
Thanks man, this was great. I just installed some new grips and needed to loosen my cables, but wasn't positive how to adjust them back. This was a huge help, thanks.
Hi again... do you maybe have the two cables on the wrong way round?... did you remove them and forget which was "Pull" and wich was "Push"..?im not too sure what you mean when you say that the cables wont move the throttle body.are the really slack and flopping about?, or locked up and not moving. Is it also possiblre that you have trapped the cables under the tank and stopped them moving?? ... if you shoot a quick video and send it to me private, i can see better and help you.Del
thank you for this explanation. Even though after I adjusted both throttle and closing cable, I still have a tiny gap... What could be done besides to prevent this gap? Many thanks
Great videos...I've to change my grips and part of it is to adjust my throttle cables, I hadn't a clue till I watched your video ! Very clear and easy to follow ...Thanks man
I knew that the tank was small, but it did surprise me a bit. But I had already suspected that the better economy came from what was left in the tank when the light comes on. Not sure how much it was or how far it would get me, so filled up immediately!
Sir, I like your air cleaner. Where can I get one? Oh and I just wanted to say that I think you have the most easiest to follow instructional video on the subject of mechanicals involving motorcycles on youtube! Keep it up, I'm a fan....cheers from the States.
I have a 2022 Harley XL883N Iron 883 and it has very, very low milage on it. It definitely needs to be adjusted. I am certain my bike has never been adjusted before. I pulled the air filter off to look at the butterfly valve and the valve does not fully open to a flat position but is angled and right there I am losing probably about 30% power. My throttle has way too much free play in it and I read that the ideal free play in the throttle is around 2-3 mm, I measured mine and it is 10 mm so that would be 7 mm to much slack. I am a new rider and I noticed this as I got to know my bike the more I rode it, When I upshift to higher gears, the acceleration is a lagging response when I get back on the throttle.
Thanks, for I just changed out my stock bars on my 1200N to drag bars and was having a time getting that snap back. It seems I would have it right and then come back the next day and the throttle when the bars are turned right would not snap back. But thanks for it is clear now.
Hi buddy.what it sounds like you may have done, is push the entire assembly TOO FAR onto the handlebar, thus causing the closed end of the rubber grip to foul on the bar end... just back off the two torx bolts half a turn and wiggle the whole thing "outboard" or "off the bar" a tiny bit, then nip it up again.this usually cures it.. if that fails mate, check the cables inside the switch block have seated correctly in thier gruves...let me know how that goes, that ought to cure it..good luck, Del.
Your instructional video's are the best buddy! Always learning something new from them, and the cool thing is later down the road if I ever get I bike I will know how to fix them :)
Yeah, goop and slime will always be a contentious issue...it wont work on all punctures, anything over 5mm and its will not plug up... also carry an external plug kit with me too just in case i get a real nasty nail....
I am going to try this tomorrow. With my little hands when I squeeze the brake I seem to rev the throttle and am having trouble stopping because there is no play what so ever. I will let you know how it turns out. looking for a video on adjust the idle also.
Yeah, its always a worry..easiest way to qualtify your reserve mileage range is to fill a can with a couple if litres of fuel, strap it on the bike behind you...then once the light comes on, zero your trip meter, and deliberately run it dry...you should get about 40 miles or so...then use your spare can t get you to a garage....then for ever after you will know how far you have once tyhe light pops on.....easy aye..?
thanks mate, bought another bike idle was rough , thought i would adjust throttle on carb the screw was adjusted to the full. Slack in the cables too much to tell the difference ...... thanks
Your videos are great. I love the Bandit survival bike and that Harley is gorgeous. Keep the vids coming. Subbed a few days ago watching the bandit skrimmage
Thanks for explaining things! Still learning. At least, now I know what to look and listen for on my bike. Would it hurt to keep the rubber cable covers lubricated and protected from weather by using something like Armorall or something?
well done Patrick, we love to hear that people have made use of the videos and learned a bit too.....ride safe my friend and thanks for watching... Del.
Delboy thanks for the video! You have saved me loads of time and money! I ran into a bit of a problem on my '08 Nightster. I installed a handlebar riser as well as some new grips. I re-adjusted the throttle and idle cable, went to replace the housing cover, and when I went to test the play on the throttle I realized that the housing was restricting the throttle from spinning. When I opened the housing up again it rolled free, and restricted again when I re-tightened. Any suggestions? Love the videos! - mike
Great vid! Just wondering if u have something about idle adjust on 04 883 Sportster? Mine has a "carb fart" when I crack on the throttle and sometimes at low RPMs when riding. Any ideas at all??? Please help!
delboy I been watching your video's and they been most helpful to me lately my question to you is I own a 97 883 Hugger Sporty with drag bar's and 4" curved riser's I am changing the throttle and idle cable's the one's that are on the bike aren't correctly the right length they have lime 6+ one my bike now would it be best to go back to stock or go 2+ than stock? help
+Jesse Littleton Hi Jesse, am guessing if you are running 6+ now they are too long?? The trick is to disconnect the carb end of the cables and hold them against the carb 2" or 4" closer to gauge if you still have enough slack... as long as you can turn lock to lock without them pulling and affecting the throttle, that's enough... just a thought, sometimes, folks who can't afford new cables, but have too much slack, often just route them round the left side of the headlight to 'eat' up the extra length... give it a go, could be a free way to fix it !
Moonfeet41 in response to your information on routing my overstock cable's they were rerouted by my to factory routing and the cable's are still to long I have zip ties on them now to keep them from flopping in the wind I am wanting to cut down to stock or just +2 or stock for my Sporty money is not the case just finding the right length of cable go go with ty for your in put and info on this
This is always a contentious issue, the Wife's sporty 1200 gives her 80 miles from brimm to light, and thats riding slow like she does... remember they give the tank size in US gallons, and UK gallons are bigger... there are 4.54 liters to a gallon, and you have 4 litres in reserve, so the light somes on after just 8 litres (or 1.76 gallons), which is 56MPG... so not so bad after all aye?... the last word is mate, they are just a small tank, thats sportsters for yah im afraid...!
Great explanation as usual buddy, I guess it's pretty much the same method on a Suzuki? Might need to do mine soon as there is getting slightly more than 5mm they recommend.
Hello Dell, Firstly i Want to thank you for all your great videos. i was in the market to get a motorcycle this summer and came across your channel and found a lot of help on suzuki bandit. so i just bought a suzuki bandit 600. first thing i did is clean out the carbs coz they were gunked up badly. i have done all that. NOW, when i put the throttle cable back on the carbs there is a huge slack in it. how do i fix that? any help will be appricaited. thanks man.
I put drag bars on my '11 nightster. i noticed the throttle grip was very tight on the bar. i put some wd40 its sliding a little better not much. i loosened both the cables to mkae it easier to install grip. bolt everything up. adjust throttle cables and the grip just sticks completely open. all the slack is taken out of both cables but the grip won't snap back at all not even a cm.
Often you can trap the wire in the twist grip or sometimes push the switch block on too far so the rubber hand grip bares against the bar end and holds it from moving ... check all that first and see how you go...
Hi mate have got myself a 94 xlh custom sportster which i am converting to a trike learning so much from your videos but I have a bit of a problem i put 15inch apes on 4 inch riser got long cables but had a job firstly getting them on and when on with them adjusted right off they seem very tight and the throttle don't return is it me doing it wrong or if the cables are too long chould that be the problem sorry its a bit long my first time doing this sort of thing cheers mate
Hi Gary, sorry for the reply being late... its been a busy day.. Ok, if the throttle is all connected up correctly at the carb, and there is plenty of slack in the cables, the next two things to check are " Is the twist grip itself binding on the bar end...you may have pushed the twist grip on too far and made it rub against the bar... to test this, loosen off the throttle housing and move it a bit off the bar... then see if it snaps back..... the second thing could be a kink in the cables or maybe they are not routed correctly.... but try the grip first and see if that works mate... good luck with it.. Del.
I was wondering what that "flower thing" does. I have a 2000 sportster 1200cc and it leaks fuel at the accelerator diaphragm. I know its a stretch to ask how to replace the diaphragm, but, any suggestions?
Howdy sir. I have been watching your videos for a quite a while now. Very very informative. I have a question for you sir. So I had some work done to my harley. New cams, ported heads, new intake, new exhaust, and a power commander. I had it put on the dyno to tune it properly. It ran and still does run like a raped ape. That being said there is an issue. Before i take it into the dealership. I wanna ask y'all if you are having idle problems on ur 48s. Mine is a 2014. I put the bike in the run position and the fuel pump runs and runs and runs. It continually primes the system. It will not shut off unless I shut off the key and put the bike in the off position. If i don't let the system prime for at least 10-15 seconds and start it, the bike idles way way way way too high. It will not come back down unless I come to a complete stop. I have no idea what the problem could be. Any help?
+amessa83 And its a 2014. I have heard there is some issue now with the ECU being lower voltage or something. I also had the front indicators taken off. I don't know if that would have an effect. Please advise.
+amessa83 Hi buddy, sorry to hear you are having problems, and sounds like you spent some serious mioney on your Harley... I can't really tell immediately what your problem is without doing some tests on the bike, as any mechanic would have to, but in logical terms, firstly, you have made a lot of changes to the motor and that changes it's fuel requirements... so the reason your fuel pump is continually priming could be a few things... Between the fuel hose and the injectors you have an induction module, and after the injectors, a pressure regulator... if you have changed the fuel requirements to the engine hugely, it's possible you've out run your ablity to feed the engine, basically making it 'too hungry' for the pump settings. The only way to tell is to do a 'fuel pressure' test and only the dealer will keep these gauges to do such work and find out whether you are achieving full pressure from the pump... basically, the pump stops priming when it reaches sufficient pressure to feed the engine and sounds like, for some reason, it's not happy, so only way to check is to check your factory settings against the requirements of your tuning work... I would think the best person to speak to first would be the guys at the Dyno who set your bike up! Hope that helps, Del
Hello sir well i finally got it fixed. It was something just so simple and stupid as it usually is. The damn fuel pump was plugged into the O2 sensor. The O2 sensor was deactivated as my pipes are just straight now and the guy who did the work plugged the fuel pump into that location. Needless to say it runs way better now. Fixed the idle problem and the pump problem instantly. Im just lucky that it didn't blow up I guess. LOL Thanks for the heads up and good looking out sir.
Probably not quite the right place, but I have a question about fuel economy. I recently did a long drive and was surprised that after just over 100 miles after filling up my warning light came back on. I didn't expect to do 300 miles on a tank, but thought it'd be better than that as the general guideline states 51mpg (which should give me about 150 miles). Is this normal? Or the engine needs looking at, or possible wasteful riding on my part (quite possible)?
Hey Delboy, I have a 84 Harley sportster and when i turn the fuel on it starts dumping fuel. I'm pretty sure it's the float that stuck. Do you have any videos on how to fix this issue? Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Hey Philip. You dont need to take it off completely, you just need access to the cables to remove the carb end......the cables run along the right side of the frame top tube. so just remove the tank mounting bolts, lift it up by the front as much as you can, and you should be able to access the cables... you may need to drop the fuel supply hose off if you need a bit more lift. Hope that helps mate.. good luck. Del.
i check the throttle body the cables are loose on the throttle body. the cables cannot pull the throttle body at all. how do i make the cables tighter around the body? is there anything i can do besides going to harley. thank u and please help. i pulled the grip out a little i tightened the throttle adjustment cables at the grips.
Hey Cody.. the cable 'outer sleeve' needs to get longer to take out slack and tighten them up....best thing, so you can learn how it works and see for yourself... back the jam nuts right off, then turn the screw at the top of the cable both ways by a big amount and see how it effects the throttle.....this way you'll teach yourself how it works.. then once you get it... just set the adjustment where its right..!
No not the return cable that will prevent it closing, but that should be adjusted correctly anyway, make sure the pull cable is running freely and not binding, could be curled or kinked to sharply, check the cables are in good condition as well.
Hey there. Love your as they have helped me out a ton and saved me a boat load of money. I have an issue with my throttle and made a short video showing the problem. Any help would be great. 2004 Road King Throttle Issue
+NutMendoza Hi there.. why do you feel you need to clean your throttle body?, is it black and dirty for some reason?, or are you doing it for some routine reason..? ive never actuallt 'cleaned' a throttle body... a carb yes, but not an injector body..!!!!
+Moonfleet41 Just for routine, but, i think there are many points i need to learn, because the Harley´s nearest agency is about 500km´s (320 miles) far and it´s difficult for me to give the proper maintenance and some basic stuff i need to do it my own. I´m from Mexico. Can i contact you by FB?
+NutMendoza Hi again, there's no need to clean throttle bodies, modern petrol does not leave dirty deposits and throttle bodies don't store petrol like carbs do... don't over think it buddy, just follow your maintenance schedule every 5-6,000 miles... we have many videos on servicing, just check out our playlists !
I have an aftermarket carb on 04 sportster and there is too much slack in the return cable and standard adjustment won’t cut the mustard what can I do.
OK, you can get custom cables made, but in the mean time, an effective fix is to extend the outer cable tube to take up some of that excessive slack.. you'll have to make it yourself, try using a cable tie round the exposed steel wire where the cable meets the stop at the carb... that should hold the outer housing back enough to absorb the slack.. it's a bit of a ghetto fix, but it should work until you can have a cable made to order.... Hope that helps..!
for a carbureted bike you adjust the throttle for wide open and the idle cable for closed and slack. The advice given here is geared toward the fuel injected bikes, and if followed you will not be able to achieve wide open throttle as the throttle cable is not adjusted to allow for it.
