FAO: Those who have disconnected the choke

[tedmagnum]

I think disconnecting the chokes isnt really good for the bikes long term health..

The chokes work fine as long as you service, clean and grease them !! They are a **** design but they do work is serviced correctly.

I've had 3 AT's and never had a choke problem.

Having no choke means you are riding the bike when it isnt properly warmed up unless you leave it idling for a friggin lifetime.

The extra rich mixture also helps to lubriate the bore on first firing although this is admitedly negligable.

chokes are there for a reason !! And a very good reason.

[jarl]

I think disconnecting the chokes isnt really good for the bikes long term health..

The chokes work fine as long as you service, clean and grease them !! They are a **** design but they do work is serviced correctly.

I've had 3 AT's and never had a choke problem.

Having no choke means you are riding the bike when it isnt properly warmed up unless you leave it idling for a friggin lifetime.

The extra rich mixture also helps to lubriate the bore on first firing although this is admitedly negligable.

chokes are there for a reason !! And a very good reason.

I don't understand? How does having a choke warm the bike up faster? And I was under the impression that any richening of the mixture was bad news as far as the seals are concerned, and very bad news for lubrication as petrol strips the oil rather than aiding it (diesel lubricates, not petrol)

[chronyx]

Agreed jarl. If the bike will run without choke, and you don't leave it ticking over for ages, that's the best thing for it.


Have taken the carbs back off my bike today. Diaphrams seem to be OK. Took the pilot screws all the way out and checked, the little washer and rubber O-ring are still in place...

[tedmagnum]

I assume Jarl and Chronyx have both disconnected their chokes...

You both know what the choke does i'm sure !

During the summer, sure no problem.. The fuel will vapourize well but during the winter, having no choke is like running an extra lean mixture on startup. The mixure will NOT BE CORRECT !!

If your bikes will start and run fine with no spluttering and coughing with no choke in the middle of winter, then you're carbs are incorrectly set up.

Your engines and carbs were to designed to run at an optimum range of temperatures. The choke is to compensate the mixture until your engine is at that temperature.

It will help warm up the bike quicker because you will be running an optimum mixture from the start and not waiting for the engine to get hot enough to run correctly. Sure you can ride off utilizing the mainjet but then your oil will most likely still be cold which has it's own issues, as Im sure you know.

"The extra rich mixture created by the choke will damage seals" ???? Which seals are you talking of ? Surely not the valve or carb seals ??

Lubrication of the bore was incorrect terminology by me. I meant that the mixture will be lean in the cold.

Sure, overuse of the choke will strip the bore of oil as it's lubricated from the bottom up but this is negligable and you should NEVER leave you choke on longer than necessary anyway. Only a fool would anyway ???

I can point you in the direction of some further reading on the subject if you would like ????????


As i said, it's negligable in the fist place but you did ask

Best regards,

[GSPD750]

I assume Jarl and Chronyx have both disconnected their chokes...

You both know what the choke does i'm sure !

During the summer, sure no problem.. The fuel will vapourize well but during the winter, having no choke is like running an extra lean mixture on startup. The mixure will NOT BE CORRECT !!

If your bikes will start and run fine with no spluttering and coughing with no choke in the middle of winter, then you're carbs are incorrectly set up.

Your engines and carbs were to designed to run at an optimum range of temperatures. The choke is to compensate the mixture until your engine is at that temperature.

It will help warm up the bike quicker because you will be running an optimum mixture from the start and not waiting for the engine to get hot enough to run correctly. Sure you can ride off utilizing the mainjet but then your oil will most likely still be cold which has it's own issues, as Im sure you know.

"The extra rich mixture created by the choke will damage seals" ???? Which seals are you talking of ? Surely not the valve or carb seals ??

Lubrication of the bore was incorrect terminology by me. I meant that the mixture will be lean in the cold.

Sure, overuse of the choke will strip the bore of oil as it's lubricated from the bottom up but this is negligable and you should NEVER leave you choke on longer than necessary anyway. Only a fool would anyway ???

I can point you in the direction of some further reading on the subject if you would like ????????


As i said, it's negligable in the fist place but you did ask

Best regards,

Good post Ted. That's true, a choke is designed to be used for a 'minimum' amount of time due to the oil issue. I find my AT won't start without the choke on a chilly morning....or just barely. It's just too much of a strain on the starter and battery circuit.

I asked the question earlier in this thread on 'why' you would 'not' want an operating choke and the consensus seemed to be that it's just too much of a pain to maintain the cables and plungers by keeping them lubricated and free due to the salt enviroment you riders have to live with.

To compound it all you have those fiddley little plastic nuts on the plungers that easily break if your ham fisted and that can get costly. The answer IMO is that it needs to be added to one's maintenance schedule or whenever the tank is off to lubricate these plungers...that simple.

[tedmagnum]

Good post Ted. That's true, a choke is designed to be used for a 'minimum' amount of time due to the oil issue. I find my AT won't start without the choke on a chilly morning....or just barely. It's just too much of a strain on the starter and battery circuit.

I asked the question earlier in this thread on 'why' you would 'not' want an operating choke and the consensus seemed to be that it's just too much of a pain to maintain the cables and plungers by keeping them lubricated and free due to the salt enviroment you riders have to live with.

To compound it all you have those fiddley little plastic nuts on the plungers that easily break if your ham fisted and that can get costly. The answer IMO is that it needs to be added to one's maintenance schedule or whenever the tank is off to lubricate these plungers...that simple.

Exactly.. It just has to be accepted as "Nature of the beast"...

I hate doing valve clearances and oil changes.. Doesn't mean I shouldn't !

The choke job isn't even that difficult. Maybe i've been lucky, but i've had 3 Africa twins with no problems just by cleaning the choke once a year.

[chronyx]

Well, it still doesn't want to start easily, so I'll re-fit a choke cable, and if it's still mucking about, it's going on eBay.

[tedmagnum]

Well, it still doesn't want to start easily, so I'll re-fit a choke cable, and if it's still mucking about, it's going on eBay.

LOL... Harsh !!

[lootch67]

I've disconnected mine. Fuel consumption is now the best it has ever been. Still starts very easily first thing and idles on it's own after a couple of seconds. Definitely not going back to the agro of trying to keep the cables clean.

[Lord Stig]

I still don't regret disconnecting mine no matter what the detriment to the long term life of the engine. As Lootch67 says, the economy is better than it ever was even when new (may be other reasons for that of course), and the hassle (and cost in parts as the plastic nuts eventually shatter) just isn't worth it for me. If you use your bike as heavilly as I used to (40,000 miles a year) that extra work and hassle counts when all the other work is taken into account. I used to spend at least half a day every weekend just doing maintanance, and life's too short for that.

Nonetheless, I do agree that high maintanance chokes are just one of the quirks of the AT and TA, and it's a quirk that needs either to be put up with or changed. In the absense of an easy change (like junking the cables for a carb mount solution) junking them works for me, although it won't for everyone. If there is ever a successor to the Twin it will have EFI, so this shouldn't be a problem...