Throttle

I bought my wife a 2003 V Star 650 and ever since we have had it the rpms seem high and when I ride the bike it seems like the rpms won't decel when I shift gears. I have been riding it with some releaf in this problem. The rpms seems to be getting better but not fully. I took it to the shop and they said I had to hjave the carbs cleaned first and then they could get and idea was to what is making the bikes rpms to stay up. I think it's the cable which is why I took it to them in the first, but they want the 350 buck labor to do the carbs first. Agian I took the bike out but it's still having the same problems. I just don't want to be nickle and dimed todeath on this. any help?  

When the bike is idling, if you turn the forks all the way against the stops to either side and the rpm changes without you touching the throttle, then yes the throttle cable is too tight and should be loosened slightly.

regards,
Joe  

Thanks Joe,
I had that problem at first when we brought the bike home, but since then it doesn't seem to be a problem from that stand point. However from the prev. owner I was told that after putting on the new pipes and rejetting the carbs and having been stored,ridden and refueled,sta-bil was used even during riding times.This bike always had sta-bil in the tank. I used fuel additive with jet fuel by STP and it seems to have made some change, but it always goes back to the high rpms.Also the Emisn contl has been disconc'd
Thanks, open for suggestions  

nerm, I ride a V Star 1100 that has aftermarket pipes and the carbs rejetted according to the install instructions for the pipes. The shop that rejetted for me uses Sea Foam religiously...don't know how much better or worse or different it would be from the sta-bil or STP, but it might make a difference. Sea Foam also would help clean the jets.

How log was the bike stored? Where do you live? I live in North Texas and they have anti-pollution additives and ethanol, which degrade in the fuel. Does gas in your area have such additives? One Yamaha service manager told me he's seen some bikes sitting for just one week starting to get clogged jets because of the gas. Even with the sta-bil, etc., don't know haw gas sitting for a long period might gum things up and affect your idle speed.

Might be worth checking out with your bike shop or local Yamaha dealer before aving to dig deeper for a carb job.

Hope this helps and you get the gremlins out of the 650.

Hope you and your wife ride safe, watch out for cagers on cell phones and thank The Man Upstairs for every safe ride.  

Quick question:
Does the bike have the stock pipes?

If they've been swapped out, your bike is probably running too lean, which according the the mechanic at motorcycle cruiser(too late at night to look up article), makes them idle too high sometimes, according to the article, if it's running high, and you give a slight blip on the throttle, and it drops down.... done you've got it nailed.

Seafoam is a cheap cleaning of the carb (compared to a teardown). If it changes anything, it still gives you a direction to go in. I've heard good things about seafoam on a couple of boards, and never heard a @#$%.  

I had a similar problem with an 1100 vstar silverado, carbs were cleaned twice didnt help. The real culprit was a small rubber cap that covers a small brass tube that sticks out behind the carbs. It is supposed to have a rubber plug over it held in place with a wire clamp. I believe its used to sync the carbs. Once I plugged that it stopped the problem.  

On a whim, I'd go with oneluckie on this one.
You have an external source that lets in air, and makes it lean.
Meets all the problems, and is easiest to test/fix (Occam's Razor).