Starting hard... still

[Dieselman7.3]

So my Fj is still have starting difficult. The choke seams to help but I still have to crank it for quite a while and play with the throttle then hold it reved until it's warm up. I have 42.5 pilots 160 air bleeds and 115 mains with uni pods and stock exhaust.  This afternoon I shimmed my needles about .060". It has a split second stumble if I punch it from 2k rpm then smooths out and gains rpms good. When I came home from a 15 mile ride it idled for about 15seconds and stalled. I got it started and idled good with partial choke.  Any ideas? Did I shin my needles too much? The bike still feels hotter then it should (80° f outside) it also doesn't seam to have the power it should (atleast not as much as I remember my 1200 having).  I don't want to take the bike out of commission until the fall but I do plan on sending my carbs to RPM this winter for some much needed love.   Thanks

[ryanschoebel]

My first though, check for a fuel delivery issue. Maybe a bad petcock, pinched fuel line ( the proper routing in very counter intuitive), or simply gummed up carbs causing a lean mixture. I'm by no means an expert though. My thought is that the "choke" is actually an enricher circuit, so it could be sprucing up the fuel mixture, and that could be helping it run better.

[FJmonkey]

At first your description seems like clogged idle jets. 42.5 should be plenty for a good idle. Check the carbs when you add choke. Make sure the cable moves and all choke plungers move. And shims for the needles will not fix an idle issue.

[Dieselman7.3]

I will have to pull them again and try to clean the choke plunges again. I'd think my idle jet is clean as I have only had it in there for a month or so now.  I guess it's time to fully strip them again and inspect them... maybe something in the tank got to them. The fuel line seams to be "kink" wrapped around the hose holders properly. My other thought is the choke isn't fully engaging. How much travel should the plungers have. 

[Old Rider]

I'm not an expert but to me it sounds like it is running too lean.I would check the sparkplugs, if they are clean engine running lean;but your bike is a 1100 and it got that vacumadvance and that will make the plugs look clean that is what i read somewhere on this forum.
all your symptoms is pointing to a too lean condition.
If you find a sparkplug that looks very lean try screwing the mixturescrew half a turn out.and drive a bit then if it still lean make one more half turn out do this until you get a darker sparkplug.

[Dieselman7.3]

I'm not an expert but to me it sounds like it is running too lean.I would check the sparkplugs, if they are clean engine running lean;but your bike is a 1100 and it got that vacumadvance and that will make the plugs look clean that is what i read somewhere on this forum.
all your symptoms is pointing to a too lean condition.
If you find a sparkplug that looks very lean try screwing the mixturescrew half a turn out.and drive a bit then if it still lean make one more half turn out do this until you get a darker sparkplug.

Thank you that is where I was kinda leaning towards that was it was still lean. I'll pull the plugs today and check I'm going out for a decent mileage ride so I should be able to get good readings on the plugs and see if anything works it self out. When the bike cool enough I'll pull plugs and see what's going on.