Same thing.....just bought a new 05 FE650 today and tried to rejet the carb because it was so damn lean, it was hard to keep running. And no....I didn't have the hot start knob out. The main jet was a 178 and the pilot was a 45. I raised the pilot to a 48 with a large improvement during starting and warmup....far less backfiring and quitting.....AND the pipes didn't become CHERRY RED after only a few minutes of running!!! Since I was already there, I upped the main to a 180 too.
The problem???? This has GOT to be the most crammed into place carb EVER! I could barely pop it out of its manifold boot and tilt it CCW with the bowl out the right side at about 15 degrees MAX. This was barely enough of an angle to allow access to the bottom drain plug for the main and pilot. And then those small side frame triangulation braces just about prevent any access to the carb at all! The TPS (Throttle Position Sensor) and the red "Hot Start" button REALLY cause extreme interference problems with those frame parts when trying to twist the carb for drain plug access.
Anybody have a better way to rejet? Heaven forbid should I ever need to change the needle or it's clip position!!! Oh....almost forgot...anybody burnt themselves badly yet trying to pop the choke button back in after letting the engine warm up for a little bit??? FAAAACK....that damn choke button is sooooo close to the pipe, I just sizzled the shieeet outa my finger fumbling to shut it off!!!!! WTF, over....... 8O 8O 8O
The problem???? This has GOT to be the most crammed into place carb EVER! I could barely pop it out of its manifold boot and tilt it CCW with the bowl out the right side at about 15 degrees MAX. This was barely enough of an angle to allow access to the bottom drain plug for the main and pilot. And then those small side frame triangulation braces just about prevent any access to the carb at all! The TPS (Throttle Position Sensor) and the red "Hot Start" button REALLY cause extreme interference problems with those frame parts when trying to twist the carb for drain plug access.
Anybody have a better way to rejet? Heaven forbid should I ever need to change the needle or it's clip position!!! Oh....almost forgot...anybody burnt themselves badly yet trying to pop the choke button back in after letting the engine warm up for a little bit??? FAAAACK....that damn choke button is sooooo close to the pipe, I just sizzled the shieeet outa my finger fumbling to shut it off!!!!! WTF, over....... 8O 8O 8O
