My bike has run poorly at slow speeds needing a lot of clutch feathering, since I had it used, a couple of thousand miles ago. Today once at running temp I left the enrichener half out rather than fully in. Wow - what a difference! The bike is smoother and I can ride really slow without it juddering and can take off in 1st without any lag. So do I have a jetting issue and is it harmful to ride with the enrichener half out?( the bike certainly seems happier). Perhaps I need larger jets - not sure what I have.

 

Try drilling out the air mixture screw in the bottom of the carb and adjusting the air fuel mixture. that should fix it for you.

Drew

 

There are many things that could cause your problems. A vacuum leak, intake gasket leak, carb gummed up, fouled plugs, etc.

 

+1 on these ^

...replace the intake seals and check for additional vacuum leaks.

 

I agree, check for vac leaks befoe you go drilling any jets. From whay you say it does sound like you have a fueling issue at lower RPM's, but that does not mean the jetting is off, I mean it could be? How does the bike idle when warm with the enricher all the way in?

 

Bike idles fine when warm. I suspect when the SE stage 1 was done, the bike was not rejetted.

 

I'm pretty sure he wasn't advocating drilling jets. There is a plug over the idle mixture screw that needs to be drilled and removed before you can adjust the idle mixture.

If you have no intake leaks you're probably just encountering a lean condition like every other harley owner since 1990 or so. For a stock bike the cure is usually as simple as replacing the needle with PN 27094-88 and then adjusting the idle mixture. Easy enough that anyone can do it.. good luck

Edit: I've rejetted lots of bikes, some probably even required it. I suspect the Sportster needle would have made enough of a difference for most of them. Anyway, that's where I start now.

 

that's what worked for me

 

Mine wouldn't even idle without the enichener out. It had been sitting for a year and a half or so though and after taking the carb apart and cleaning it, the bike ran fine with the enrichener in. So if the bike sat before you bought it, you may want to take apart that carb and clean it real well. Otherwise, these guys have already given you the right advice.

 

Jack, you're just down the road from Matts Machine Shop! If you need any help sorting out your bike and getting it to run just right I can strongly recommend him. He can also supply any parts you need.