How often do carbs need to be cleaned?

[womp126]

Hello all, I recently purchased a 97 Magna that had been occasionally ridden by the previous owner (2nd) who had owned the bike for 2 years.  The bike has 21K miles.  I have never ridden another Magna, so I have nothing to compare how mine is running to.  It starts fine, idles fine, feels sluggish until it hits 5k RPM's then pulls quite hard.  I have tried to hold the idle at 3k in neutral, but it bounces above and below without holding there.  Is this an indicator that I should have the carbs cleaned or just normal?  I have ran seafoam in my last tank.  Thanks in advance for any help.

[hootmon]

The slow jets seem to be fine by your description (which is the problem spot on Magna's)
I'd SeaFoam it a few more tanks and then every once in a while after that... the lul you discribe is normal for a full stock Magna which was set up on the lean side.. if you want to fix it, go to 105/42 jets and mod the exhaust as discribed In The tips & tricks section of the main page..

Oh... And welcome from Floriduh...

[LIMagna]

A carb sync may be in order too but otherwise what Hoot said. 

[Jerry G Turner]

If you take it to have the carbs cleaned at a dealer it will cost you about 700 bucks the tips section explains how to do it yourself it's a big job but can be done in a couple of hours. If the seafoam doesn't make it better you might want to re-jet it. It makes a lot of difference in the way it runs.

[lragan]

A K&N filter, modified pipes, and rejetting the carbs will do wonders for that "flat spot" from about 2.5K to 5K on the torque curve -- and it should reduce or eliminate popping on deceleration, too.

I see you live north of Ft. Worth.  Watch the board for a wrench session, gather the parts before hand, and show up on the appointed date.  Folks can help you through these improvements.  It isn't hard, especially with someone looking over your shoulder who has done it a few times.

I will probably hold a wrench session in the Austin area sometime in early May or late June, if you care to come all the way to Central Texas, but your best bet is closer to home.

[womp126]

Thanks all, I was hoping that it was the flat spot.  I will snag a V&H exhaust and DD Jet kit and keep on watch for the wrench session.

[lragan]

Thanks all, I was hoping that it was the flat spot.  I will snag a V&H exhaust and DD Jet kit and keep on watch for the wrench session.

Also recommend a K&N filter.

[Magnum Magna]

 exhaust:  some people like loud pipes but others go back to stock.
I am OK with my simple modified pipes and there are louder modes then my pipes.
I really like Terry's mod a little loud but sound very good.
So what I am saying if you buy new pipes save them and if you are happy with your new pipes sale them people are always looking for good stock pipes.

My bike new jets simple modification on exhaust. I don't notice a bad flat spot at 3k to 5k

[Smoked U]

My own experience with Seafoam and my V65 Magna:

I was suspicious that the fuel circuit was clogged up on Ms Vee after I bought her. I was scared to pull the carbs and ran Seafoam through it for 4 months (every tank). One day came off a stop at an intersection, hit second gear rolling hard on the throttle and "whoosh" she almost left me sitting in the road. I can't say that Seafoam was the only thing that cleared this pesky problem up, but it is where I would lay my bet in this instance.

I run Seafoam in about every 4th tank in all my bikes. It is cheap insurance in my maintenance routine.

Until you pull your carbs, I would recommend running some in every tank of gas. A can of this stuff goes a long way. No guarantees, but again if it solves the problem in the meantime, you just saved yourself a bunch of hair pulling.

I do carb rebuilds now after going through the learning curve. An experienced hand is what you need the first time and it is very rewarding to know you did it yourself.