82 xt250 running problems need suggestions

[sway07]

So i just picked up a 1982 xt250 that sat for about a year. I put a new oil filter, oil, chain, spark plug, and it ran great for about a week. I took it on a 40 mile trail ride and had no problems. The next time i took it out it would start fine and idle and rev just fine but when I put it into gear it would just just die and there would be no throttle response or anything. Any ideas??

[Ravenwoods]

I've got an 82 XT200 that I just got a month ago. You might want to check to see if the plug for the fuel mixture screw has been removed. There is a screw on the bottom of your carburetor that can adjust the fuel mixture. It will be the Engine side of your fuel bowl. But to discourage owners from adjusting the mixture, the EPA requires the manufacturer to hide it with a little brass plug. The bike is set to run a bit lean so that it can pass the emissions test.

You can take a drill motor with a small drill, about 1/8 or smaller and drill a hole in the brass plug. Be careful not to go too far. Set your drill on slow and make sure you have a sharp drill. When I did this last week, my first drill bit wasn't making any progress even on brass. So I went and got a quality bit from another set and it cut through in about five seconds. You just want to be sure not to start cutting into the fuel mixture screw.

You will need to loosen the clamps on either side of the carburetor so that you can turn it at an angle and get to it with your drill. In the process I discovered that the rubber boot between the air filter box and the carburetor seemed to have shrunk over the last 29 years. I couldn't get the rubber to overlap enough to give a good seal. Eventually I had to remove the air box and boot. I soaked the boot in kerosene for an hour. I reassembled. Also I unhooked the intake manifold from the engine. I clamped the carburetor in to the rubber fittings and then reattached the intake manifold to the engine. Everything works great.

Anyway your mixture might need adjusting. When you get access to the mixture screw, turn in gently all the way in (counting how many turns) but don't seat it hard. Turn it out 2 1/2 turns. See if that helps.