My '90 1000f has never liked traffic, especially when it gets hot. I generally try to avoid it but living around Chicago I just can't. Last Friday while I was about 50 miles from home it started up it's old tricks again:

I'm cruising along the highway w/ rush hour traffic doing 65 mph, red light ahead, traffic stops rather abruptly. Throttle off immediately, clutch in and the engine dies. Downshift to 4th, bump start and running just fine. (Temp gauge normal, fan is coming on when it should). This keeps happening, finally I'm fed up and dial the idle to 1500 and it stays running although I notice the dash lights and headlight will intermittently grow very dim and flicker at idle.

Get home thinking my brand new r/r was frying. Hook up the voltmeter and all is good: 12.5v @ 1100 rpm, 14.5 @ 2700. Crap.

Remove side panels, let her idle... fan comes on and it immediately dies. It does this twice. For some reason I pull my new aux charger off the battery (it wasn't charging anything). Idle, fan comes on, idle stumbles but stays running. I'm not inspired with confidence at this point.

If I listen carefully at the carb boots I hear faint clicking. (Carb sync check??) Spray with carb cleaner and no spike in rpms, hopefully no air leaks.

So, I've cleaned the carbs a lot. Just did about two weeks ago and replaced all the orings. New NGK plugs last week. New air filter last season, cleaned two weeks ago.

I've never synced the carbs or adjusted the valves. Bought this around 25k, currently at 33k. Could this just need more routine maintenance or am I missing something abnormal?

 

Sounds like a bad battery to me. How old is it and have you done a load test to it, it might be showing the correct voltage but can't deliver the required amperage. If the trouble starts as soon as the power hungry fan kicks in it's an electric issue for sure. Take the batt to a battery shop or a service station/repair shop and have it load tested.

 

It's a new Yuassa gel. I suppose a load test can't hurt.

 

As in my recent post, having similar issues after fitting K&N air filter.
My battery is a Motobatt, starts first time every time, and my RR is a finned one, only a couple of years old. Fan speeds up when headlights switched off. Yesterday bike died at traffic lights with fan and headlights on, but it has also done it with lights off.

 

I was having the same problem before rejetting.

 

Granted I don't have a dyno, but I think my jetting is passable. My plugs are nice and tan. I'm running 42 slows, stock needle position and 130 mains. I may back down on my mains though.

edit: on second thought maybe I'll just shim the needles a bit, I used to run two washers but yanked them for mpgs. Maybe one would do the trick.

 

check your float levels, think you have one or even two running smidge too low starving fuel to the motor
or partially blocked float valve screens - if checking the float levels may as well clean the screens right there
too. Pilot jets and pilot jet needles always should be cleaned anytime you pull a set.

I've gotten so used to pulling carbs I can thoroughly clean and reinstall a set in under an hour

But with 3 Hurricanes - I must confess I have 5 sets of spares - 3 full and two broken down for parts

Inline fuel filters can never be recommended enough imo

 

Good idea there, and I have to sympathize... I've had these off about 5 times this season and utilized my spare bank quite a bit! Floats were good last time but I never specifically cleaned the screens. Good call!

 

It's the screens, levels and pilots that would be my priority

 

Well Sprock I wish I could say you were right but she's back to her old self. I cleaned everything out last night and honestly it's really responding nicely now. Throttle response smoothed out a little and it feels as good as ever under acceleration but it keeps cutting out during deceleration. It REALLY feels electrical, as if I'm just hitting the kill switch. I'm going to have the battery load tested tomorrow along with cleaning a lot of the electrical terminals and doing an oil change (it just happens to be that time). I'll report back.

Good news is I got a good ride in tonight. I went out with a couple friends and left them in my dust in the twisties It still blows my mind that people can't figure this bike out. Everyone thinks it's a crotch-rocket but they can't believe how comfortable I am on it! Now if I can just keep it from killing itself all the time...