TB Sync! The end all proceedure??

[Softtail]

Just about every other post is about syncronizing ones TBs. Everyone seems to be either doing it, or wanting to do it, or farging things up in the process of doing it. I have a 2002 R1150RT with about 30k miles, which runs great and just keeps getting better. As far as I know, it's TBs have never been synced, unless the dealer does it as part of a regular service. Do they? Anyway, after reading all the posts about TBs, I get to feeling like I must be missing something and that I should be out there syncing away, but to what end? Maybe the bike would run even better, or more likely I would just farg something up!! So, I think I will pass, because if it ain't broke, why try to fix it?? <<<<Softtail>>>.

[russell_bynum]

It's part of the routine service...happens every 6K along with valve adjustments.

[DavidEBSmith]

The routine service is supposed to be check the TB sync and adjust if necessary. I think way too many people think that they have to adjust it every time, and end up spending a lot of time mucking around and not making it any better. And too many shops aren't very good at it, so don't spend enough time gettign it right, so that people do need to re-sync too much. On the other hand, some mechanics (Steve Strickland at Motoworks here in Chicago) are so good at it that I won't need to touch the TB sync for 2 or 3 or even 4 services after he's done it.

 

If the bike feels smooth, don't mess with the TB sync. If's it's annoyingly buzzy, do a TB sync. Your feel for "smooth" and "annoyingly buzzy" may vary.

[redryder]

Just about every other post is about syncronizing ones TBs. Everyone seems to be either doing it, or wanting to do it, or farging things up in the process of doing it.

 

C'mon Softie! What's a little fargin' between friends. Look, I'm the master of fargin' up simple things, but you can't imagine how much fun can be had defargificating can be. Actually, the biggest reason I tackled the synch myself is because as part of it's 30K service, the dealer synched the TBs and it was hard to start after that. When I questioned the tech, he said it was likely my fuel filter clogging and it would have to be changed. I found it rather funny that the bike started just fine when I dropped it off, and after a service on it the fuel filter was clogged. So rather than go through that again, I elected to do the synch myself; and hence the whole fargin' affair. However, on the positive side; I'll probably never farg one up again that bad. But you're exactly right on at least one point; If it ain't broke, don't fix it! Good advice.

[lithoman]

Just about every other post is about syncronizing ones TBs. Everyone seems to be either doing it, or wanting to do it, or farging things up in the process of doing it. I have a 2002 R1150RT with about 30k miles, which runs great and just keeps getting better. As far as I know, it's TBs have never been synced, unless the dealer does it as part of a regular service. Do they? Anyway, after reading all the posts about TBs, I get to feeling like I must be missing something and that I should be out there syncing away, but to what end? Maybe the bike would run even better, or more likely I would just farg something up!! So, I think I will pass, because if it ain't broke, why try to fix it?? <<<<Softtail>>>.

 

it's all part of the joys of having fuel injection..

[chrisz]

 

It's all part of the joys of having fuel injection..

 

I don't know about that, my cars have fuel injection, and never been synched after they left the showroom.

[redryder]

That's because your car probably has only ONE throttle body, but an injector for each cylinder. The Beemers have two TBs and two injectors. With only one TB, you wouldn't have to synch it.

[Wooster]

it's all part of the joys of having fuel injection..

 

More correctly stated, it's all part of the "joy" of having throttle cables. Should bmw ever market a model with one cable controlling one throttle body with that tb then electronically communicating with second tb, I'd have a very compelling reason to upgrade, no syncing.

 

My second bike ('69 bsa, a "royal star", I think) had twin cylinders but only one carb; no syncing needed. Just the same, I lusted after a bsa lightning (and Grace Slick) with two carbs, more "oomph"; syncing needed. As the French say, "allez savoir poirquoi" (sorry French, I'm not native speaker).

 

Wooster who syncs albeit grudgingly, A'biento

[Softtail]

I had a BSA Lightning, red and white fiberglass penut tank, chrome fenders, upswept exhausts, dual Amals etc. I had just got out of the military so it must have been either a 67 or 68. I purchased it in Redding CA. It was really cool untill I ran it into the side of a pickup (red light problem). Oh yeah, I never got very far with Gracey either.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

Of course, a Lightening still looks good. Gracie, not quite so much.

I miss my '66. Holed a piston at least once a year but ran like stink when it was right. The funny thing how perspectives change. That bike probably would run a 14 flat quarter mile on the best day it ever had. My new to me XX will run mid 10's all day long. The bike I think of as fast is that old Beezer.

 

Anyone remember Donna Godchaux? Hint: Her husband replaced PigPen.

[Ken/OC]

Anyone remember Donna Godchaux?

 

Sez here, "She has returned to the Shoals area of Alabama and is active in the Christian community. A new CD of postive songs was released in 1998." The Internet makes this stuff too easy.

[No_Twilight]

[quoteit's all part of the joys of having fuel injection..

 

Actually, it's almost the opposite. Sync'ing your throttle bodies far predates fuel injection. of course before fuel injection we called it sync'ing the carbs. But we were actually syncing the postion of the butterflies in the throttle bodies of the carbs. When I went shopping for a twinmax, several old timers offered to let me use the old manometer rigs they used to sync the carbs on various sportscars. It seems that foreign sports cars, and especially british sports cars, felt the key to high performance was to have a carb for each cylinder so multiple carburaters were not uncommon. And I'm told that the real "artists" of sports car tuning didn't really use the manometer much but mostly did it by ear.

 

--Jerry

[Ken H.]

Actually, it's almost the opposite. Sync'ing your throttle bodies far predates fuel injection. of course before fuel injection we called it sync'ing the carbs.

Yeah, you haven't really had fun until you've sync'ed a Honda CBX.

[Softtail]

Ed, your post really got me thinking. Did I infact have a BSA Lightning. We are talking about nearly 38 years ago. the only thing I am absolutely sure about was a ca. 1968 BSA with a red and white penut tank and up-sweep pipes. I remember, I was all fired up to get a Bonneville, but I could not get the financing for the new Triumph, so I had to settle for a new/used BSA. A lot of water and or brain cells have passed under the old bridge since then. I looked far and wide on the internet for a 1967-68 BSA with a red and white penut tank and up-swept pipes and the only bike that pops up is a 1968 Firebirg, A65 Scrambler. There were only 250 made. After I ran the bike into the side of a blue Ford pickup, the guy who sold it to me bought it back for $600.00. Oh my god, what have I done??? Farg @#$% <<<Softtail>>>>>>>

[Wooster]

Softail,

 

What I recall of late sixites BSAs is that lightning had red/chrome tank w/low pipes, my single carb bike had blue/chrome tank w/low pipes, and street scrambler (mostly street with high pipes) had different shaped all red tank; lightning and royal star were virtually indistinguishable other than red vs blue (and single vs twin carb issue). As Ed says, funny how fast lightnings were then/when compared to today's bikes they'd be left in dust.

(though what with brit bikes penchant for oil leaks, at least that dust wouldn't rise much)

 

Wooster

 

oh yah, BSA discussions require stating true meaning of B S A: Bastard Stopped Again (as opposed to BMW: Bring More Wrenches)