Carbide 150cc very hard to start after repair shop did some adjustments.

[thatguy42049]

It was hard to start before I left their shop with it. I've never had an issue with it. I had them install new carb jets, check the valves/adjust if necessary, and install a performance CDI. Left specific instructions my goal was to make as much power as possible. They also claimed to have changed the spark plug but it was very black and soot-y when I changed it after getting it home. It did run better but not really great.

I had another one in there at the same time for my niece and they took forever to get them both ready (2 months). Also it's an hour one way and there's no one closer that deals with chinese go karts. That's why I'm trying to find out what's wrong on my own.

My thoughts are it's the carb. I've had to idle it way up to just get it run barely without having to give it gas. It's very hard to start and barely stays running unless you give it gas. It sounds like utter crap imo, the exhaust note isn't right. The choke may be a problem too, cable seems stiff to pull.

It's a PD24J carb. It's supposed to be jetted 40-120. Looking for tips on how to tune it myself, a diagram as far as what screw does what, or any other things to check. There's no need to check spark I think, I've actually rode it for 5 or 6 miles since getting it back from the shop.

 

[Karttekk]

Try one of these carburetors, can't go wrong for $12.00. Put the stock CDI back in also. Report back with results.

GY6 150cc Stock Carburetor Fixed Bowl

GY6 150cc Stock Carb comes with a fixed bowl and is meant for plug and play. These carbs are an open box item that has never been used.

www.drowsports.com

 

[Snaker]

Confused about the going"s on's with the carb.
Is it the original carb?
Did they replace the carb?
Was the carb replaced at some point before they touched it?

I think? that you have a manual choke and not a auto-choke setup?
If the choke doesn't feel right and the carb was replaced?, are they compatible?

 

[Karttekk]

The only "choke" on that GY6 is the pintle that slowly closes the fuel flow as it heats up, part of the electric choke setup. As far as the cable being hard to pull makes no sense. thatguy42049, what "cable" are you referring to?

 

[Karttekk]

How it works: 150cc GY6 Automatic Choke

We frequently receive questions about how the auto-choke and its operating needle work. It's a convenience that gets a bad rap from those desiring the control of a manual choke. To the auto choke's credit,

www.buggydepot.com

 

[Karttekk]

Here's a tutorial on that carb

150cc GY6 Carburetor Cleaning Guide

If your carburetor is feeling a little congested, we have the remedy. Carburetor cleaning procedure Before taking anything apart, be sure to drain the fuel from both the gas tank and the carburetor's float bowl. You'll find

www.buggydepot.com

 

[Snaker]

The only "choke" on that GY6 is the pintle that slowly closes the fuel flow as it heats up, part of the electric choke setup. As far as the cable being hard to pull makes no sense. thatguy42049, what "cable" are you referring to?

The GY6 most commonly has a auto-choke. It is actually a enricher circuit and controls fuel rather than air. It is electrically controlled.
The mfgrs refer to it as a auto-choke so what ya gonna do?
I've owned many motorcycles over the years, from big name brands.
They would have some sort of control lever that would say "choke", even through the brand hadn't used choke carbs for years prior.
But there it was, "choke".

ASW offered the GY6 equipped with auto-chokes and then switched over to manual chokes.
I don't know if they were getting that changeup from the GY6 suppliers or if they were reconfiguring themselves.
They also offered a manual choke kit to convert the auto-choke machines to manual. I did one on my machine.

The problem with this stuff is that the mfgrs and the parts suppliers do a mix and match with this stuff.
The GY6 power plant is one element.
The chassis mounted parts (RR, CDI, wiring harness's, maybe carb and exhaust) don't come with the power plant but do have to be compatible.
The auto-choke is one of those connections,
The mechanical part has to fit on the carb but the electrical has to match the chassis electrical system.

 

[Denny]

What you need to do is return the jetting and settings back to factory and then quit messing with it.

 

[AmishMike]

You specifically asked for 'All The Power', you probably got it. Only you got it at WOT, which is not what you were expecting. All engines have a 'power band', unlike an engine in a car, small engines love RPM and don't have things like variable timing, fuel regulators, etc. so they run best at a very narrow RPM band.
Carb is now tuned to run at high RPM and will not like to idle. Soot on the plug will tell you the same thing unless you just had it out running at WOT for some time. A colder plug will help keep from burning a piston but will not like short cold cycles.
Hard to pull? Did they mess with the cam? That should have a compression release if they eliminated that somehow then yes it will pull harder.
Sounds to me like they didn't explain things to you or you didn't ask.

 

[Karttekk]

Hard to pull? Did they mess with the cam? That should have a compression release if they eliminated that somehow then yes it will pull harder.

Shouldn't be anything to pull, the GY6 engines are electric start.

 

[AmishMike]

Ahh, he must mean throttle cable is hard to pull? My bad.

 

[Snaker]

Ahh, he must mean throttle cable is hard to pull? My bad.

I read the sentence as referring to the choke cable, that's what it says.
Guess the OP has to clarify

These engines don't have any compression release.
Many, likely this one, have a anti-kickback (backfire) mechanism on the camshaft.

 

[Snaker]

I just jumped over to the American Landmaster website.
Manuals - American LandMaster
It had been a mess since the change from ASW, but its been cleaned up quite a bit

They still have a large section of various manuals, cudo's to them since most don't
Looks like they have purged most of the stuff prior to approx 2014?
They still have some stuff on the 200 series light duty UTV
That had the same GY6 powerplant as the 6150/7150 cart platforms, so it may be helpful.

Goto manuals, light duty UTV, 200 series
Here's some
15856_breakdown (americanlandmaster.com)

 

[Snaker]

Whoa, I just ran across this one, I downloaded this years ago, its a keeper
Telling ya, you want to download this one, it is absolute gold
Even has engine overhaul

150cc Service Manual 14589R4 (americanlandmaster.com)

 

[madprofessor]

I usually jump right to a "rich" mixture when hearing about black sooty plugs. Then I specify that "sooty" is a very black plug that will wipe clean in a single swipe with a clean rag. Not an oily and crusty black.
I don't have any experience at all with those auto-chokes, or whether something automatically changes the mixture by temperature, any of that. What I do know is that "soot" is an airy form (floats in air) of carbon caused by incomplete combustion that settles on and sticks to whatever it touches. If it's turning your plug black in such a way that it swipes right off, then at some operational time and/or rpm there's too much fuel or not enough air to burn all of the fuel. The chances of it happening due to a weak spark are extremely remote, and the only mechanical reason I can think of that would soot a plug is an intake valve that won't quite close all the way, also making it hard to crank and run terrible.

 

[Snaker]

These auto-chokes are, as mentioned actually enricher circuits and are incorporated into the carb.
They work something like a solenoid but incorporate some sort of wax to counter a internal coil spring.
The enricher is open with power off and closes with power
As power is applied, either off the spinning magneto AC or the switched DC on position, the wax softens and the plunger slowly closes down till closed, usually around 5 minutes.
When power is removed the plunger returns open again.

A problem with it is that it is reacting to its own internal heat and not the engine temp.
So a engine that is off for maybe a couple minutes might be starting with the auto-choke at full choke even though the engine may be warm.
I think the scooters get away with this because they are lean for emissions and can take a little extra fuel at start.

So, possibly???? if the carb is tuned towards rich, the auto-choke could be adding a bit too much.

But, its still a mystery if this OP has a auto-choke or a manual choke.

 

[Karttekk]

I've sold a few of those buggy style machines with the GY6 engines. If they sit for any length of time they're stubborn to start. Shoot starting fluid into the carb, hook up a vacuum pump to hold the fuel valve open, gas pedal to the floor, change the plug, hook up a battery charger since the battery will eventually die. Goofy design. They get fuel through vacuum, a big time PIA. Thinking some type of primer bulb to push fuel into the intake might help.

 

[madprofessor]

Shoot starting fluid into the carb,

Thank you, Karttekk, I like to see people on my side about starting fluid. I believe in it, and as long as someone doesn't spray it for 3 seconds (kaboom) when 1 second is all it takes, I don't believe it harms motors at all. Some will disagree.

 

[Karttekk]

Just basic diagnosing. Pull the plug and ground it. Crank the engine. If you have spark put the plug back in or change it then shoot some starting fluid into the intake. Something SHOULD happen. A pop or puff of exhaust. Go from there.