So my new to me bike has never ran right. I bought it from a guy who said it had been sitting for over a year. When I got it home I realize he was just an idiot and should have never picked up a wrench. The reason it would only turn over and not fire up was because the fuel line going to the carbs was plugged into the right side carb drain nipple so I cleaned the carbs and hooked it up right. The bike started and ran great but wouldn't idle until it was very warm and then would still die if it idled for long. I had to set the idle screw all the way in just to get it to idle at 1200 rpm.  So I rebuild the carbs last night, replacements all the fuel lined with clear ones, put in a small screen filter after the petcock and remover the screen filter in the tank because it was decaying rapidly.  Now it won't idle unless the choke is full on. And even then it just idles at abiut 1500 rpm instead of its normal 4000k with choke on. When riding I take the choke off once I am moving. It runs great and is very fast and peppy. But it will not idle for me no matter how much love I give it or how long I let it warm up.  I am stumped

Sounds like the idle circuit might be clogged, do you still have the EPA covers over the Idle Mixture Screws?

No I am not sure what those are. But I have the idle air mixer screws set at what the manual calls for which is 2.5 turns out

OK...if you can get to the screws the EPA plugs are already drilled out or you live somewhere other than the US. It still sounds like the idle circuit...did you blow the carb bodies out with compressed air when you had them in your hands? Because this would be my first recommendation as long as all the vacuum hoses are in the right places and you have no vacuum leaks.

Are valves in spec?

Not sure about the valves, don't have a shim kit so I wasn't going to open them up until I had the parts to repair it  if they are indeed out of wack. As far as  idle air mix screws  I have had them set from just .25 out all the way to three truns out. Only made a slight difference but still it just plain won't run without the choke full on

What jets are in the carbs? if the PO messed put the fuel line in the wrong place, it's presumable that he also changed the jetting.  Also check if the air filter needs cleaning/replacing

Air filter is new.  Jets are original.  Latest new thing. It has sat for about a day and a half. As soon as I touched the start button it gave a gun shot like backfire and would not start. I gave it a bit of either and it fired and ran the same as before with the cHoke full on.

Is the new filter OEM, K&N drop-in, K&N lunchbox/pods, or other drop-in?

Certainly sounds like something is messed up in the carbs; could be jetting, bad needle valves, float level off, clogging, or a combination of the above.
Backfiring often occurs when there is too much fuel.  If the needle valves are bad and/or the float level is too high you can have fuel overflow into the engine or airbox while the bike is off.  Too much fuel in the cylinder can result in hydro-locking.
Incorrect jetting, clogged pilot/starter circuits, off idle/mixture settings, and air/vacuum leaks all affect how it idles and how much choke is needed when starting.  Since your bike won't run at all without the choke shows that you have an excessively lean condition at idle; this could be an issue in the carbs or even a leak between the carbs and engine.

The jet sizes are stamped on the jets themselves; stock sizes are 17.5/60/130, which is actually already a bit lean to reduce emissions. Any further issues that lean it out even more (e.g. air leak or less restrictive intake) can mean that it doesn't run.

Quote from: devildogadam on December 24, 2013, 07:09:07 PM
Air filter is new.  Jets are original.  Latest new thing. It has sat for about a day and a half. As soon as I touched the start button it gave a gun shot like backfire and would not start. I gave it a bit of either and it fired and ran the same as before with the cHoke full on.

sounds remarkably like mine. The tech went through the following process to get it running correctly:

cleaned carbs
replaced intake manifolds
adjusted valves

My suspicion is that he should have started with the valves.

Keep at it. You'll get her chugging proper.