air valve on an 1100

does anyone know if a bad air valve will cause the idle to fluctuate ? i ask because the air valve is 25 yrs old and it was leaking until i took the bottom part of it apart and cleaned the gunk out of it.now its not leaking but yesterday when i passed 4 cars @ 105,it backfired out of the right side pipe when i closed the throttle to slow back down.the backfiring was getting worse before i modded the exhaust and cleaned the airvalve.it doesnt backfire hardly any since i cleaned it but if i'm out riding and come to a red light,sometimes it will idle 300 rpms higher or lower than it should and sometimes it idles normal while im out riding.appreciate any help before i go buy a new one at $103.00

When you say backfire, do you mean that unburnt fuel ignited in the exhaust, or did it ignite in the air cleaner?

Oldsmobility wrote:When you say backfire, do you mean that unburnt fuel ignited in the exhaust, or did it ignite in the air cleaner?

unburnt fuel in the exhaust only on the right side which on my bike would be the front cylinder.

Did you rejet the carb(s?) when you changed the pipes? The backfiring would indicate a lean condition so that's the first thing that comes to mind.

Oldsmobility wrote:Did you rejet the carb(s?) when you changed the pipes? The backfiring would indicate a lean condition so that's the first thing that comes to mind.

well,i bypassed the air valve last night and to my surprise,the idle stayed the same at evry stop this time. allthough i have popping now instead of backfiring.these bikes came lean from factory and after trouble shooting it,i'm going to buy a new air valve and have them rejet the front carb.thanks for the tried help. oh,and the backfiring was getting kinda bad before i drilled the exhaust and cleaned the air valve.i found out that the air valve richins the mixture on decel to prevent backfiring.so i now know the air valve was bad.

That's especially strange that drilling the exhaust improved the situation. A more free flowing exhaust can sometimes cause that sort of thing.

Keep us informed on how things turn out with the jetting and new air valve. Sounds like that should have it sorted out.

Oldsmobility wrote:That's especially strange that drilling the exhaust improved the situation. A more free flowing exhaust can sometimes cause that sort of thing.

Keep us informed on how things turn out with the jetting and new air valve. Sounds like that should have it sorted out.

will do !thanks again.

well,i drilled the lil caps the factory put on over the pilot screws.i adjusted them and no longer need the air valve.no more popping or backfiring.cheers !

EDIT;still had backfiring,so i put the air valve back on the bike and found the culprit.my carb linkage needed lubrication .dont think it was ever done before i bought this bike.so anyway,the linkage wasnt allowing the throttle to close all the way when i closed the throttle allowing extra air in the carbs causing a lean condition.now,it runs like a top.idle mixture screws are staying 3 1/4 turns out and everything now is great.so there you have it folks.lube those carb linkages lol