Idling issues

[rokslide]

Hi all,

I have a 1982 Honda CM 200 that I am trying to get up and going. Generally it is all going well but I can't get the bike to idle nicely. It will either cough and die or rev high, there doesn't seem to be a good middle ground.

Now the bike is fairly old and probably hasn't been cared for in all the ways it should so any suggestions as to what I should be looking at.

I suspect that the carb probably needs a good clean out or replacing but I want to see if there are other things to try first. I suspect that the throttle might be sticking so I will have a look over that as well and I'm not sure that the choke is disengaging properly which could also be causing issues.

Anything else anyone wants to recommend would be most welcome.

Something else I have noticed is that when it is started after being idle for a few days it will blow some blue smoke but only from one exhust. Not sure what might be causing this. Any advise?

Cheers,
Shaun

[FJRider]

The blue smoke indicates the oil ring has either gone ... or almost. It will probably use a bit anyway ... maybe not enough to cause a smoke trail behind you ... but anybody following will be able to smell it.
If the oil ring is suspect ... the compression rings will be similar. Low compression will cause poor ability to idle. The start would be cleaning out the carb/jets ... ensure the air filter is clean and in good condition. And the fuel filter is clean too. This includes the one inside the tank on the fuel tap. AND ... the inside of the tank has been cleaned out.
Lube the inside of throttle cables/controls/linkages as well. Adjust/set the idle when it has been warmed up.

But I seriously doubt a bike of that age/size will perform much better than it already is. Marginal improvent maybe.