starting trouble on a cbr 250?

[soundbeltfarm]

a mate has a cbr 250 and when its cold its so hard to start he trys all sorts then the battery dies.
when its hot it starts first go but if he leaves it ,tries to start it the next day cold it is the same hassle wont start,
he has taken it to the bike shop and they do what he does clean the plug check carb and then say they cant find nothing else and it runs but within a few days its back to the way it was.
anyone have a ny ideas?
he's pulling his hair out ...

[cowpoos]

how does he try to start it....cold my guess would be ...choke full on and no throttle...

Is it fouling spark plugs?
where does he get his fuel from...91? 96? whats floating around in the tank...carb bowls?
does it use oil?
are the breather tubes from the carb clear of dirt and shit?
is the air filter regualy cleaned?

[soundbeltfarm]

he uses 91,
all the carb is clean,
plugs get a little fouled,
he said once it going it goes well all day until it gets cold (overnight or left for few hours)
then its all bad starting again.

hey sensei do you know how good john meads in manaia is?
my mate thinking of taking his bike to him to have a look at it,

[k14]

I would say the battery is screwed. I had a similar problem with my cbr250 when I had it, if i left it for 2 days or more I had to crash start it. One winter down in chch completly smoked the battery. They are expensive to replace too, think around $90, sealed cell etc. Thats my 2c anyway.

[nagaraya]

yeah same problem with my cbr250r... although the battery cost me a lot cheaper! $30 at cycletreads in takapuna, Auckland. Try to shop around...

[HCW]

I'm assuming that you put in new plugs and didn't just clean the old ones, It can make huge difference. If its turning over slowly, Try jump starting it. If it starts easy - replace the battery. If its turning over real fast, give it a compression test. Check the airbox is sealed on the carbs correctly and check that it has the airfilter installed. Like Cowpoos said, full choke no throttle for cold starts.

[HDTboy]

yeah same problem with my cbr250r... although the battery cost me a lot cheaper! $30 at cycletreads in takapuna, Auckland. Try to shop around...

So your bike's sweet now?

I was going to suggest the battery too

[TwoSeven]

Ditto battery. But a cibby is no-choke no throttle on starting (it has to be really really cold - less than 10 deg to require the choke). They also need to sit for 5 mins until the temp guage is past the little block on the left, or it wont fire properly and you will cold foul the plugs (which you cant see when you look at them). Once its started crack open the throttle and hold the revs at 4k til its warm.

So its likely that you may need a new battery and a set of plugs. Also on 91, they work better with cr8s rather than 9s (only use 9s if you are on very long road trips and/or racing). The 8s will work better with short journies.

[soundbeltfarm]

cheers for all the help so far people.