How To Easily Adjust Fuel Screw On A 4 Stroke Dirt Bike - Motocross Hideout

3/22/23, 11:17 AM How To Easily Adjust Fuel Screw On A 4 Stroke Dirt Bike - Motocross Hideout
How To Easily Adjust Fuel Screw On A 4

Stroke Dirt Bike
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Need to adjust the fuel screw on a 4 stroke dirt bike or just need to know if it
will help your bike? In this article I’ll show you what the fuel mixture screw
does, why you need to get it properly adjusted, and then how to easily do that.
How do you adjust a 4 stroke carburetor on a dirt bike?

There are a number of jet circuits on a 4 stroke carburetor, so how do you know
where to start and how to adjust each one?
https://motocrosshideout.com/adjust-fuel-screw/ 1/24
Modern 4 stroke carb on a motocross bike
The pilot (slow) jet circuit is the first circuit that should be tuned, but before
that, you need to make sure the float level is properly set. Trying to tune the jets
with a float height that’s too high or low will throw your settings all off.
To easily adjust a carb on a 4 stroke dirt bike, you need to take it one step and
a time and tune each jet separately. Adjusting multiple jets or screws at the
same time will give you mixed or inaccurate results.
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Complicated jetting made easy

If you go richer on the pilot and the main jet and your dirt bike runs better, you
won’t know which jet made the change. Start at the bottom and make one
small adjustment at a time.
This will turn the “black art of jetting” into a simple process. Making small
changes will help you understand how each jet affects how your bike starts
and runs.
Why should I tune my carb?

Making your dirt bike faster is definitely not the only reason why you should
spend a little bit of time learning how to jet your 4 stroke dirt bike. There are
huge advantages to properly jetting a carburetor, and there’s also huge
disadvantages to NOT tuning your carburetor.
The jetting on your dirt bike carb affects:
How easily it starts – hot & cold
Throttle response – smooth or jerky
Horsepower & torque
Reliability – how long your engine will last
How easy or hard your bike is to ride
Fouling spark plugs – can leave you stranded
Gas mileage – how far you can ride on a tank
And more…
Riding technical terrain with a poorly tuned carb would make it twice as hard
What does the fuel screw do on a dirt bike?

The fuel screw controls how much fuel goes into the pilot jet circuit of the
carburetor. You can change the size of the pilot jet, but the fuel screw is the
“fine adjuster” to get the best performance.
For example, you may have the “right size pilot jet”, but if the fuel screw is not
properly set then it will not be giving you the best performance and can cause
issues.
Factors that affect fuel screw tuning:
The bike/engine
Engine compression
Air temperature
Engine temp
Humidity
Elevation
Air pressure
Fuel screw vs air screw on a dirt bike carb

The biggest difference is that a fuel screw controls how much fuel goes
through the pilot jet while an air screw controls how much air goes through
the pilot jet.
They’re essentially doing the same thing and giving you the same result. One
simply adjusts the air and the other adjusts the fuel.
This also means that you have to keep in mind which you are tuning so that
you know if you’re going richer or leaner. A 4 stroke dirt bike carb has a fuel
screw and a 2 stroke dirt bike carb has an air screw.
So if you’re tuning a 4 stroke carb, then opening the fuel screw lets more fuel in
to make it richer.
How will adjusting the fuel screw improve your dirt bike?
As I mentioned earlier, learning how 4 stroke dirt bike carb tuning works can
really improve how your bike runs and rides. Adjusting the fuel screw can make
your 4 stroke bike:
Start easier – cold or hot
Better throttle response – smoother & crisper
Increase power
Improve reliability
Increase gas mileage to ride longer on a tank
Prevent spark plug fouling
How do you adjust a fuel mixture screw?
Before you start tuning the fuel mixture screw or any jetting, make sure to
properly warm the engine up to operating temp. A cold or partially warm engine
will give you inconsistent/inaccurate jetting results.
The fuel mixture screw on a 4 stroke dirt bike is usually located on the side of
the carb in front of the slide (the front half). However, it may by on the bottom
of the carb body as pictured below.
It’s a small, brass screw that can be easily turned with a flat-blade screwdriver.
You may need a very short bit or driver if you want to reach it without rotating
the carb while it’s on your bike.
To adjust the fuel screw, simply turn the screw in (clockwise) or out
(counterclockwise). Turning it in reduces the fuel, which makes it leaner.
Turning the fuel screw out increases the fuel, making it richer.
Turning it just ⅛ of a turn can make a difference in how the bike starts and
responds, so make one little change at a time. If you go richer and it keeps
getting better then keep testing until the bike runs worse.
A proper fuel screw setting should be in between 1.5-2.5 turns out. Zero turns
out means you have the screw fully turned in.
If the bike runs best at 2.5 or more turns out, then you need to go with a richer
(bigger) pilot jet. If it runs best with the fuel screw at less than 1.5 turns out
then you need a leaner (smaller) pilot jet.
How do you adjust the idle on a 4 stroke dirt bike?

Since the fuel screw and pilot jet affect the idle, it’s best to adjust the idle after
tuning these. To adjust the idle, simply turn the idle screw in or out until the
engine stays running at a smooth RPM.
Jetting makes your dirt bike last longer before needing a

rebuild
Not only will your dirt bike start and run better when you adjust the fuel screw
and jetting, but it will last longer so that you don’t need to rebuild as often.
Why? Because when the fuel mixture is too rich or too lean, it’s putting more
stress on the engine parts. This wears them out quicker and could cause a
major engine failure if it’s on the extreme end.
By adjusting the jet circuits for your specific bike and set up, the more efficient
fuel mixture will maximize the reliability so that you can get more hours on the
engine before it needs a rebuild.
Practical tips for when you re-jet

Jetting a 4 stroke dirt bike carburetor doesn’t have to be difficult. You won’t get
easily confused or overwhelmed if you take one step at a time so that you
know how each change affects your bike.
Always remember to write your original settings down, in addition to each

change you make. Doing this at the start will help you understand how the fuel
screw and jetting circuits work.
Want to go more in-depth and learn how to easily adjust your 4 stroke fuel
mixture screw in just a few minutes? Click here to learn how.
By Kelley Fager
Last updated: November 21, 2022
Troubleshooting, Tuning
Tags
jetting
← Street Legal 450 Dirt Bike – Is There One For You?
How To Easily Adjust The Pilot Jet On A Dirt Bike Carb →
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3/22/23, 11:17 AM How To Easily Adjust Fuel Screw On A 4 Stroke Dirt Bike - Motocross Hideout

How To Easily Adjust Fuel Screw On A 4

How do you adjust a 4 stroke carburetor on a dirt bike?

Modern 4 stroke carb on a motocross bike

How To Make Dirt Biking Safer Without More

I consent to receiving emails and personalized ads.

Complicated jetting made easy

Why should I tune my carb?

The jetting on your dirt bike carb affects:

How easily it starts – hot & cold

Throttle response – smooth or jerky

Horsepower & torque

Reliability – how long your engine will last

How easy or hard your bike is to ride

Fouling spark plugs – can leave you stranded

Gas mileage – how far you can ride on a tank

What does the fuel screw do on a dirt bike?

Factors that affect fuel screw tuning:

Fuel screw vs air screw on a dirt bike carb

Start easier – cold or hot

Better throttle response – smoother & crisper

Increase gas mileage to ride longer on a tank

Prevent spark plug fouling

How do you adjust a fuel mixture screw?

How do you adjust the idle on a 4 stroke dirt bike?

Jetting makes your dirt bike last longer before needing a

Practical tips for when you re-jet

Always remember to write your original settings down, in addition to each

← Street Legal 450 Dirt Bike – Is There One For You?

How To Easily Adjust The Pilot Jet On A Dirt Bike Carb →

Write your comment...

Copyright © 2023 Motocross Hideout

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