Carb Balancing procedure without manometers

[EGRG]

A very good airhead guru recommends balancing the carbs on the R65 by a very simple and effective method. I tried it and works very well.
You warm the engine as always before balancing.
Then give the engine a slight amount of throttle.
Now using three fingers slightly depress the throttle cable on any cylinder.
If the engine speeds up and evens out then that cylinder is behind the other.
Depending on the engine speed you can bring back the other cylinder or increase the one you are pinching.
When balance is correct there is no engine speed increase at a slight amount of pinching. If you increase the bend in the cable you feel the engine speed up but miss as that cylinder starts to lead the other.
Its simple, fast and effective.

[raymr]

That's good to know. I just balanced mine with a home made yardstick manometer, which was actually a fun exercise. My carbs were way off. I will check mine with this technique to see if I can get a feel for it.

[EGRG]

Its real easy.
Just remember to maintain a little throttle at the handlebar and you can sense the engine respond to the cable pinch or not immediately.

[Barry]

Lots of ingenious ways to balance carbs. That's an interesting one. I haven't heard it done quite that way before. I have heard of a similar method where you lift each cable out of the adjuster slightly. I tried to do it but it's not at all easy to lift the cable by a small enough amount. This bending the cable method sounds far more subtle and sensitive.

[EGRG]

Try it Barry.
Apparently an old time BMW factory technician told him that is how he balanced carbs.
Of course it implies that the mixture needle is adjusted and already have the correct amount of free play at the cable end.
The amount of bend provides very sensitive adjustment and feedback of engine response.