I'll get one of those tachs asap and check. I've drained the tank with the petcock set to "prime" and it flowed great. It did have a slight kink in the fuel line coming from petcock to fuel filter, I got it out and replaced the line. The fuel filter looks good, but I guess that doesn't really mean much. Do I really need a fuel filter? It didn't come factory with one did it? I'll try draining the carb before I ride and after it cuts off and see if it's the same amount. My choke won't stay in the "on" position by itself, I have to hold it the whole time. Is that a problem? I've tried removing the gas cap and riding and it does nothing, it still dies. I'm gonna go ahead and rebuild the petcock just in case. How long does it take generally for a 02 gz250 to warm up? I'll check the bikes coil before ride and after but I don't know if it's getting to full temp in that short time. Would that matter? Thanks you all very much for your advice!!!

You mentioned you have to hold the choke to "On" the whole time. Are you releasing it once the bike has run for a minute or two? Once it warms up a bit, the choke should be fully off.

I don't know the quality of the fuel you buy, but 87 octane is all you need for fuel. Unless you are buying your fuel from some fly by night place, I would eliminate the fuel filter all together. I have run mine for close to 36K miles without issue. I add Seafoam to the fuel about every 3 to 4 tank fulls and the carb jets stay very clean.

I don't have to use choke to start it. I was just mentioning it just in case it was a problem. I'm gonna take the fuel filter out I think. I got carb cleaner in it now.

My '06 GZ250 needs full choke to start in ambient temps below around 50F, and even in the hottest part of the summer, it seems to want 1/2 choke for start up. It warms up in less than 2 miles of traveling, a couple of minutes, but if I take the choke off too soon, it will stall. With the friction in my lever, I can set it to various intermediate choke positions, and I'll ease it off a bit at a time until I've traveled to certain waypoints that I know from experience it should be fully warmed up by. In a warmer environment, less choke might be required.

You might want to investigate the choke lever mechanism to see if there is some sort of friction adjustment.

Ok, I'll check into that asap. If I can't get it running myself in the next couple weeks I'm gonna take it to a shop to fix or sale it. I'm aggravated with it to the point I'm about done with it. I love riding and have been for awhile. I don't care much for the bike anyways, it's way to small for me but it would be perfect for my gf to ride. She went and took a motorcycle safety class to learn more than I could teach her, she got her license and the bike immediately quit running well.

Ok so, I been riding it and just tinkering with the idle. It's running better, I can get about 4 to 6 miles now before it sputters and dies. It idles high the whole time and I can't get it to come down now. I'm gonna order that tach today and I ordered a petcock rebuild kit from partsgiant.com. I'm starting to have some hope, but let's see how this kit makes it run then we will go from there. Also I was wondering about the choke, how can I tell if it's stuck open and that's my problem? Thanks

Usually, it's pretty obvious it an enrichment device (choke) on a single cylinder engine is working or not. The engine runs and sounds differently with it engaged and disengaged.

If I wanted to verify operation, I'd carefully disconnect the nipple that attaches the enrichment feature and make sure that the spring loaded slug was retracting and advancing when I worked the lever on the handlebar. It's spring loaded and the spring needs to overcome any friction in the sheathed cable that connects it to the lever. The cable should be lubricated periodically anyway, so I'd certainly do that while I had it disconnected.

The enrichment feature is shown disassembled in this picture and is directly above part #9
http://www.carburetors.com.ua/index....&product_id=35

This is actually a larger BSR type in the image, our GZs have Mikuni BSR32 installed by the factory.

Ok, thank you for the info. I've never had to use the choke to start the bike. I been looking at cable lubes and lubers but I haven't figured out which is the best for the choke. I doubt it's ever been done to any of the cables. I'll check the choke and see if its operating right. The only reason I ask is because when I try to use the choke it doesn't make any difference and I have to hold it where I'm trying to use it. I got my petcock rebuild kit and been wanting to do it but it's been raining and I don't have a dry place to work on it. I'll get it done and let everybody know how it's doing. My gf is getting excited that it's running better than before and says thanks for the advice.

All that is needed is a baggie, a rubber band, and a half teaspoon of light machine oil. Unfasten the lever end of the cable and arrange it so gravity encourages the oil to creep down through the cable overnight, per the linked image. Every cable needs occasional lubrication.
https://www.boatus.com/-/media/image...ol-cables.ashx

Avoid soaking plastic parts in oil.

Ok I got the petcock rebuilt and it's not leaking. I installed it and rode it for a bit it rode fine for a few minutes then when I stopped and went to go it bogs down some then picks back up. Overall it's running worse now. The idling is getting higher somehow by itself and I had to cut it off cause it was so high I was afraid it would damage the engine. Still haven't got my tach yet, yall know some people on ebay aren't in any hurry. I'm at my wits end, I don't understand how a bike went from running good to barely running with nothing happening to the bike. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks in advance