bad tick over

[jon-northampton]

Hi
On my 1999 sv650 the tick over seems jerky and have to play with it on the choke to get it to a level where it ticks over without stalling - is this a common issue or is there an easy fix?

[Biker Biggles]

Sounds like it needs a service.Things to check are carb balance, choke plungers,idle speed, throttle cable slack and plugs.Id start with choke plungers.

[mep]

Probably worth replacing the choke cable as it can be problematic where it has to split. I had a similar issue on my 99 curvy with an erratic tickover. A new cable sorted it. I had to check and change the the plugs too as one cylinder was affected by the choke problem. You can try lubricating it first to see if it makes a difference rather then shell out for a cable which may not be the cause.

[wideguy]

Look at the plugs first. They will tell you things about the rest of the potential problems.
Could be as easy as adjusting the idle stop up a bit.