NEED HELP! Fuel Line Diagram and Carb Issues

[new2xs]

I really need some help here. I purchased a 1980 XS1100 and the carbs were in a box with no fuel lines and they are for a 1979 model. The bike has not ran in at least 2 years, so I have gone through the carbs and cleaned them and installed the rebuilt kits. I have looked at the fuel line diagram several times and think I am on the right path, but the diagram only shows one fuel line on each side going to each set of carbs. On the 1979 carbs each set of carbs has two T's connecting them together so I put another T in the lines and sent the fuel line to both T's connecting the carbs. OK... Now I have tried to start it up with new fuel, new oil, clean spark plugs, and without the airbox attached. It will start rev up to 3500RPM for about ten seconds and then starts moving down to 800RPM and then dies. The carbs are leaking fuel from the back were the air box will connect and I think this has something to do with the floats but not sure. I would like to know if I hooked up the fuel lines correctly to start with and then go from there. If anyone has an 80 or 79 model and could give me a few minutes I would really appreciate it. I just need to know where to go from here to stop the leak and tune it to run correctly. Sorry for the extremely long post I have just put a great deal of time in on this with little reference to go on and need some help.

Thanks in advance for everything...

[Bamper]

On the carbs the top inlets are vents those connect to the airbox. So the fuel lines should only be going to the bottom inlets.

[new2xs]

thanks

so the top T on the 79 carbs connect to the air box. Well if I am putting indiviual air filters on each carb do I just leave the top T out all together or put it in the carbs and just leave it disconnected.

[Bamper]

I have a set of cones on the way. From what I gather you can just put a vented cap with like a screen on the end or you can jsut leave them there. So I would put it in and just leave it or if you wanna get fancey put a vented cap on them.

[oldman prof]

Found this ,maybe it can help.
http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread...ght=fuel+lines
or thishttp://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6581&highlight=fuel+lin es

[egsols]

The bottom tees feed fuel to the carbs.

The top tees have a line attached to vent the float bowls. The vents need to be free so just route the lines so they don't get any water or other junk in them.

If you have not set the up the carbs prior to installing them they will be way out of sync and the bike won't run right.

You may want to pull them and try a bench sync first to get to a point where you can begin a proper sync on the bike. see http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=88

Don't try to set them up unless they have been really, really, really cleaned.

If they are spotless, set your idle mixture screws at 1 1/4 turns out from a "lightly seated" position, rough synce them with the "bread tie method" then put them back on and sync them.

You will notice a world of difference.

Search the tech tips and this forum for all the different methods used to sync them, you'll also find some advice in the tech tips on how to set up the mixture screws during the sync process.

Also make sure the inside of tank is spotless and it wouldn't hurt to install inline fuel filters to keep any crud from reaching your float valves.

Lastly, you may need to rejet once all is done. You say you are running 79 carbs on an 80. The orginally 80 carbs were jetted about 5 sizes leaner then the 79's.

[planedick]

Additionally

You will find that even after proper cleaning and synch they will not be right if you do the pod filter mod. I really belive that the best is the factory airbox. It makes getting the carbs on and off a PITA, but when you go to the pods it requires rejetting to compensate for the lack of velocity stacks in the airbox and the restriction caused by the configuration. And remember, there is no way to get around a good vacuum synch. Until you get the right synch tool or have somwone with one help you it will never idle right and not run very good. Just wanted to let you know what kind of can of worms you are opening.

[egsols]

And more additionally

The fuel running out of the back of the carbs could be either a clogged vent or a stuck float valve.

Did you check and/or adjust the float heights after cleaning?

[TADracer]

If you truly have 79 carbs then your stock jet sizes should be 137.5 on mains and 40 on pilots. The reason the newer carbs use smaller mains is because the pilot jets feed directly from the fuel bowl while in the 78-79 carbs the pilots feed through the main jets requireing them to be a bit larger. You should start with those.

If you are going with pod filters you can get excellent performance by jetting up (trial and error). My 79 special has 4-1 exhaust and pod filters and aftermarket ignition coils and wires and slotted cam sprockets. Everything else is strictly stock.

My mains are 142.5, pilots are 42.5, needles set in middle location, cams advanced 4 degrees and my static ignition timing is set at 8 degrees instead of the 5 from the factory.

It will pull away from the curb at idle without giving any gas. It picks the front wheel up at will. It will accelerate smoothly and strongly from 30 mph in 5th gear. It will still speed up to 120 in a heartbeat but then flattens out a bit because of the advanced cams (but I dont do much work over 100 anymore) and it gets 41 mpg in mixed riding scenarios. Who could ask for more?

So, it is only trial and error and I say go for whatever setup you desire....the performance potential is there, you just have to find the combination.

[new2xs]

OK I took the carbs off and redid the fuel lines correctly and man that really helped out a great deal. The bike will start right up with no fuel leaking out the back of the carbs now. The bike will idle fine now, but when I turn the throttle it seems like it is flooding like it is getting to much fuel. It has now power and tries to die out when any throttle is applied. I don't now if I need to agjust the timing or what I know I need to get the carbs synced but I did the bread tie method to get me going for now, but it just seems like it is running way to rich.

[egsols]

Did you check and or adjust the float levels?