Just bought first bike and need some help

[CatatonicBug]

Stick to the spray cans of cleaner. The dip basket will hurt the o-rings on the butterflies. The straws on the cans of spray cleaner do a pretty good job of jetting down into the tiny holes in the carbs, so it's actually better anyway. A shot of compressed air afterward will blow any leftovers out.

You will want to make sure to remove EVERYTHING that can be removed from all the screw holes. Don't be afraid of the mixture screws. Just be sure you don't strip the heads, or you'll have to mess with drilling/extracting them, and from what I have heard, that is not fun. As long as you can get them to move, you're in good shape. Count the turns from the bottom, and put them (or replacements) back in with the same number of turns.

I had to grind the sides of one of my skinny screwdrivers to get the pilot jets out. If you're going to replace them with a new rebuild kit, you can use an extractor and they should come right out. It is important to get them out, because of the tiny holes in them that gan easily get gummed up.

Definitely ok to replace screws with stripped heads. Be aware of the fact that these are metric bikes, and use metric threads though.

[DGXSER]

Penetrating oil. I speak from experience when I tell you do NOT confuse WD40 with a penetrating oil like PB Blaster. It is not the same thing. When I cleaned my carbs, I tried using WD40 to loosen my pilot jets and mixture screws, it did nothing, then I hit them with PB Blaster and all but the ones I had already botched the heads on came out with reasonable effort.

Autozone has the dip bucket with basket on their web site. I actually took the lid from my carb cleaner and sprayed a puddle into it, then soaked my jets and screws and everything that comes off loose in that puddle with a paper towel over it to keep it from drying out to much.

When you pull the choke lever/rod out, make sure to pay attention to the little ball and spring behind the rod where the number one carb connects to the rod. I di not pull mien that far apart, but some have stated the ball and spring will shoot out like a cannon and be out of site.

HTH

[tarzan]

I use a 1 gallon can of cleaner.Strip the carbs as far as I can,then hang them with wire so the seals are just above the cleaner.Let them set for a bit then take em out and rinse down with a spray can of cleaner.Then(and this is the part swmbo hates) take em into the kitchen sink and wash them with soap and water then rinse with water.Then its back to the garage and blow em off with compressed air and blow through all the passages.This process seems to get them real clean.

[CA]

Progress report

Well I'm pretty sure I killed half of my brain cells and ate half my finger off from all the carb cleaner i used over the weekend. Hopefull every piece of dirt is out of those little holes, I probably did not need the bigger rebuild kits, but hey puts me at ease. Now I am about to reassemble them and strap them back on, but a few questions first

1. Should I just go with the original 25.7mm float height (is that with the gasket in or out?) or should I go more or less? What have some of you found to be ideal? (I searched the forms and there did not seem to be a consences)

2. Will I be ok with the "pre-synch" tutorial on the forum or do I have to spring for the mercury tester thing? Also i am a little confused from the tutorial, why do you take note of where the #3 carb is set before and then at the end you reset everything back to that level of the #3 again?? What is the point then. I am probably just reading it wrong, but I got a little confused...and synching is the last step right?

3. As of right now my rightside crankcase, my entire exhaust, and soon my oil pan will be off...(long story, but my drain plug is messed up so i ordered a new one) is there anything i should do/check while all of this is removed? The bike has been sitting for a while...just want it in fine running condition. ( for my possible trip to alaska...shhh don't tell m parents)

4. What is the definition of "lightly seated?" because the stock setting was about ten turns to get the idle screw out, and I have found that "lightly seated" isn't all that light, it is usualy when the point of the screw is flush in the hole, then one and half turns out, which is then about 9.5 turns to come out...

....I am thinking about painting my exhaust and cant decide, eitheir just an aluminum color or black with chrome pipe...any suggestions?


Thanks for the help guys, all I have been doing the past week is working on the bike and surfing the forums....I feel like I have learned more than my last year of college!

[CatatonicBug]

If you're gonna take the side cover and oil pan off, take the time to do the 2nd gear fix. Even if you had not noticed a problem with it before, now is the best time to do the preventative measure. Use the tech tips and grind the 2nd gear dogs and do the washer swap. If you don't do it now, you'll have to do it eventually.

[DGXSER]

1. Should I just go with the original 25.7mm float height (is that with the gasket in or out?) or should I go more or less? What have some of you found to be ideal? (I searched the forms and there did not seem to be a consences)

Float height is one of the ways to tune these carbs. The reason you see so many diff settings and no consences is that each bike may have diff compression, or mods, that require a bit diff tuning. I would start at either the stock setting or where they were when you pulled them. Measure form the flat gasket surface (not the ridge that sticks up) with no gasket in place.

2. Will I be ok with the "pre-synch" tutorial on the forum or do I have to spring for the mercury tester thing? Also i am a little confused from the tutorial, why do you take note of where the #3 carb is set before and then at the end you reset everything back to that level of the #3 again?? What is the point then. I am probably just reading it wrong, but I got a little confused...and synching is the last step right?

There is no adjustment to number three carb othere than the idle set screw, so everything else gets set to it. The "bread tie" synch should get you close enough to get it started and running, but a guage synch is pretty much required to get it running right. If you plan to make that kind of run on it, no way I would skimp on it. I have not bought carb sticks, but I have read you can get them for less than $100. I used the vacuum gage with the PVC pipe described in the tech tips.

3. As of right now my rightside crankcase, my entire exhaust, and soon my oil pan will be off...(long story, but my drain plug is messed up so i ordered a new one) is there anything i should do/check while all of this is removed? The bike has been sitting for a while...just want it in fine running condition. ( for my possible trip to alaska...shhh don't tell m parents)

I am sure there are many things you could check I am not aware of, but as Catatonic stated, many of these bikes develop a skipping out of gear issue with secodn gear and some first as well. The VERY well documented process of the Dremmel Fix is not as hard as it sounds, and pretty cheap to do. Evenin Tennesee, you won't hav ereally good riding weather for a few more weeks anyway.

4. What is the definition of "lightly seated?" because the stock setting was about ten turns to get the idle screw out, and I have found that "lightly seated" isn't all that light, it is usualy when the point of the screw is flush in the hole, then one and half turns out, which is then about 9.5 turns to come out...

Lightly referrs to how hard you turn the screw, the tip may protrude through the hole depending on the brand of screw you have. Those tips have been known to be rammed hard into the hole and break off inside. Not an easy thing to get out. If yours are hard to turn to get to seated, do yourself a favor and get your carb cleaner back out, pull the screws out, and clean and clean the threads and that path. They should not give much more than springs resistance. I have the later model carbs, but ten turns is fully seated on mine. Mine like about 2 turns out, YMMV and probably will. This is one of the other tuning methods for these carbs.

And apparently this multiple quote thing is harder than it looks.

[tarzan]

I would set the floats at the recommended height.Too high and it will flood,too low and it will run lean.You can change jets or slide needles height and stuff like that if you have problems later,however most people find it works best with the float levels as stated in the manual.
The pilot screws -as someone already stated,lightly is refering to the screw being fully seated in the hole.You dont want to mash the screw into the seat ( bottom of hole).As for the 9 or ten turns to unscrew has nothing to do with anything.The only reason it has that many threads is to give the screw a good thread.
Personally, if the thing shifts well,I wouldn't worry about the gear fix.Especially if the bike doesnt seem to have too many miles on it.I know a lot of guys would,that is a matter of preference.

[CA]

2nd gear fix??

I personaly have no idea how the bike shifts as I did not actually ride it, nor did the previous owner. I have put it in first it worked fine but other than that who knows...the ode reads about 12k but I am not sure if thats correct, the title reads that the mileage is beyond what is measurable for some reason from the original owner, don't really know why he would have done that.(the guy I got it from was under the impression everything on it was stock) I guess I have another thing to research!

Is there a way to tell from inside the bike? Any other opinions wheather I should take the dive on that one too?

[DGXSER]

Take a look for some threads on 2nd gear fix. You might be able to look at the gears with the oil pan off and see if the ends of the dogs are rounded off. That is what causes the gears to slip out. If the 12,000 miles are accurate it may not need the work yet. Mine had 23,000 when I bought it and 2nd definitely popped out when you hit it hard.

[DiverRay]

I personaly have no idea how the bike shifts as I did not actually ride it, nor did the previous owner. I have put it in first it worked fine but other than that who knows...the ode reads about 12k but I am not sure if thats correct, the title reads that the mileage is beyond what is measurable for some reason from the original owner, don't really know why he would have done that.(the guy I got it from was under the impression everything on it was stock) I guess I have another thing to research!

With the unknown miles, I would do the fix! It should take about 12 hours of work total, but you have some of it done already! Moving the washer WILL help a lot, as will grinding a SLIGHT bevel on the dogs and slots. I would do the first gear as well, and REPLACE THE CLUTCH SPRINGS. Some people forget about them, then it's back in for a $16 part. Don't forget to post if you have any problems, as we've BTDT, and WILL do what we can to help.

[CA]

A little too nervous

After reading about the 2nd gear fix for the past hour and half, i don't feel comfortable at all getting into the tranny; before rebuilding the carbs (which was a miracle in itself thanks to you guys, and who knows how i did yet...) I have had no mechanical experience and don't really understand how a tranny works, aka reading the tutorials is like latin again. I really would have no idea what I was doing except just following the tutorials blindly...

Like DGxser mentioned is there a way too simpy look in and check the dogs with the oil pan off?

i guess the sure fire way to check is when I ride it. as of now I am really leaning towards getting it back to running condition and check the tranny ( the gaskets would all still be good if I needed to go back in right?), i wouldn't be surprised if the 12k ode reading was correct condsidering how good of shape the bike is in. The original owner was maticulous in his care for the thing, kept it covered in the garage, and he had it till it sat in a barn for a year.

I'm just a complete novice! Everytime i am bragging to my friends how much I am doing to my bike I always say I couldn't of done it without this forum!

Thoughts?

[Crazcnuk]

These guys like to imagine that EVERYTHING needs fixing, even before looking.

Just do one thing at a time. Don't get overwhelmed.

The most important thing is to get the bike on the road so you can get some enjoyment, in between the work.

I dunk my carbs in commercial cleaner as well, I just use a plastic tray that allows me to put just the right depth of cleaner in so that the butterfly seals stay out of the cleaner.

[renegade_xs11g]

The stuff you asked about, the dip
it's called 'Berryman's Chem-Dip', it's in a gallon paint can, white, red and blue label, comes with the basket,
Available on the shelf at Auto Zone of all places.....

A warning, it swells rubber, beyond anything I've ever seen
if you dip the carb body, make sure you pull the butterfly's out and get those seals out, also do not dip the choke plungers,

DAHIK, don't ask how I know

Now, as it's been said, typically, the bottom of the carb is usually the worst and the spray cleaner will do the job on all but the worst of them,
Also, when using the spray, when they say Eye Irritant, THEY MEAN IT, just take my word for it.

[Crazcnuk]

I use industrial carb cleaner, from UAP/NAPA.

It comes in a gallon can wrapped in a plastic bag.

I remove EVERYTHING except the butterfly seals and set the carb bodies in the cleaner so that the cleaner is just below the seals. Carb outlet (seal end) pointing up.

I soak all the metal parts, brass, aluminum, steel, including the screws.

It takes 1/2hr to an hour to do a proper soak.

Then I blow through all the little orifices and galleys, holes, etc with compressed air.

Afterwards all parts have to be to washed in hot water.

This stuff will burn your skin off, let alone your eyes. I got a fair burn just from the used cleaner floating on the water as I washed the parts, last time I did it.

This cleaner doesn't swell rubber, but it will eat it if left too long, So I play it safe and remove all I can, and don't soak what I can't remove.

[DGXSER]

Trust me, I would NEVER have goen into the tranny with out the help of this site. But the help is THAT good that did and got it done.

Look up some of the thread sand the tech tips, you can see the rounded parts on the gears folks have posted. When I bought mine, I knew about the issue and checked it on the test rides. Still, did not catch it because I did not hammer it that hard. Then I found it when I rode it hard after a few rides. I probably could have just rode it easy and not touched it, but then, the thought crept into my mind that if I ground the gears to bad and the burs ate up my bearings, that would REALLY suck. So I did the fix, about 500 miles later so far, no problems no matter how hard I hit it.

When you check it, get the bike in gear and up to about 4-5000 RPM and hit the throttle hard. That is in the real power band. Try it in first and then in second. If no slip, then you may be one of the lucky ones. I'd just hate for you to discover it half way to Alaska.