Dam petcock

[Rickrod3]

My petcock leaked on the right side and # 3 carb over flowed.

I believe I got some gas in the oil.
Is it sufficient to let the oil filter air dry or should I replace it along with the oil?

Tia
Rick

[MrOzz]

I would feel better replacing the oil filter.

[jwhughes3]

unless its brand new

I'm with Ozz and would go ahead and replace it since its out.

John in San Antonio

[ambidextrous]

i would say you change it too

why not really

its not too expensive, and can save your engine

its worth it to me

[Rickrod3]

Yeah you guys are right

There I go cheaping out again.
Going to do Biker Phill's Petcock mod to help prevent it from happening again.

[WMarshy]

You should add an off position to your petcock using psychorefers mod. Its easy to do and works as long as you remember to turn it off!

[Ken Talbot]

My petcock leaked on the right side and # 3 carb over flowed.

Hey, Rick, remember that a leaking petcock by itself will not cause a problem. You have both a leaky patcock and a leaky float valve. If you just concentrate on the various petcock work-arounds, you will still have a leaky float valve that will cause its own problems. Fix them both.

[MindWebs]

learned

Ken's right..

i running an engine that sounds like a model T going down the road.

because i did 1 and not the other. i drove 70 miles on that gas oil mix.
and i have the engine clatter to prove it.

save your engine!!

get new float valves and seats and petcock rebuild kits!!!!

you go cheap and it'll cost you in the long run.

good luck.

[Rickrod3]

Convienent time

Hey, Rick, remember that a leaking petcock by itself will not cause a problem. You have both a leaky patcock and a leaky float valve. If you just concentrate on the various petcock work-arounds, you will still have a leaky float valve that will cause its own problems. Fix them both.

Well if it was going to happen I think it happened at the best possible time.
I was pulling the carbs any way to re jet and will definitely check out the floats.



Thanks

[digitalsam]

I agree about changing the oil. But, I think I read somewhere on this site that you can check for gas in the oil by sticking a wooden dowel into oil and then (away from the bike, and other flamable items) run a match under it. If it ignites easily there is gas present.

With that said... change the oil anyway.

[ManitoulinLad]

DigitalSam: 10-4 with the wooden dowel trick - had to change mine out last yr 4 times due to leaky seats - Its worth fixing it outright, believe me. I still check everyonce in awhile with the dowel - peace of mind since last yrs horror story - Dan

[Crazcnuk]

Just think of it as an impromtu crankcase cleaning!

However, I don't think the gas will hurt the filter. If it's a new(ish) one I would re-use it. That being said I use the spin on filter!

But definately fix the float valves.

[Rickrod3]

Further advice wanted

This happened after I re built the petcocks and the carburettors.
When I disconnected the tank fuel pipe it was dripping steady so I put it on prime to flush it out put it back to on and the dripping stopped have the tank on the bench and it is not leaking.

Opened the float bowls and found what I believe varnish that may have been stuck to the sides and came loose.

I air tested the floats by flipping them over and they seem to seal.

I also had the tank cleaned at a radiator shoppe.

I used aftermarket rebuild kits I believe they were K&L.
Should I chalk this up to carbs that may have had a little more dirt in them?
I was considering converting the petcock to on off by soldering the vacuum passage making it an off position.

What do you guys think?

[WMarshy]

This happened after I re built the petcocks and the carburettors.
When I disconnected the tank fuel pipe it was dripping steady so I put it on prime to flush it out put it back to on and the dripping stopped have the tank on the bench and it is not leaking.

Opened the float bowls and found what I believe varnish that may have been stuck to the sides and came loose.

I air tested the floats by flipping them over and they seem to seal.

I also had the tank cleaned at a radiator shoppe.

I used aftermarket rebuild kits I believe they were K&L.
Should I chalk this up to carbs that may have had a little more dirt in them?
I was considering converting the petcock to on off by soldering the vacuum passage making it an off position.

What do you guys think?

Im not familiar with the petcock rebuild kits you used but I have read in the past that one particular aftermarket petcock kit not working so great. The diaphram with the piston in it is 1mm shorter than OEM and I believe others have to streched the spring behind it to get it to function properly... With that being said, I believe they are still prone to leaking and chose to do psychoreefers petcock mod. Click here. Its free and it always works as long as you remember to turn it!

[cywelchjr]

Im not familiar with the petcock rebuild kits you used but I have read in the past that one particular aftermarket petcock kit not working so great. The diaphram with the piston in it is 1mm shorter than OEM and I believe others have to streched the spring behind it to get it to function properly... With that being said, I believe they are still prone to leaking and chose to do psychoreefers petcock mod. Click here. Its free and it always works as long as you remember to turn it!

I'm going to do his mod the next time I work on mine, but mine are sealing just fine right now and my needle valves seal fine too (found that out by finding out the petcocks has not been actually turning off, but no leakage), and I'm very much the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" type, as in I'm not going in the fix a problem I don't have. Don't get me wrong, I do the maint, but I'm gonna stick what what works, the petcock on my 400 (the same as 1100 standard ones) has continued to work reliably for 30 years now, so I know with a little TLC they can be quite reliable, especially if you make sure the needle valves seal correctly (my 400 has a very clean interior from a good gas cleaning, glad I didn't ride it like that, had about 1 gallon of gas in there, idled for about 15 minutes like that) it's just fine. I really like mostly stock, unless I'm convinced that a mod truly makes it better. You can see I have some mods, but there are all ones that IMO make for better performance or handling, my goal is the nice well maintained daily driver, but I like safety so I plan things like brake like wag module and headlight modulator, but only to make myself safer.