Attepmting First Carb Rebuild

[XSWild34]

Hello all I will be attempting my very first carb rebuild this weekend and wanted to know if anyone had any special ttricks or tips or something I need watch out for or pay special attention to. I will also be rebuilding my leaky petcocks at the same time. My dad will be helping me and he has car experience but no motorcycle experience and has never synced carbs.

Also yesterday when I took it ot for a ride it died at every stop light and I was wondering if a good carb cleaning would remedy this? I thought my bike was idling at 2000rpms but yesterday I noticed when I turn the bike off the needle on the tach stayed at 2000rpms so i'm not sure what i'm idiling at and I didn't know if there was some adjustment that would make the needle on the tach go back to 0 or if I need to buy a new one?

One more thing, a couple days ago I was riding home and I could smell the back brake pads burning so when I got home i put it up and the centerstand and sure enough it was locked up and I could barely turn the wheel so i pulled it off and it loosened up. When I put it back on it was still ok so i drove it to the store and it was still fine so i thought it was ok but it did it again yesterday so should I just buy a master cylinder rebuild kit and rebuild it? Will that fix the problem?

Sorry so many questions I've had alot on my mind so I had to get some of them out that isn't even all my questions. Lol But thank you for any help or advice about the carb rebuild.

[XSWild34]

I drive a 79 xs1100 special if you need to know that

[lancelot455]

for the brakes you should just be able to take them apart and clean them making sure that you clean the spooge hole in the master cylinder it allows the brake fluid to return to the master from the back brake which is probably why it is locking up. Easy job to do. take all the calipers apart and clean them too and replace with new brake fluid.

[ccogswel]

Well when you say the bike died at every stop. Could you explain on how the bike runs? I.E. Like does it sound like its revving real high or hard to accelerate or takes off like crap until about 3-4 grand before it opens up. Are you having a hard time with cold starts? Does it rev to red line when your riding it? Cause I'm just wondering if you just can't adjust the idle screw and raise the idle a bit. That may be all it needs. If you could describe a bit more for us that would help with a better idea on what advice to be given. But if you do intend to tear into them the only things I can think to tell you to keep a eye on is the choke rod and the throttle slides. There is 2 small ball bearings with springs in carbs 1 and 4. The throttle slides have them rubber diaphragms. You don't want to tear them. But check them with light to see if you can see any cracks or tears. If so you can spray them with a plasti dip from napa or just replace them. The only other thing I can tell you is don't dip the carbs in carb cleaner or you may ruin your throttle shaft seals. Most of us here get a way with carb cleaner out of a spray can. Usually 4 cans will do. Also make sure you have a really good tipped flat blade to help with the removal of your pilot jets. They tend to strip out the heads when you try to remove them. Just keep a eye on what you pull out and where it all goes. Theres enough information here that will guide you. I think wildkat done a rebuild in the tech tips. Check it out. That will help a lot. I'm sure there will be some carb Gurus that will chime in and mention some things I have missed. But they are not that bad to work on really. Good luck!

[XSWild34]

It doesn't rev really hard but it does start a little slow until about 3500 rpms and its never redlined while I was riding it. On cold starts i have to open the choke all the way and hit the starter and give it a little gas a couple times then it starts. As far as the dying it was weird because everything ran fine once I got going but then when I started slowing to a stop I could hear it sputter a little bit and then it would die. But if i gave it a little gas, when it was about to die, till I stopped it would Idle. Kinda weird. The only tthing I could come up with, with my very limited knowledge, is maybe the clutch wasn't pulling all the way in but then i don't think i could sit and idle in gear? Also I was thinking maybe its running way too rich and is getting too much gas but I dunno. Again very limited knowledge actually I have none really just what I've read on here.

This is the first bike I've ver done work on. I have also recently changed the exhaust but it has been running fine up until yesterday. I changed from a 4 into 1 cut off exhaust(aka loud as hell) to a 4 into 1 thats not cut off.

[forexbob]

OK, I can't resist this and please take it in the comical vain it's intended with no disrespect, but,

You need to pull the clutch lever in whenever coming to a stop.

OK, I'm at work and I'm bored as ......

[DGXSER]

As to the brakes, a good cleaning should remedy all that is wrong. And I highly suggest doing so BEFORE you go for anothr ride.

As for the idling issue, it all sounds very carb related to me. Look up the thread titled Carb Cleaning 101 by Wildkat. Great thread, good detailed pics, lots of good advice. For the petcocks, I did a thread on how to rebuild the Special petcocks some time ago, detailed pics and instructions. Standard petcocks are a little different though.

[fredintoon]

Hello all I will be attempting my very first carb rebuild this weekend and wanted to know if anyone had any special tricks or tips or something I need watch out for or pay special attention to. - - - -

Hi Scott,
I just posted this in reply to another post but in case you didn't see it:-
Do the carb work in a big cafeteria tray so all those little parts can't escape.

[greatnw]

Carb clean tip is to have a clean work area, have small containers for all the different items and be meticulous in your cleaning.
Take your time, it is easier than it sounds.
I picked up an ultrasonic cleaner and I think it really helped simplify the process.

[Shacknasty]

I numbered my carbs and had numbered trays for the parts so they all went back together with the same parts. Then soak the jets, etc. in carb dip and spray out the carb body passages. Follow the dip or spray with compressed air. I have very rarely needed to separate carb rack and try to avoid doing it.

A meticulous cleaning will probably cure lots of the ills yer motor is suffering. I often hear the term "triple cleaning" when talking about carbs. That is only because the cleaning wasn't thorough enough the first two times.

Before removing the pins that hold the float, spray with penetrating agent and give it time to work. I use a long, slender drift and drive them out, carefully, from the thin end.

Work gently when removing and replacing the rubber diaphragms, they are kinda fragile.

The carb rack can be difficult to r and r because of the bulky airbox. Some vaseline and a hair dryer to soften the rubber boots can help with the r and r.


Take lots of photos so ya know how it all goes back together. Take the time to do a good job. I actually enjoy working on carbs...

[James England]

I use a long, slender drift and drive them out, carefully, from the thin end.

I think it's advisable to avoid using a drift though, in case you break the leg off. I use a pair of wire snips at the flattened end of the pin. Grip the snips and it loosens the pin.

There are several threads on fixing snapped pins, so it shows that you have to be very careful not to snap them.

[DGXSER]

I'll go one step further, make the tool that Ken Tabot shows on a thread around here somewhere for pin removal, he gave a dimensioned drawing for it.

I went to my local hardware store and bought a short length of aluminum angle, cut a small section of it off, cut one leg shorter, to the dimension ken shows. Then I used a smaller drill to get the two starter holes located and drilled them out bigger to the proper hole size, and used a small file to turn those into slots. It took a bit of filing to fit to get it right. Then I drilled the hole for the screw to push the pin out.

It took me a couple hours I am sure to make the tool. But it definitely saved me breaking a post or two off as the pins were stuck tighter than the legs of a 40 yo virgin.

[mack]

screw drivers

The only thing I would add here is to get yourself a good set of screwdrivers and a can of liquid wrench. I found a set of metric electricians screw drivers at Canadian Tire and they fit all jets perfectly for width and thickness.

[forexbob]

pictures

I'd like to second the pictures idea. It really does make it easier for a rookie like me to get things back together properly.

If you're going to start on the weekend, maybe on Friday night spray all the bolts with some Seafoam Deep Creep. Rasputin mentioned this one to me and it works great.

And flat head screw drivers that fit snug in the slot are a must as been previously mentioned. Stripping the head of a screw buried deep in a hole would be a nightmare.

Good luck this weekend. I'm hoping to finalize my rebuild and install this weekend too.

Bob

[tom clisham]

the brake once more!

The spooge hole is a common problem.

But just as common is crud build-up under your wheel cylinder seal. Take the wheel cylinder apart, clean the groove the seal sits in (really clean!) & replace the seal with a new one. Of course, while it's open , clean the whole wheel cylinder out. You'll need a kit for the wheel cylinder.