Running rich -it's not making sense

[mack]

Fuel float valves

Well here we go, what I've found is that the mikuni seats will work with just about any fuel needle if they are the right length. There is some tolerance from bending the float tangs to compensate.
However K&L seats suck big time. Half the time they won't work with either mikuni or K&L needles. I've had prbolem child carbs here that just would not achieve a consistent fuel level. Left them over night and the carbs leaked. Reset the levels the following am and a different carb would leak. Drove me nuts.
So I started to experiment with different needles,seats and floats. I won't bore you with the details but the long and short of it was. You can use mikuni seats for every needle. But K&L's well.... I don't like the needles or the seats. I just won't use them at all anymore.
Floats are also inconsistent. As soon as you alter or repair a brass float, the symitry changes and while they will still work, the levels should be checked using hoses rather than a caliper measurement. The foam/plastic floats are attrocious. I got some here the the not only are they different from one n other but different from side to side of the same float. There is no such thing as quality control. So tyhey too will work but I always check the levels with hoses for them as well.

[jetmechmarty]

I found the bag full of parts I replaced and new parts I didn't use. There are no fuel valves. I can only assume I didn't replace them. Where to next? I haven't a clue.

[mack]

Seats

have a look at the seats and verify they have the mikuni logo on them. Pull them out and make sure the screens are clean, and in good shape. For and SG these will be pressed in with a screw attached retainer if you have the original carbs. The inside if the valve needs to be pretty much spotless where the float needle makes contact in the seat. I use a q tip in a drill with metal polish. Buffs them right up. Then install the needles and floats set the heights roughly and check for leaks. Adjust the fuel level/float heights as required then bolt those dudes on.

[motoman]

Well here we go, what I've found is that the mikuni seats will work with just about any fuel needle if they are the right length. There is some tolerance from bending the float tangs to compensate.
However K&L seats suck big time. Half the time they won't work with either mikuni or K&L needles. I've had prbolem child carbs here that just would not achieve a consistent fuel level. Left them over night and the carbs leaked. Reset the levels the following am and a different carb would leak. Drove me nuts.
So I started to experiment with different needles,seats and floats. I won't bore you with the details but the long and short of it was. You can use mikuni seats for every needle. But K&L's well.... I don't like the needles or the seats. I just won't use them at all anymore.
Floats are also inconsistent. As soon as you alter or repair a brass float, the symitry changes and while they will still work, the levels should be checked using hoses rather than a caliper measurement. The foam/plastic floats are attrocious. I got some here the the not only are they different from one n other but different from side to side of the same float. There is no such thing as quality control. So tyhey too will work but I always check the levels with hoses for them as well.

Mack is correct. I argued with the K&L float needles for some 5yrs. Problem with them, other than incorrect height is the teeny internal spring used in them. Heating and cooling cycles of the carbs causes that teeny internal springs not to keep a constant tension. Then all four carb fuel levels end up different in relationship with each other. They'll drive you nuts trying to keep bowl fuel levels the same, aside from making carbs nearly impossible to stay tuned correctly.

[motoman]

BTW, the carbs on my Venturer are 81 Special carbs with the stock 110 main jets in all four carbs.

[jetmechmarty]

I guess I need to pull the carbs to see what's in there.

[jetmechmarty]

I decided to leave the carbs on the bike. I revisited mixture needles. I did this because I resynced Jeff's carbs before the Florida ride and before doing so, I reset his mixture needles to max vacuum. He lost about 4 mpg. So, my mixture needles are 2+ turns out, or max vacuum.

I attempted the lean-drop method. My tach only goes to 4 cyl and because of waste spark, it's half speed. Idle rpm doesn't drop out until needle is closed, or nearly so. I settled at about one turn out. I rode 50 miles and she still runs great. No pops when I close the throttle. We'll have to wait for mpg results.

Are the K&L mixture screws another thing that's tripping me up? Is that another issue?

If I had replaced the float valves, I'd have the old ones. I don't, so float valves were never replaced.

[motoman]

I decided to leave the carbs on the bike. I revisited mixture needles. I did this because I resynced Jeff's carbs before the Florida ride and before doing so, I reset his mixture needles to max vacuum. He lost about 4 mpg. So, my mixture needles are 2+ turns out, or max vacuum.

I attempted the lean-drop method. My tach only goes to 4 cyl and because of waste spark, it's half speed. Idle rpm doesn't drop out until needle is closed, or nearly so. I settled at about one turn out. I rode 50 miles and she still runs great. No pops when I close the throttle. We'll have to wait for mpg results.

Are the K&L mixture screws another thing that's tripping me up? Is that another issue?

If I had replaced the float valves, I'd have the old ones. I don't, so float valves were never replaced.

Actually Marty, that teeny atomizing hole at the top of the pilot jets if a bit restricted can be an issue. It takes a magnifying glass to see if there's any restriction in them.