needle and seat

[Yamamike]

Hey all,

I purchased the carb kits below to overhaul the carbs in my 83. It has all the correct o-rings and gaskets but I was not sure about the needle and seat so did not want to drill out the old ones just to find they don't fit.

Going on advise from this great forum, I used pine-sol to soak the (completely dis-assembled) carbs for 48 hours. They cleaned up really well but during the cleaning process I found that #1 carb was badly pitted where the throttle plate seats. This meant I had to use a spare carb and cuz I had to get the beast back together and running for a charity ride just two days away, this carb only soaked for about 8 hours.

With carbs re-assembled and mounted on the bike, it was time to hit the start button. She fired right up but would not idle without choke even after running about 5 minutes. I increased engine speed with the main idle adjuster and got it to idle around 1000rpm and got down to adjusting and syncing. All seemed to be going very well and suddenly #1 was way off. So I went from almost purring to crap a couple more time and then I pulled the vacuum gauge hose of the port and engine speed went up to about 1500rpm. That's when I new I had a problem! Then fuel started to pour out of the #1 overflow. I'm hoping I just need to replace the needle and seat but now I wonder if I can use the ones in the kits I have.

Has anyone out there used the needle valves from this kit and how did you get the old ones out?

 

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTAyNFg3Njg=/z/Bf8AAOxyVaBSseZS/$_35.JPG?set_id=880000500F

Edited August 17, 2015 by Yamamike

[yamagrl]

Of course it could be a piece of trash in the seat/needle. I have had that. And it could be the oring on the seat.

 

Here's a post about changing the seat and needle that I thought was interesting.

 

http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?96821

 

The 83-85 had different needle/seats than the Mark II. I ran into this same issue on Big Red when I used those kits. I skipped the needle and seats and was lucky. But at close inspection of those replacement seats it appears that they will be slightly shorter in the carb body and will require more adjustment to the tang in order to render the proper float level.

[Marcarl]

It could be some dirt stuck in the valve, so first try to drain the bowl and then let the pump refill it to flush it,,, might work and only takes a little time. If that don't do it, drain the bowl again but this time remove the input line to that carb and shot some carb cleaner into the carb, let it sit for a bit and then flush as you did the first time. If there is still an issue, you'll have to remove the carb.

To remove the needle and seat. Remove the staking as best as possible, small screwdriver usually works, drill a small hole through the cap being careful not to go too deep. Get a screw that threads nicely into the hole and long enough that will go through a socket that you will cover the cap with. With a washer under the head of the screw put the screw through the socket and turn it into the hole in the cap (measure to make sure the screw is not too long, just long enough to get into the cap is all you need). As you turn the screw it will lift the cap from the carb. Now carefully remove the screen, it has a plastic collar that holds it onto the seat, and now you can pull the seat out in the same manner as the cap.

[Yamamike]

Thanks for the thread and tips!