This Bike hates me - a tale of hateful carburetors.

So, I shimmed the valves two weeks ago, numbers were checked and verified, and for a glorious week and a half the bike ran like it probably hasn't in decades. All of this changed when I decided to be a decent person and help my friend with the blown headgaskets in his subaru forrester.
I'd filled the gas tank before taking a 15 mile ride to a neighboring town with him, then I road 15 miles back home with him, then my bike sat for 5 hours while I was helping him dismantle the subaru. It rode fine, completely fine, all the way out and back, so when I parked at his house there was no problems. However, five hours later when I left to go home, the bike died on me at the end of his street. I wrestled it home but it wasn't fun and I was too tired, (this was 6 in the morning) to give it any mind.
Fast forward to now and when I go out to ride it's doing the same thing, which is this:

When the bike is moving, it's running fine. As long as I keep the RPMs above maybe 2.5k, rolling around, it runs like it has been, great since doing the valve shim job.
When I stop, like at stop signs, people in front of me stopping for no discernible reason but to spite me, etc, the bike has trouble idling, there's hesitation between twisting the throttle and the bike actually responding by revving, and there's chugging/rolling sound while it's catching up. Half the time, when I stop rolling, idling, clutch pulled in, the bike just dies on me and it's such a pain trying to get it to start back up.

It doesn't look to be spark, spark's just fine, petcock leaks but even using a test tank with different petcock results in bike hesitating and not idling right, it just sounds wrong to me compared to how it was before.
The carburetors were taken apart and cleaned by my brother under the careful guidance of his shop instructor, who has some experience with carbureted engines, only three years ago, and I've been running Berrymans b12 chemtool every other tank in an attempt to clear any possible guck that could have accumulated.

I know, I haven't actually gone and taken them to church yet. I'm learning as I go, and I've got pretty much no help on this most of the time, it's more than a little bit intimidating.
What gets me is that prior to helping my friend, it ran Fine. it's given me no indications whatsoever that the carburetors needed anything but a little bit of tuning, especially after the valve job, which livened this old bike up like nothing else has.

The way the bike is running, it's making me think that it is the carbs, specifically whatever circuits control idle and no to low throttle, since when I'm actually moving and relying more on the main circuit it seems to run like a top. The petcock filter is clear of debris, the gas seems fine. What I need is to get a real understanding of what could be causing this particular issue. I haven't tried changing any settings from what they were since the bike was running pretty close to just fine, except for the idle speed screw, which didn't have the effect that I wanted at all, so I'm not sure it's a settings issue.
I come asking for advisement.
I know that taking them to church is a thing that will need doing, but I want to focus specifically on these circuits. What would really help me would be pictures. I'm sure they've got to be on here somewhere, nice diagrams of which little brass bits are the main, pilot, etc jets, and which little holes do this and that thing, but I'm at my wits end trying to find information when this bike issue has me wigging out so terribly.
Thanks for anything and everything you can give me.

 

If you changed shims to put your valves in spec then I would venture to guess that doing a running synch will help you.

But that would be a band aid and it may not stick. You (not you brother, or an instructor, or a mechanic) need to take the carbs to Church. It is the only way to make sure that all of the exacting details are properly carried out.

The beauty of it is -YOU can do it! Intimidating, but as stated before and elsewhere; lots of notes, pics and meticulous attention to detail will make you a happy man ( in a trench coat).

 

+ 1,000

 

Yes on the running synch, that was to be the next step to be undertaken to get the bike to run as well as these bikes can run. It was just going to be a matter of actually getting to a store and buying the tools or making a manometer for the job. I was leaning towards the clear vinyl tube method with marvel mystery oil, at least to start.

Church seems inevitable. I think the fact I was helping my neighbor with carburetor issues on his 84 ironhead sportster the other day must have been some kind of sick omen, a premonition foretelling of the exorcism to come. Of course, his Harley has one single carburetor and I've got to deal with four of the devils.

This'd all be so much easier if I actually had the money to throw at these issues that pop up so often, but so many problems are that same way. I need to figure out how to actually remove the demons from my frame. Do you remove the airbox, or move it back, or you do just loosen the boots and kind of ram the carbs into the airbox to wrestle them free? I question the integrity of the engine side manifolds but boy are those rubber boots costly. I'm trying to search for threads with pictures since those seem to be the most useful to me, but there are a lot of carburetor centric posts to sort through and I'm kind of drawing blanks.

 

Removing carbs.
Step 1. get a hairdryer

Step 2. remove the seat and gas tank

Step 3. Loosen the clamps to the carb boots

Step 4. Push the airbox boots into the airbox

Step 5. Remove the airbox mounting screws (one top middle, one lower left under the side cover), and slide the air box rearward.

Step 6. Unhook the choke and throttle cables, and drain the float bowls if not done already.

Step 7. Prepare curse words for use during step 9

Step 8. Warm the intake boots with the hairdryer so they are pliable

Step 9. Roll the carbs downward while pulling rearward. Curse a little. Repeat until the carbs come free from the intake boots. Remove the carb rack via the left side of the bike.

Installation is reverse of removal, but with more cursing and the use of a lever and silicone lube to help pop the carbs back into the intake boots.

By the third go-around it will become an easy process.

Be sure to inspect the intake boots for cracks while the carbs are out. They can be repaired in-situ if new boots are not in your budget. If you do opt for new, be very patient and careful when removing the mounting screws. A good penetrating oil, and time are your best friends here.

 

I agree try a running synch if no help..go to church!!!! (pray a lot lol)

 

I can tell you from experience Trenchcoat.....it is very intimidating to start, especially when you first start reading the "how-to's". But take it from me, it's not nearly as complicated as it looks...just take it one step at a time....read, reread, and reread again as you go along, take notes, draw diaphragms, and take pictures. Make sure you keep everything separated and categorized....it really helps to invest in the proper tools and use quality replacement parts. After that, the guys here on this site can walk you through any problems you'll run into....just make sure you heed the advice you get from the really knowledgeable members....you'll quickly figure out who they are, because they'll rarely tell you to take short cuts or cut corners just to get the bike running...spend the money...and do it right...that way you'll only do it once. Most problems happen when the corners are cut....when "that's good enough" is how you finish off a couple hours of painstaking hard work.
I now have 4 sets of XJ carbs and one set of XVZ1200 carbs under my belt...believe it or not....getting the valves in spec is more difficult (IMO) than getting the carbs done.

 

The carb cleaning and inspection process is way easier than the removal and installation. There are many pictures and informational reading available here to help. Good luck and ask as many questions as they come up.

 

This is not a short cut. The valves must be in spec and the carbs must go to church. Just for ghits and siggles open the gas cap and start your bike and blip the throttle. Still doing it? Is the gasket on the cap brittle or missing chunks? If it's not the petcock or gas cap it's definitely carb related.

Gary H.

 

Alright. So I spent all of yesterday evening attending Church. Here are my thoughts.

-Removing the carburetors is in fact a finicky job, but putting them back in is worse, so much worse that when it came to trying to pull the air boots back out of the airbox so I could close up the air side of the carburetors, it dawned on me. I now understand why people keep going on about pod filters. Never tangling with that airbox again sounds pretty great to me, too.
-My carburetors were pretty darn clean, comparing mine to some pictures of others that I've seen on this site. a bit of more tannish colored crud at the bottom of the float bowls which was dutifully scrubbed out and carb cleaned into oblivion, and the emulsion tubes on three of the four carbs did not fall out of their holes freely when the main fuel jets were removed. Got em out, cleaned em out, used welders tip cleaning kit to ensure all of the little holes in the emulsion tube were clear. The bowls were filled with carb cleaner and all of the brassware went for a bath in their respective bowls. organised and decruded in one go, nice.
-All of my jets are stock, 120, 80, 40, 225, everything as it came for an american 750 from '83. I installed the air screws correctly, little one for main, big one for pilot.
-The passages are clean. I'm utterly convinced that they were clean to start, since the first thing I did was test them with aerosol carb clean for flow, and they all passed. One of them passed right into my right eye. I probed them anyways as best I could with more carb clean and with the tip cleaning kit. Even the tiny jets set into the fuel bowls were clear. Tested and retested them all.
-The floats do their thing. Measuring those was an interesting endeavor, but they are consistent with each other, are in the correct range, and none of the valves attached to them are frozen. Cleaned them anyway, because why not.

Spent a good three hours finding out exactly how to hold carb bodies so that when I spray in one hole, carb clean comes from an other and inevitably ends up in my right eye. Bench synced as well as I could by the light of twilight. Had to rely on my friends cell phone for light when it came to getting the carbs back on the bike, this took quite some time to do.

All of this and it still wont run right.
I just took Rocs advice and tried running with an open gas cap, and it's a nada, still runs funnily and dies after idling for a short bit.
I looked at the intake manifolds while the carbs were off and though there are some external fissures, I don't see anything that broke through to the inside. For the sake of ruling them out, I do want to try to fill those outer fissures, but I don't know what material to use. RTV? liquid electrical tap? Real electrical tape?

The other suspect is my leaky petcock. It's always leaked fuel as long as I've owned the bike, but I understand that it now leaks worse. The leak is particular, I couldn't find the same situation on this site.
Only when the bike is running, no matter what the selector is set to, it leaks from the vacuum side. Leaking around the plastic spacer, it's pretty actively squirting out of the little relief hole that's on the spacer. I took the vacuum circuit apart to inspect the diaphragm, and apart from being slightly frayed, only at the outer edges, it was intact, no tears. I also looked at the seat in the petcock body, no pitting. Cleaned up the flat surfaces with 0000 steel wool since there was a little crud, was gentle. Still leaks worse, so I bought a petcock rebuild kit, should be here soon I hope.
I also need to reset the idle speed screw, when the bike started acting up I was trying to right it with the idle speed screw, so I don't know what it was set to previous.

 

Did you wet-set the fuel levels or did you just measure the float heights dry?

http://www.xj4ever.com/setting fuel levels.pdf

 

I have stock airbox got new carb to airbox rubbers from XJ4ever ...next time spray some WD40 it makes the much easier to get back in the airbox... What you should have done is take 2 business cards cut in 2 and put all 4 under the butterflys....Adjust the synch screws to where you have a slight drag as you try to pull it out, This will get you real close in a bench synch. Did mine this way and I have a 4 vacuum gauge synch tool , after hooking it up all I had to do was turn synch screws a little bit until all 4 were about even 5hg ..my idle is set at 1100rpm , my idle jets were 2.5 turns out. So are yours set at 2.5 ? is your idle knob engaging #3 carb?

 

One other thing take a piece of clear tubing put it on the float bowl drain , open drain screw and see how much fuel drains out use some type of container and measure amount . ( other way hold line up to bowl should be 3mm from top of the bowl)

 

Measured the floats dry, since I didn't have the chance to pick up clear line. I measured them for consistency figuring that if for some reason any adjustments had been changed by a flooded bowl or something similar, it would likely affect only the carb that flooded and I'd be able to see this by comparing the four against each other. They were consistent. The wet set does sound like a more surefire way of verifying the set, so I'll see about picking up some line of the correct diameter, once I find out what that is. I'm really hoping that I'll be able to check the set while they are still in the bike, don't want to wrestle with them again, though the wd40 sounds like a useful trick.

I don't have a proper tool for synching the carburetors, I'm likely going to be using a length of clear line with fluid in the loop to iron out any unevenness. My understanding is that the idle speed screw just pushes against a part of the throttle linkage, which is the only way to adjust the No.3 butterfly, so it should be engaged, the throttle linkage is sprung against it.

I don't have a colortune at this moment, so the air mixture screws are set exactly as they were, I haven't played with them. the bike ran gloriously on the same settings previous to whatever made it angry at me.
If I'm lucky, it's the petcock leak. It might be the fuel I'm using, might have been cruddy stuff which I've now put a fair bit of seafoam in.

 

Dry-setting the floats is just to get you close while a wet-set gets it exact. If you're going to do it on the bike, make sure the carbs are level which will require jacking up the front....be careful that the bike is stable. If you're concerned that the leaking petcock may be the issue, disconnect the vacuum line to it and run it on prime. That would eliminate the vacuum line sucking in extra fuel. Be careful running the bike with a leaky petcock though. I would probably wait for your rebuild kit to come and try it once you've fixed it.

 

OK there is a problem ..if you did not pull idle screws out it is not clean...each one has an O ring on it , you said you went to church ? If you truly take your carbs apart that means ALL new seals (throttle shaft seals 2 per carb , new idle mixture O rings) Sorry but a "can" of carb cleaner will not always work, submerging in carb cleaner ( Berryman 1 gallon ) after full tear down for 1 or 2 hrs is only real way to ensure it is fully clean.

 

Ultrasonic cleaner works best for me.

I've also boiled the carb bodies in lemon juice.

Both work great. But lemon juice etches the aluminum. Makes it dull in appearance.

 

The spec given for measuring float heights dry only works when using the stock float needles. Aftermarket needles are longer and therefore will not provide the correct fuel height.
Being in the ballpart when measured dry (even with stock float needles) is a starting point for wet-setting the float heights.

If you have a vacuum gauge you can use that to synch the carbs; it just takes a little longer and you have to write the vac readings down as you move the gauge from carb to carb, and then recheck as you go.

 

My synch has 4 vacuum gauges so i see to synch all 4 at once.

 

Since this all started suddenly, and you mention that the petcock leaks, I wonder if there is a possibility that you are sucking air through the petcock vacuum line. Also, are any to the rubber caps on the vacuum nipples cracked or loose?

 

This issue did start suddenly. I'm trying to collect new bits and parts, bought some fuel line, a new strand of vacuum line, I want to be able to remove the lines and caps from the equation, and I want to do the same with the intake boots. They do have external cracks, and I suppose it is possible that one of them may have finally opened up entirely. I'm just not sure what material I can use to attempt to seal the cracks, even if just to test them and make sure they are or aren't the issue. I also plan to do a spray test if the bike will run well enough to allow it, but I've got some questions on that point. I know carb cleaner is recommended, but I just got a bunch of experience with how much that stuff burns, and eats paint, and generally is potent stuff. I'm wondering if WD40 or something a bit less dangerous could be used to sniff out potential air leaks, or if it really should be the carb clean.

As to some other points, the petcock actually continues to leak from the vacuum circuit part of the petcock even when its set to prime. Switch position has no discernible effect on the fuel spraying from that little air port on the plastic spacer.
The float needles are stock sized, and I'm still trying to get my hands on clear line to check the fuel levels wet.
It's hard getting anything right now because I'm in the middle of my work week and the bike is my only vehicle so I don't get the chance to make stops at stores for parts.
I am asking around, see if anyone I know has some vacuum gauges or another carburetor synching tool, same goes for a colortune because I just don't have enough to afford buying so many tools I only ever need sparingly. Maybe I can work something out with neighbor who spends a lot of time fixing broken bikes/atvs/snowmobiles/etc, maybe split the price and the tools end up in his garage.
I've also been reading about gunsons colortune, do they actually work well with these XJ bikes? I've read they can have difficulty reliably changing color and allowing a good tune with CV carbs and that they have short threads while I thought the ngks people run in these bikes are longer threaded, 14mm right? Are these problems people run into using them with XJs?

 

Oil resistant black RTV is the classic intake boot repair material. Lately guys have been using shrink wrap tubing. There are threads about both. Just search.

 

Colortune plug worked well for me. After I got everything clean and in specs I closed the pilot screws until I got a white (lean) flame on the colortune and then opened them until I got a blue flame. Then I installed new plugs and rode the bike about 20 miles and read the plugs and opened the pilot screws about the width of a dime and rode and checked again. I continued to do this until the plugs had a nice tan appearance. Starting the process with new plugs makes it a lot easier to read them.
I found my air leak by using a small hand held propane torch to blow propane gas around the intakes, etc. There are several ways to make a vacuum gage, but I like the two bottle method, just make sure you use glass baby bottles because the plastic ones will collapse.

 

As tabaka stated...this might be the problem. There shouldn't be fuel leaking from the vacuum port at all. Rebuild the petcock.

Gary H.

 

A rebuild kit for the petcock is on the way. I've got sandpaper, steelwool, some polish, I've got bigfitz' rebuild thread bookmarked. I'm hoping that tomorrow or Sunday I'll be able to get the petcock straightened out.
As for air leaks, I was able to actually look at the bike for the first time since removing and reinstalling the carbs, only had to use a bit of wd-40, see it being pulled into the cracks on at least one boot. I'm going to be checking them all out, taping/rtv'ing them if only for testing purposes. Likely going to be getting in contact with Chacal about intake boots depending on what I find, and if my attempts to follow the rebuild thread fail I might just buy one of the less expensive replacement vacuum petcocks offered and call it a day. I just want to nail down whatever caused this problem, whether it was a fuel leak that got worse, an air leak that got worse, or funny business in the carburetors.

 

If you are going to remove the boots from the head, take heed. Put penetrating oil on the fasteners daily for a week before even trying to turn any of them (WD-40 is not penetrating oil).
One of the main reasons that the RTV fix came about (aside from a lack of new boots being available at the time) is the propensity for the machine screws to snap off when turned.
I ran mine with the RTV fix for a few years until I could afford new boots.

 

You said you went to church, but I feel like you stopped just short of the confessional. Did you split the rack? The throttle shaft seals should be replaced and while you're in there, replace your fuel o-rings. Indeed slather some high temp gasket sealer on the manifolds, no doubt one or two of those cracks have made their way through.

You'll do ok with the petcock rebuild. Just follow the directions. When working properly, you'll love the stock unit. Set it and forget it!

 

That's good to know about the RTV, I do have some 3-1 penetrating oil I can use and a housemate has a set of EZ-outs, though who wants to have to use those, right? If the RTV can last on the order of year(s), it might be enough. Eventually I do want to get new boots to just call it done.
Same goes for a rebuilt carburetor. I definitely understand why such a thorough job is demanded when one goes to church. I'm limiting what I can do at the moment because I just don't have the funds to follow through. When you take the prices for all new gaskets, jets, throttle seals, fuel rail o-rings, industrial sized cans of crud-B-gone, and specialized tools, it adds up. Taking the carburetors apart and hoping to flush whatever gremlin might be in there is the better choice for me personally when waiting to collect all of the extra money needed to fully rebuild these carbs to '83 specs would most likely leave the bike in the driveway for the duration.
The petcock rebuild kit should be here today. I'll be installing that to see if I can eliminate the fuel circuit as a possible cause of my woes. Even have some new fuel and vacuum line for it. I'll keep people updated.

 

Follow the write up on rebuilding the petcock exactly and don't skip any steps otherwise you'll still have a leaking petcock. I spent a lot of time with some 1000 grit sandpaper taped to a piece of glass sanding the gasket surfaces flat. Mine works great now.

 

I've already got 1000 grit taped to some broken glass I had lying around, just borrowing siphon and gas can from neighbor so I can pull the petcock without flooding the place.

 

Throttle shaft seals don't always have to be replaced (though it is a good idea to do so rather than replicating work later on). If any are leaking, a quick spray of carb cleaner when the bike is running will let you know.

 

Well, the petcock no longer leaks, at the very least, not the vacuum spurting that was the original situation. The front gasket, the one with the four holes in it, looked absolutely mint coming out of the petcock. Replaced it and the o-ring that goes with it anyway, cleaned everything up with sandpaper, spent time but not much needed at all to true up vacuum surfaces and the rear face of the switch.

(X) Fuel Leak
(_) Air Leak
(_) Carb Gremlins

My understanding is that the throttle shaft seals leaking gives the symptoms of a bike that leans out as it warms up, and cold performance should be relatively fine, but my bike is struggling out of the gate. It'll only run when I've got the choke going, my cleaning the enrichment passages seems to have increased the choking effectiveness, it's now sitting about 4k rpms with full choke where previously it ran about 3k. Attempts to remove the choke results in the rpms declining sharply and then dying out.

 

What happens when you spray carb cleaner on the throttle shaft seals?
Very badly leaking throttle shaft seals can create problems even at idle.

 

We sprayed the carb cleaner on the throttle shaft seals. We couldn't actually get any reaction from the boots, despite the apparent tears, but for the two left carburetors, spraying the throttle seals had the rpms dropping noticeably. Probably going to just get the boots over and done with at the same time, since with my apparent luck the boots will leak the moment the throttle seals don't.

 

Penetrating oil, penetrating oil, penetrating oil. Soak the heck out of those carb boot screws before you put a wrench to them.
Choices:
a 50/50 mix of acetone and automatic transmission fluid (cheap, and honestly the best penetrating oil there is).
Aero-Kroil (not as cheap, a bit harder to get, but excellent)
PB-Blaster (commonly available, and almost as good as Kroil).

 

I've got nail polish remover and marvel mystery oil, which I understand is kind of a fair stand-in for ATF.
I've also got Swift brand Nut-Cracker, and 3 in 1 penetrating oil. I'll likely be blasting all three formulas on the bolts over the period it takes for the new hardware to come in which knowing Chacal, won't be too very long. I think I've seen PB around, if I can get it I'll use it.

When my good friend and I tested for air leaks, he's got a bit more experience with bikes than I do, he had to mess with the idle speed screw a fair bit but with the choke on partially the bike seems to run just fine, responds as it ought to with throttle. I'm hoping that these damned air leaks are what caused this.
I just find it baffling that throttle shaft seals could just go like that. The maxim was surging along at 70+ at midnight, running like it hasn't in decades, then suddenly the sun is up and it's tripping over itself off the line. I always figured air leaks were slower than that.
I just hope that after all of this money and not quite so fun work, I don't have new valve shims, seals, and boots on a bike that still won't run right. I'm running out of things to point my finger at.

 

Some things work right up until they don't work anymore.
Welcome to the word of classic motorcycles.

 

After 30+ years the rubber seals are usually dried out from hot and cold extremes , and ozone . Replacing the seals can make a big difference have a good seal ensures a more accurate even running bike.

 

Think about taking off the intake manifolds long and hard. The bolts were soft 30 years ago, there's 8 of them, if just one snaps your in a bad place. Easy-outs and a hand drill will take you farther down the hole. Penetrateing oil won't help, look at the bolt head, see how it's indenting the rubber, oil can't get through there

 

Alright, so order has been made for both throttle shaft seals and butterfly screws, unfortunately Chacal doesn't have the aftermarket intake boots in stock at the moment and I just can't pay OEM prices for them, so it's looking like I'm reverting back to the RTV method of boot repair. While the carburetors are out of the bike it should be easy enough to slather RTV over all of the surfaces. I'm thinking I'll then cover the RTV with something else, as a second layer of protection. I don't have high diameter shrink tubing, but cutting up some innertube could help protect the RTV from outside contamination and keep them looking somewhat presentable.
I'll likely take the carburetors out today, do my best to seal the boots up as they sit, the carburetors will be coming inside with me and I'll begin familiarizing myself with where all the bits have to be located for splitting and joining the rack. I want to have them apart and perfect by the time the new seals come in. I'll be taking plenty of pictures.

Thank you all for your help and advice. If throttle seals hadn't been mentioned, I wouldn't have believed it could have been the cause. As far as a welcome to the world of classic motorcycles goes, I couldn't really ask for a better one because there's actually people here TO welcome me. Working on one of these more obscure bikes from back when without people actively archiving what information is out there and making it available would so likely result in frustration and failure.
I'll keep updating this as notable things happen.

 

Take an extra special look at how the throttle springs hook up. Take pictures so you won't forget. It may seem simple when they are together but after things are apart, it can be confusing.

 

Consider waiting to dismantle till you have the seals ready and waiting to go. Pictures are great, notes are great too, but there's nothing better than taking apart, cleaning, replacing the replaceable parts and puttings back together all in one shot.

Here's one possible series of steps to get it done (for someone who had never done this before [me] and was DEATHLY afraid of screwing everything up and therefore overcompensated by being insanely obsessive compulsive):

1.) Have all new parts on hand.

2.) Remove and clean/lube all top components... hats, springs, diaphragms... essentially EVERYTHING that you can unscrew and remove from the body(s), Including the enrichment rail and plungers & pilots - These are easy to put back with basic notes & pictures. Set all parts aside in a safe place in the correct LEFT TO RIGHT order.

3.) Remove and clean all bottom components... Bowls, floats, valves, seats, etc. Take notes & pictures. Set all parts aside in a safe place in the correct LEFT TO RIGHT order.

At this point your carbs are still holding hands, safe between their brackets and you are still not past the point of no return... Here's the tricky(er) part.

4.) Take more pictures.

5.) Unscrew ALL bracket screws.

5.) Pull your carbs apart.

6.) Take more pictures of every angle of every carb. Take particular notice of how the return spring(s) sits on the anchor post on the carb body and how it intertwines with the throttle shaft arm.

7.) From here, you might consider working one carb at a time. Label the butterfly with carb number and orientation (up or down... with an arrow) and remove the screws... not sure if the 750 has "peened" hardware where you have to do a light grind on the end of the screw shaft to get them loose.

8.)When you get the screws out of the throttle shaft, the shaft will want to "unwind" so to speak because there is no butterfly anymore to stop it. Take notice of what the tension feels like so that you know how to set it when you reassemble... Remember those pictures you just took?

9.) Pull throttle shaft out.

10.) Dip in carb cleaner (I used Berryman's... gallon can with dipping basket... neat!) Clean, rinse, then clean again as directed on can... all the while, using compressed air as well.

11.) Blow it out really good, give it a good drying.

13.) Re assemble with new parts. Use silicone grease on rubber parts (not the spray kind you can get in the auto parts store... hopefully you ordered it from chacal... small white container with a screw cap... kinda like paste). Use Loc tight (blue) on butterfly screws.

14.) Do this 3 more times.

15.) Replace fuel o-rings (don't forget the silicone on these) and pop carbs back together.

16.) Replace bracket screws into carb bodies.

I liked having the other carb bodies that I hadn't gotten to yet to refer to. It worked for me.

I can honestly say that it feels like a new engine. Starts and holds beautiful idle at the tap of the starter button.

On to the Carb Clinic for a fine tune this weekend!

Good luck.

 

To add to that fantastic list;

A clean workspace that will not be distrubed is important. I like to cover my workbench with a white towel, to help catch any parts that I may drop so they don't bounce away.

Organizing the parts on a per-carb basis helps immeasurably. Many of us get a set of partitioned parts containers, or use the ever-handy (and free) egg carton.

 

as soon as you get the parts that go in the float bowl cleaned up and ready to go, PUT THE FLOAT BOWL BACK ON.
most of the carb can take a oops butterfingers, but the stuff under the float bowl can't

 

A muffin pan worked great - 4 wells from left to right (four carbs!) and 3 wells from front to back (for the various baubles).

Note to self, buy wife a new muffin pan. Do I put that receipt in the motorcycle shoebox?

 

I picked up a good handful of little containers for separating out parts by the carb, they are little one pound casserole tins, the disposable type, five for .88$
Unfortunately for my roommate the carburetors have now taken up residence on the kitchen table and regardless of the fuel/oil smell they give off that is where they will stay for the remainder of the process.
You're very likely right about holding off on actually breaking the rack for now. I'm just overanxious about this whole affair, I'm very eager to get it DONE so that I can get back to actually riding the maxim instead of wrenching on it, but that statement does make me step back, put down the screwdriver. I'm really, really sick of not being able to ride, but screwing up the rebuild because I'm trying to get it done a bit quicker will just keep me off of the bike even longer.
The parts should already be on the way, already have the 'SHIPPED!' email from Chacal, here's hoping with the priority post the seals et al will be here by mid week or Thursday and by Saturday or maybe Sunday the bike will be whole again, and not being a stupid.
This does give me time to hit the rack screws and other fiddly bits on the carburetors with penetrating oil, maybe give them a clean with something that won't eat what little paint is left on them, take some pictures, and come up with a battle plan to prevent the intake boots from getting worse when I finally plug the carbs back in.

 

Trenchcoat, You'll do it. Though i'm not sure I'd want to be your room mate. Pass the salt, pepper and a throttle shaft seal would ya?

One other thing that I didn't mention before and it is fairly important. You really should get your hands on some JIS screwdrivers. All the existing hardware that LOOKS LIKE Phillips type head screws are in fact NOT. They are JIS which has a slightly different pattern (tighter fit, if you will) than that of a phillips. If you use a phillips type screwdriver, you just might destroy the hardware that you are trying to pull out... making your journey all the more frustrating. They will make the removal a heck of a lot easier and will give you confidence when you give the screws a turn.

I bought the "professional" set from Chacal. It includes 3 sizes. The small is necessary for the butterfly hardware, the medium gets most everything else. The large is really large... If I remember correctly, I used it on the 16 screws that hold the carbs to their rack. I could be wrong on that one... I just can't remember. They are beautiful (if a screwdriver set can be beautiful) and if cared for, they should be some of the last drivers you'll ever need to buy... and YES you can use them on the standard phillips screws.

As for putting your carbs back in once they are zestfully clean, give the openings of the manifolds a swipe of silicone lubricant on the inside edge. That may aid in positioning them back in their rightful position. It is my understanding that there is something called "spa lube" which is in fact the same as the substance in Chacal's small silicone grease container. While the name suggests something less than on the "up and up" I hear it is used for assembling jacuzzi/hot tub plumbing and perhaps you might be able to get locally (pool supply place?). Maybe someone can either confirm or challenge this one? Whatever you use, it needs to be a non petroleum based product. Don't use vaseline, it will eat your brand new rubber parts.

 

Have found a strange trend lately Canadian prices of Yamaha and Kawasaki parts have been dropping below US prices ?? Eg foot peg bracket for sons zx6 was 93$ us but only 73 can$ ?? Same with Yamaha oem carb to airbox boots for my seca where about 20% less here ? Very strange indeed
Many moons ago Kawasaki parts used to come from Kawasaki USA now come direct from Japan

 

Or your wife favorited muffin tin 4x3
Top middle and bottom parts
Sorry sweetheart but it was an emergency I'll get you 2 new ones at Wallmart
Or wait till she burns the ass out of one making Yorkshire puddings

 

That which was one was four, and that which was four has now been made One.
Some late-night post process thoughts -
-I hate the rack screws, I hate hate hate hate hate hate them. But I got them out with an impact driver, or as the older housemate who owns it calls it a "hammer-wrench"?.
-Separating the carburetors out after fighting the racks was hugely painful because the choke rail was pretty unwilling to slid in either direction, even with the many set crews loosened to the point of them falling out. Post rebuild, the choke line feels much more lively, rotating it with my hands. Maybe that will add some finesse to choke use.
-Working with each carburetor as a separate unit, definitely a must. Kept me from installing 2's bracketry on 3's body, so on. Pretty straightforward, though I got worried when the brackets held on by nuts really didn't feel like coming off, and getting the springs to spring as they ought to was kind of a brainteaser.

The carburetors are now a single unit yet again. I used Polocks bench syncing method, Tried the card/wire method of Gameru et al but I just don't have a 'feel' for it. I tried both and I feel I can get them closer visually than by feel with an implement.
It's 1:37 here in the Great American Swamp as I like to call it, otherwise I'd be out there cackling like a nutter trying to fit these carburetors into their boots.
Instead I'll do it probably some time just after noon, first thing I'll do when I wake.
Possibly scaring the neighbors children aside, I'm really hoping that this works. I was methodical, all of the throttle shaft seals are replaced. I was looking at the ones I pulled out though, and they don't really look terrible. Now, I don't know what I'm supposed to be looking for as far as what a worn throttle shaft seal is supposed to look like, but I didn't see a terrible amount of difference between old and new. No tearing, rips that I could see, anything apparent like that. We'll know if they were the leak when I go outside tomorrow, install the carburetors, and come back singing of success or of woe.