@#$%in A!

went to install carb rack this morning, and my number 3 air box boot was hard as a rock on the bottom. the other three were fine.... i didn't notice it when i pulled the carbs out, but i wasn't really looking. is there a way to recondition these, so i can ride while I wait for a replacement?

oem is available and only 14 bucks each, but does anyone have a cheaper/used source?

thanks..

 

broke a boot once on my dirt bike and got some black electric tape and sealed er up and got me back on the trail.
idk. if it would work in your situation but if it works you could probably ride till you get a new one in the mail.

 

i probably could, but its so hard that it won't seat itself on the carb. i'm gonna take a hair dryer to it later, but i'm pretty sure its too far gone.

 

well. shot it for five minutes with the hair dryer, and it got pliable enough to get on the carbs. for some reason, the 3 and 4 carbs seemed farther away than 1 and 2, but i'm pretty sure that the bad airbox joint has something to do with it, because #4 still seated correctly. Either way, i ordered a new one from the local dealer. Its sealed off right now, and if it stays that way i probably won't pull the rack out again until riding season is over (not long now), but if it ends up falling off, i'll have to make it sooner.

 

A Member showed be a neat trick to get the Airbox Boots Pliable and Soft so that they can be wrangled on to the Carbs without the big fight.

Wrap them in a wet towel and Microwave them for about 45 Seconds to a Minute.

They become nice and warm and easy to manage. Wreatling with them is much, much easier.

As for lining them up. The outside end ones have a slight bias to them. The middle two are straight.

 

Seen a maxim owner use a cut piece of auto radiator hose to replace the boots on his bike. :idea:

 

That's nice to know if you needed one "In a pinch" ... But, with the part not costing too much ... I'd rather have the shaped end in the Airbox ... which acts as the front end of a Velocity Stack.

But, having a way to go if you mess-up a part is always good to know.

 

When I was cleaning the engine to put in my 750 I tossed the airbox boots in the diesel fuel with the other engine parts. I pulled them out last the next day. They were quite soft and have been ever since. Not sure how hard they were at first since I only put them in to clean the oil off of them but it may work.

 

i jacked it up pretty bad trying to get it on. It still wants to slip off, as it kinda wrinkled up... i'm pretty sure that the #3 carb had a sticky float needle prior to cleaning, and gas must have pooled in the bottom of the boot at some point for some period of time. thats the only thing that i can think of that would cause only that one to be hard and the rest normal... oh well. the new one was cheap. do you just fold them up to get them in and out of the airbox, or do you have to take the airbox out and apart? thx

 

New ones?

I warm them up in a bucket of HOT water ... dry it off with Paper Towel and muscle it in the Airbox.

A dab of waterproof grease in the Locating Channel will help rotate it when you have to align the locating taps.