lots of jobs, no clue on order

I have recently polished my carbs back to perfection and am waiting on 1 set of air jets which will take 2-4 weeks to arrive. I have a “to-do” list but am not sure the order of which to do them.

1) put the carbs back on “the rack” and align
2) check valves and do necessary work
3) decide to pull the engine or not (hopefully not) and inspect pistons etc.. (not sure what criteria I should judge this by)
4) replace plugs
5) replace oil
6) replace intake manifold boots
7)synch carbs including float level, fuel level, idle mixture screw… (remember I need those jets)
8)compression test? (not sure if this is necessary with new intake manifold boots and doing whatever valve work needs to be done
9)Mechanic said there is a “hole” somewhere in my exhaust that might be causing the bike to lose power, I have not inspected this further as I have been preoccupied with the Carbs


I don’t want to make myself do redundant work. For instance what’s the point of bike-synching the carbs if I am going to need to do work on the valves?

 

Since the carbs are already off, I would think that you should check and adjust the valve clearances first. Next do a compression test. Those results should tell you if any further motor work is required.

Next would be the intake manifolds. Do all that you can to insure that you don't snap off those bolts! Then reinstall the carbs, do a running sync., and Colortune.

Hopefully, that will get you running well. Good luck. Mike

 

I think the FIRST thing to do is a Compression Test.
Knowing if there is a MAJOR Discrepancy will save you from fooling around anything else other than preparing for a Ring of Valve Job.

What good does it do to adjust a Tight Valve if there's' a hole burned right through the Piston.

Values under Specs for psi require a Wet Compression Test.

 

Well said.

Aside from other potential problems if the valves are tight enough to bleed compression on a cold engine (they get tighter hot) you've likely got bigger problems than a lash adjustment (burned valves and seats).

Compression test is the first thing to do on a non or poor running bike.