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Cheap new parts?

  • Thread starter Thread starter bikerfox
  • Start date Start date
B

bikerfox

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Why are the brass parts for these carbs so expensive? Chapparal wants 30 bucks each bowl valve set and 8 dollars a jet!

AND im having trouble getting the screws off to seperate the carbs

Oh, any idea what that little brass plug is on the stalk that the main jet is screwed in to? What would happen if one is missing? Its on the side of the aluminum post
 
Last edited:
bikerfox said:
Why are the brass parts for these carbs so expensive? Chapparal wants 30 bucks each bowl valve set and 8 dollars a jet!

AND im having trouble getting the screws off to seperate the carbs

Oh, any idea what that little brass plug is on the stalk that the main jet is screwed in to? What would happen if one is missing? Its on the side of the aluminum post
Click to expand...

Hi,

Gee, I wish I knew what bike we were talking about. ;)

Shop around, there are lots of online parts vendors. Check the list here.

Use lots of PB Blaster and a little impact driver?

Would that plug be missing from the #2 carb? Isn't that where your petcock gets its vacuum line?

Good luck, keep us informed.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
 
Its a GS850.

No, the little (tiny!) plug is inside the fuel bowl, on the carb body
 
Um, you still need to be more specific. Different year 850s use different carbs. It's helpful to put your bike in your Signature, as I did.

If you haven't physically damaged the brass parts, there's no reason to replace them. They're easy to clean.

They're expensive because they are precision instruments.

For jets, I recommend jetsrus.com. Good prices, fast shipping, genuine Mikuni parts.
 
bikerfox said:
Oh, any idea what that little brass plug is on the stalk that the main jet is screwed in to? What would happen if one is missing? Its on the side of the aluminum post
Click to expand...

what year is your bike?
dont remember any such part that you're talking about on cv carbs
 
If you go to the GSR homepage and look in the Garage section, you will find two carburator rebuild tutorials: for the VM carbs (early GS bikes, pre 1980) and the later BS/CV carbs. These tutorials have the information you need to rebuild the carbs - including part names. Normally, there should be no reason to replace the jets. For O-rings, go to cycleorings.com and order the appropriate kit for your carbs. If you need float bowl gaskets, you can cut your own from gasket paper or order from Z1 Enterprises, dealer source, etc.

Good luck.
 
Ok, i found out, its the index pen for the needle jet.

And there is one reason, the previous owner mangled the jets to the point of very difficult extraction. 3 pilot jets and 1 air jet were shredded.

1980 GS850GL
 
And as far as getting the screws out to take the rack apart, if you don't have an impact driver you might as well forget about working on this bike until you get one... or you'll regret it. A cheap $14.99 special can be found at the auto parts store.
 
renobruce said:
go to Z1. Great prices.
Click to expand...

And GREAT service. They can get genuine parts for you as well.
I bought all my carb boots, air cleaner boots and stuff from them and even with freight costs they were still cheaper than buying genuine in OZ.
 
believe it or not, i couldnt get them out WITH an impact driver! they were that locked in. I kept soaking them with p'b blaster and they popped after a while, though some of the heads are destroyed now :D
 
If I had to guess, his comment might come from mixing the order of the carbs on reassembly, but I'm not entirely sure how'd one accomplish that, considering the fuel rail ports.

Just mark the carb bodies with a china marker (grease pencil) and keep in mind that a long soak in the dip can take the mark off, so don't forget to reapply.
 
The rubber parts between the carbs rarely need changed. If you have a fuel leak, you will notice it. The fuel tees are well-made precision parts locked in place; disturbing them can cause them to leak. The fuel inlet is a sealed system, and can cleaned with gumout and compressed air. If a visual inspection shows possible contaminants, it can be further cleaned with pipe cleaners or scotch-brite shreds blown/pushed through.
Carbs are a series of imprecise passages and precision surfaces. It is the precision surfaces that make it run correctly, and they are all removable. The locked together carb bodies only hold the passages, and 99% of the time those passages only need cleaned with solvent and blown out. I scrub varnished surfaces with berrymans, let it soak a while, scrub it some more with a toothbrush or scotch-brite pad pieces, then rinse with gumout (repeat as needed). A fine brush on a dremel tool will also take dried varnish off, even from the floats. It is much easier (and effective, in my opinion) to spend the time scrubbing surfaces than to disassemble/soak/clean/reassemble. Anyways, it is the precision surfaces that need most of the attention. They need to be soaked, cleaned, scrubbed, opened with fine copper wires, inspected, rinsed with gumout and blown out. Don't worry about mixing the jets when soaking and cleaning, they are all precision parts (just check that all the sets are matching).
Disassembly is a daunting task with the seized screws and flying springs, and reassembly is worse if you don't have 3 hands (or remember exactly how the synchronizer screws go). Newbies think this is the only way to go and it just isn't. I think it mostly causes more problems than it cures. I know that there are definitely times when disassembly is needed, but rarely. I have worked at several shops (ten years total) and have done hundreds of carbs, and probably 10 were disassembled.
And of course you don't have to destroy that wonderful black paint on some of your carbs..... :)
In a previous thread, Trippivot voiced a similar opinion.
 
Don, sorry if this sounds harsh but you sound like a dealership flat-rate mechanic looking to make a buck. Maybe you worked on late model bikes too much and you don't understand what's involved with getting a set of 30 year old Mikuni's back up to proper working condition? Not sure. What I am sure about is that short cuts are long cuts when it comes to these carbs. Hang around here for a while and you will read thread after thread about people that don't go deep enough into their carbs and they have to clean them "two or three" times before they get it right.

Your comments about not disturbing the gang or they will leak is particularly revealing - the gang MUST be broken up and the O-rings in between the carbs replaced. That is how you avoid leaks, not by side stepping the proper rebuild process.

Only in the case of a painted set of carbs would I consider using some other technique to clean the carbs - maybe boil in lemon juice and water.

Do the job right one time and be done with it. No short cuts.
 
When i seperated the carbs, the o rings disintegrated.

If they werent leaking now, they were going to soon. Hell, spraying them with solvent probably would have done it. :cool:

All in all, inside a carb there are some very small passages that simply spraying something into them will not completely clean them.
 
i dont think there is a replacement for a long soaking of the carbs

while it would be much easier not to separate the carbs, dipping the whole rack at once would require a lot of solvent
and if the fuel T orings happen to disintegrate in the process then you would have to separate them afterwards anyway

plus, getting acquainted with your carbs in fine details with flying springs and whatnot is a special pleasure when restoring old bikes :p
 
I have cleaned the carbs on both my bikes, the GS got a complete teardown and soaking in berrymans. I replaced all the o rings and cleaned the brass parts. The carb rack on my KZ was soaked in Hurrisafe carb cleaner. This carb cleaner is a rubber safe, biodegradeable carb cleaner. After soaking for about 24 hours, I used compressed air to clear out the passages. All of the brass parts were soaked and the reinstalled in the carbs. I can't really say which method was more effective but they both produced clean carbs.

If you need spare parts, I would buy a spare set of carbs off e-bay. You could easily spend lots of money if you have to buy the parts individually.
If you need gaskets or rubber o rings, I would use z1 enterprises or cycle orings.com
 
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