In the expert opinion of the gsresource...

[makenzie71]

...what would be the result of the needles being on top of the retainers? I got back into the carbs and found that the circlips on the needles were on top of the retainers. The needles could just slip right up into the diaphram area any time. Three of them were hung up in the springs and weren't even visible from the bellmouth...just completely up there.

this on my '93 Kat 750 engine. It's been flooding out really bad, not even running on a couple of cylinders half the time, and just giving me all kinds of hell. Lots of backfiring, too.

[bluewool]

...what would be the result of the needles being on top of the retainers? I got back into the carbs and found that the circlips on the needles were on top of the retainers. The needles could just slip right up into the diaphram area any time. Three of them were hung up in the springs and weren't even visible from the bellmouth...just completely up there.

this on my '93 Kat 750 engine. It's been flooding out really bad, not even running on a couple of cylinders half the time, and just giving me all kinds of hell. Lots of backfiring, too.

I think the likely result of having your needles that high would be, flooding out really bad, not even running on a couple of cylinders half the time, and just giving me all kinds of hell. Lots of backfiring, too

[Dave8338]

My guess is a PO that had no clue, what they were doing.