Troubleshooting Assistance with Starting

[Steve]

I should explain my carb cleaning further. I followed the following tutorial: http://www.mtsac.edu/~cliff/storage/gs/Mikuni_BS-CV_Carburetor_Rebuild_Tutorial.pdf
The only step I did not do it seperating the carb bodies.

Sadly, that is one of the important steps, sorry you felt it was OK to skip.

Although this was my first time, I did it with someone who has decades of motorcycle carb cleaning. Yes, it was fully disassembled, but I did not use the conventional carb dip. This was a suprise to me: I used Pynsol. It was scrubbed, then soaked over night, then scrubbed again, and soaked again. We then did the detail work of cleaning out all orifices. I took two days to accomplish this. I first thought this was crazy, but it worked incredibly well. I don't know if this is normal, but this technique worked exceptionally well. Pynsol thourougly cleans the carbs without the cons associated with dip. It did clean the entire setup clean as a whistle. The Pynsol dip re****ed in stripping everything out of it. I was very pleased with the outcome, so I don't think I have any melted o rings.

No, you probably don't have any melted o-rings, but you probably don't have all the gunk out of the passages inside the carbs, either. Pine-Sol is a great de-greaser and will make the carbs LOOK great and clean, but it's the little passages inside the carbs that get gummed up with evaporated gasoline residue that requires chemicals to dissolve, not detergent.

Also, previous posts mentioned it may be a voltage problem. I forgot to mention I did install a high power headlamp. I plan on disconnecting the headlamp, do a cold start up, and then see the result.

How "high-power" is your light? The wiring on the bike might not be able to handle it, let alone the charging system.

Steps can be taken, if necessary, to enable use of a high-powered light, but so far, your tendency to take shortcuts prevents me from offering any suggestions.

A question about using the prime. How long should I set it on prime prior to starting it? Are we talking 20 seconds, or 5 minutes?

30 seconds or so will usually suffice, certainly no more than a full minute. And, that is only if the carbs are DRY. If you have ridden the bike within the last week or two, you should not have to use PRIme at all.

If I need to redue the carb rebuild and choose to dip it, what is the recommendation for carb dip, and where can I get some (i.e. brand, vendors, etc.)?

Going back to the tutorial that you said you followed, look on page 9. There is a can of GUNK brand carb dip shown. Most of us prefer to use Berryman's Carb Cleaner Dip, as we have seen the GUNK dip leave a bit of a film on the parts that is harder to rinse off. I get my Berryman's at Auto Zone, Advance Auto, Pep Boys, Wal-Mart, just about anywhere that car parts are sold. You are looking for a gallon-size can, like the can shown in the tutorial. It will have about three quarts of fluid in it so you don't overflow anything when you dip the parts. Not too long ago, a can was about $20, but I have since seen it for about $28, and other have said they can still get it for about $22, so prices do vary a bit, based on your location. One good thing about the carb dip is that it will last a long time. I still have a can that I got seven years ago. Much of the fluid is gone, but I still use it for cleaning up cruddy nuts and bolts, so there is some crud sitting on the bottom of the can, but the fluid still cleans well.

Please note that you do not want to dip any non-metallic parts in Berryman's or GUNK. Remove all the jets and screws, and any o-rings that might be sealing them. Remove the diaphragm. Remove the "choke" plunger. It is OK to leave the throttle butterfly and shaft in place. For some reason, the seals on the shaft do not seem to be affected by the dip.

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[Emshri]

Thanks to Steve for the information (don't know how to use the quote function yet) for the info. I did a quick search and can find it at my local Autozone for $28 a gallon.

It sounds like I may need to start the process all over to get a thourough cleaning.

Stepping on the box- For the senior members, remember many of us (like me) have many years of riding, but now want to start turning wrenches on our own bikes; however, we are inexperienced and look to your guidence (i.e. "your tendency to take shortcuts"). Think of it as passing the torch. I'm sure all was not hunky-dory when you started.

Ok, now I'm stepping off the soap box.

[Steve]

Thanks to Steve for the above information (don't know how to use the quote function yet)

Look down in the lower right corner of any post. See the "QUOTE" button? Press it, it will take you to a window where you can type your own comments after the quote. You can also edit out parts of the quote that are not relevant to your comments, so you don't have to quote long posts entirely.

If you want to quote more than one person's post, there is another button next to that, it has quote marks and a plus sign on it. Click that, it will put that post in the queue. Continue clicking on other posts using the multi-quote button until you get to the last one you want to quote. Hit eh "QUOTE" button on that one, you will go to the edit window.

Preview all your posts, to make sure you have not done something strange to any formatting.

I've never used it, so I have a question. I hope it is not a one time use item. How many uses can I get out of a gallon? At what point do I need to replace the dip?

Evidently your use of shortcuts involves reading, too. Look at my post again. Better yet, here is a quote from it, with a bit of emphasis.

One good thing about the carb dip is that it will last a long time. I still have a can that I got seven years ago. Much of the fluid is gone, but I still use it for cleaning up cruddy nuts and bolts, so there is some crud sitting on the bottom of the can, but the fluid still cleans well.

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