Can u clean carbs without separating?

[Suszukid]

82 GS550...I can easily remove and clean air jet, main jet, pilot jet and needle jet from 4 carbs without separating them. (I had them completely apart last summer. Soaked em, new O rings, all seemed good. Now it needs cleaning again)

If I clean only these brass jets what am I missing?
What is gained from separating carb bodies?
Are there pinhole-sized passages in carb body that must be soaked?

Can u re-assemble without moving air screws and preserve your synchronization?
Or does the needle valve clog like pilot jet and therefore must be removed?

Thanks for any help.

[Nessism]

Depends on how clogged up they are. If it's just the pilot jets then I'd do a partial tear down and spritz them out with carb spray.

[chuck hahn]

Full disassembly is the way to go...easier to handle and clean the outer surfaces of the individual bodies, do float hts, and most important..there are orings in the fuel tee and the 2 transfer tubes between the carbs which need to be removed and replaced as well.

[Steel Toed Tank]

You sure can!

You can also take a leak without undoing your pants, but would you really want to?

[chuck hahn]

Tank...that was funny as all heck...Speaking of having to pee..

[JEEPRUSTY]

Damn I just wrote several paragraphs on this.

it got deleted

anyways
do the job right and get the o-rings from robert barr of cycle o-rings.com

Its easy to get the carbs seperated. Rather than wailing on the unit with a impact driver you can drill the head of the screws such that they pop off allowing the threaded protion that remains to spin free.

I have done this then used hex headed bolts to put it all back together.

[Big T]

82 GS550...I can easily remove and clean air jet, main jet, pilot jet and needle jet from 4 carbs without separating them. (I had them completely apart last summer. Soaked em, new O rings, all seemed good. Now it needs cleaning again)

If I clean only these brass jets what am I missing?
What is gained from separating carb bodies?
Are there pinhole-sized passages in carb body that must be soaked?

Can u re-assemble without moving air screws and preserve your synchronization?
Or does the needle valve clog like pilot jet and therefore must be removed?

Thanks for any help.

Clean all the brass
Spray carb cleaner thru the passages, including air screws

The air screws have nothing to do with the sync

Since you cleaned them fully recently, you shouldn't have to do it again

[nuitdevotremort]

I think you'll get basically the same posts. Possible, yes. Advised? No.

Take the time to go through the disassemble, you won't regret it!