Throttle won't close all the way

[giganticflying]

Good point. I've got them mostly disassembled so I'll pull off the old o-rings, scrap off the old gaskets and dip them this weekend.

Since the throttle was frozen I checked the knobs (I think there are two of them on VM carbs?) and neither one of them were even touching the the throttle cable shaft thing. I'll fuss around with it when I get everything else done and start her up for the first time.

But that brings up the other problem I found. I can't move the throttle at all. My buddy said I should try to take the cables off and lube them and try it again. It just feels like the handle itself isn't moving. Any other suggestions? Should I start a new thread for that?

[chuck hahn]

Yes idle knob is the big one between 2 and 3. And as I said before, if you have VM carbs and the idle knob ISNT touching the throttle linkage, you need to loosen the 8 MM nut under the top covers and turn the snyc screw and observe the slides from the engine side. Once they are all the way down, THEN you start turning the crews till theres maybe a 10/1000 to 15/1000 sliver at the BOTTOM of the slides at the throats. Make all 4 look the same. That's the basic bench sync for VM carbs.

On CV carbs, you do the same thing with the nut and screws at the back of the carbs where they are all linked together except you are adjusting the bottom of the butterflies. Follow me?

[Big T]

You can't get all 4 carb bodies in the dip at one time

Best be off to O'Reillys and get started on one carb at a time -that will take 4 days right there

[OriginalOwner]

Good point. I've got them mostly disassembled so I'll pull off the old o-rings, scrap off the old gaskets and dip them this weekend.

Since the throttle was frozen I checked the knobs (I think there are two of them on VM carbs?) and neither one of them were even touching the the throttle cable shaft thing. I'll fuss around with it when I get everything else done and start her up for the first time.

But that brings up the other problem I found. I can't move the throttle at all. My buddy said I should try to take the cables off and lube them and try it again. It just feels like the handle itself isn't moving. Any other suggestions? Should I start a new thread for that?

I'm doing mine right now as well -- I'm just a day or so ahead of you and things are going well so far. Just got them all ganged back up and re-installed the choke actuator and bench synced them.

I leave the old O-rings until until I have the new ones...otherwise I forget where they go.

And I only dip the carb body in Berrymans for and hour or two. But I agitate/shake the can every 15 minutes or so.

Then wash them in the sink with hot water, dish soap and a toothbrush. That way, all the dirt and grime comes off and the finish remains intact.

Tip: If you have access to old guitar strings, cut them down to 5 inch pieces -- they make great carb cleaning tools.

You can't move the throttle on the carbs or on the handlebars?

[GateKeeper]

And I only dip the carb body in Berrymans for and hour or two. But I agitate/shake the can every 15 minutes or so.

Not long enough....if you ask me....

it's not going to break down any of the crap that might be inside the smaller passages etc....

.

[chuck hahn]

T...take the basket out of the can and you can do 2 side by side. Cuts the total DAYS down a few. And I use bread ties thru the holes in the jets and pilots and wire them to one of the bodies during the first round, and the float seats and other stuff to one during the second batch.

Everything is dipped and done in two days. Screws I just use the wire wheel on the bench grinder and polish them up. Brackets and other hardware get wire wheeled also.

[OriginalOwner]

Not long enough....if you ask me....

it's not going to break down any of the crap that might be inside the smaller passages etc....

.

I don't disagree with your theory but the directions on my new Berryman's can says a normal dip is 15-20 minutes with a 1/2 hour max. Otherwise it warns of damage to the finish.

I hate the look of those carbs that were soaked for too long -- they look dull and spongy.

For the visible crap, the 30 minutes didn't do the trick -- but the hour and a half with agitation sure did. Hopefully, the stuff I couldn't see met the same fate.

My carbs are in pretty good shape for being 32 years years old -- right now, they look nearly brand new.

I guess I won't know for sure until it's up and running.

[chuck hahn]

I do the full 24 as was directed by members here when I got started....because they had been there, done that, and KNEW BETTER!!!

They also knew that 30 year old carbs didnt have any "finish" left on them to be worried about. The 24 hrs hasnt made any carbs dark grey and stained them all ugly...thats all simple urban myths.

[GateKeeper]

I don't disagree with your theory but the directions on my new Berryman's can says a normal dip is 15-20 minutes with a 1/2 hour max. Otherwise it warns of damage to the finish.

I hate the look of those carbs that were soaked for too long -- they look dull and spongy.

For the visible crap, the 30 minutes didn't do the trick -- but the hour and a half with agitation sure did. Hopefully, the stuff I couldn't see met the same fate.

My carbs are in pretty good shape for being 32 years years old -- right now, they look nearly brand new.

I guess I won't know for sure until it's up and running.

And when it's not, it's going to be a real pain in the a$$ to pull them out and do it all over again...

But I do wish you luck, and hope it goes well on the first try...

.

[Nessism]

I never soak carbs longer than over night. Guess if your dip is old though it may take longer.

Stuck slides can often be removed after heating the carb body. Varnish forms between the carb body and the slide and heat breaks it down.

[OriginalOwner]

I do the full 24 as was directed by members here when I got started....because they had been there, done that, and KNEW BETTER!!!

They also knew that 30 year old carbs didnt have any "finish" left on them to be worried about. The 24 hrs hasnt made any carbs dark grey and stained them all ugly...thats all simple urban myths.

My 32 year old carbs definitely have their original finish. And it's not just the outside finish that I worry about having seen what ethanol can do to the inside of some carbs.

And yeah, it's no myth, I over-soaked my dirt bike carb a few years ago and destroyed the finish. They look like **** but I don't mind because it's a dirt bike -- my GS is mint, I'd mind.

And since I destroyed the finish, the dirt bike carb seems to collect debris a lot quicker and needs to be cleaned more often.

[Steve]

I don't disagree with your theory but the directions on my new Berryman's can says a normal dip is 15-20 minutes with a 1/2 hour max. Otherwise it warns of damage to the finish.

I am under the impression that those directions were written back when the chemical formula actually worked within that time frame. When they changed to a more "environmentally-friendly" formula, nobody bothered to update the directions.

It is not just a few of us here that HIGHLY recommend ignoring the directions or at least changing one word in them. Instead of reading "15-30 minutes" (as shown on my cans), it should read "15-30 HOURS".

Bottom line: do it for as little time as you want, but if you find that the carbs are still not working as they should, ...

.

[chuck hahn]

He will find out his own way Steve. all I can do is share to try and save the grief. Like i said..been there and done that.

[OriginalOwner]

[OriginalOwner]