Carbs gushing.

[AMK]

I had the carbs rebuilt on an 83 1100L a couple of years ago with no problems. Yesterday I started the bike and all four carbs had a steady stream of fuel coming out. I took it for a ride to maybe bump the floats loose and two stopped leaking. After I shut it off they stopped leaking but when I started it up they leaked again. Is this a float problem or maybe valves? I had the valves adjusted last spring.

[tkent02]

The good news is your vacuum petcock is working, although it still might be seeping a little bit. But that's not the immediate problem.

Your floats are stuck down from lack of use. Tap on the float bowls with a big screwdriver handle while it's running, hopefully it will stop gushing. Might have to take it apart to unstick things, might not.

First check to see how much gasoline got into your oil.

[Nessism]

More good news is that gas can't make it into the oil while the engine is running. Bad news is your float needles are leaking. Time for some maintenance.

[tkent02]

Not leaking, stuck open. If they unstick they may work fine like the other two did. If they were leaking it would run fine, maybe just a tad rich, not gush out. The thing is the gushing, where exactly is it gushing out from? The '83 carburetors had no overflow tubes, so if it is gushing out it would be good to know where it's gushing from. Airbox?
The gas in the oil would come from the petcock not quite shutting off, if that is the case. Floats stuck down would let anything that gets past the petcock get into the oil, whether or not they seal. Don't know if it is leaking but it's better to unscrew the filler cap and take a sniff to find out about any gas that might be in the oil rather than wait until it screws up the engine.

[BassCliff]

Hi,

We're pretty much a bunch of 'do-it-yourself' types around here. Information will be your friend. Start by hitting the link in my sig file and visit the BikeCliff website. Click the READ ME link first to get the basic maintenance required for these classic bikes. Then go through all of the CV carb tutorials to learn how to clean and maintain your carbs. Properly cleaned and maintained carbs are a must. Welcome aboard.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[AMK]

Thanks guys,
The fuel appears to be coming from the upper part of the carburetors and running down and dripping from the drain bolt on the bowls. I can see it sheeting down the sides of the bowls. I agree with the float problem but that threw me when I shut it off and they stopped. It only gushes while running. Thanks again and I really do love the L.

[mrbill5491]

Pull them off and clean and readjust the floats.

[tkent02]

Maybe the bowl gaskets are missing, or is it leaking above that?

[Datsa Noydb]

This one is interesting because there is no fuel in the "upper part of the carburetors".

[jdvorchak]

This one is interesting because there is no fuel in the "upper part of the carburetors".

Float bowl gaskets are probably leaking too bad to let it go any higher....

I had a KZ550 that would always stick one float. It was No. 4 so easy to tap with a screwdriver handle. It would do that every morning. I got tired of it so I took out the carbs again and this time I made sure the hinge pin was clean as a whistle and also lightly burnished the sides of the float needle and sides of the needle seat. Never leaked again. I could not get it to stick when apart before but reasoned it must be that the hinge pin and/or the needle was sticking.

[AMK]

Very good, thanks guys. You've given me a good place to start. I have my first tank of non ethanol fuel in now. It's just recently available to me. I'll pull the bowls and clean and check the rubber. Would it start and stop leaking from gaskets? I would think that would be continuous. I'm going to attack the floats and needles. I found a video on this forum from a guy who has the exact problem. I'll look it up and post who it is.