New Member, Carb removal Gs550e

[Guest]

Hello,

I am new to these parts. Well sort of new, I have been lurking for awhile. I got a "free" 1980 GS550E from a friend who needed to get it out of his storage locker. It seems to be in good condition. It's not beat to snot. Well when I got it I tried to get it running but the petcock was leaking and the battery was dead. I did get it to start and run a little before I gave up for the time being. It sat for another 2 years in my garage waiting for me to have the time. Well I ordered a new petcock and battery. Stuck both in just to see what would happen. Well it just turns over but no fire. I figured carbs need to be cleaned so that's where I'm at. One thing I did notice, When I pulled the tank the brand new petcock poured out fuel. It is set on the "on" position and still it flowed fuel. The leaver was very hard to move at first when I got it so I'm wondering if the vacuum side may also be just stuck. Anyone every have that? Next is the carbs on this thing. Is there a way to loosen the air box at all? I have the air cleaner out but can't see where to get any movement out of it to help me out. After that I will hope to attempt to start it again. Oh I did change the oil and filter.

Thanks

[tkent02]

Loosen the rear inner fender, the battery box, the steel part of the air box and anything else that prevents the plastic half of the air box from moving aft. This will gain you almost an inch of space to work. The carburetors will come out but it's as hard a job as on as any GS, and a lot harder than most.

Yeah if you left gas in the system for two years it's probably going to be all clogged up. Next time drain the float bowls and disconnect the fuel line before it sits. If the petcock isn't shutting off and it hasn't sat with fuel in it for years there's a problem with it. Take it apart and see what's wrong.

[smilinbrad]

I have an 80 550 and the air box is a pia! I recall there are two screws on top of the airbox and one on the right side in amongst the various electrical bits that prevent you from moving it back. Even then you have to kinda rotate the carb bank after you pull them free from the intakes before you can wiggle it out the left side. Unscrewing the adjusters for the choke and the carb cables gives a little more wiggle room too. Perseverance and patience are required.

[team wild]

Thanks for the advice. Another question. I have the petcock that only has "ON" and "RES" but no prime. Instead it has a screw that has something to do with it. How do I use this thing? I think this may be some of my petcock issues. Is there a manual for it somewhere?

[team wild]

petcock.jpg
Here is a pic of my old petcock. The new one is like it just cleaner. I know the screw next to the lever has something to do with the prime feature, just not sure how it works.

[wymple]

I have an 82 GS550 that I also got for free, with only 4279 miles on it. Those carbs are close to the ultimate PITA. I refuse to try and put it all back on stock, even if I have to make something else. Common sense took the day off when that crap was being designed. To make matters worse, if the carbs aren't spot on after all your trouble, you may be looking at having to do it again.

[Mr.humbucker]

First step is to ensure you have loosened the rubber manifold clamps fully. Next remove the screws in the front top of the air filter box where you foam air filter is kept. The last bolt to remove is the one on the side of the air filter box where all the electrical stuff is hooked to. There are two other screws that are located beneath the plastic air box, you should not have to loosen or remove these. They are a pain to locate and remove and you should not need to. Once these bolts and scres are out the air box should tilt up enough to pull th carbs up ond out of the airbox rubbers. Once clear you should
be able to manhandle the carbs out of the rubber manifolds that are connected to the head. Flexible rubber helps and sometimes the clamps will make it tough to work the carbs out. I usually remove them completely to give me the max amount of flex to work with. For reassembly new manifolds are a good idea but cost around a hundred bucks or better. Soaking the old ones in wintergreen oil apparently brings the old rubber back to life and makes the bike smell like chewing gum!

To clean the carbs there are a ton of tips and directions here to help you do a great job! There is a great video on how to do it by a fellow motorcyclememoir is his youtube handle. Get new o rings from the fellow they recommend on this site.

[team wild]

Thanks for all the help. I need to get back in the garage and try all this stuff. Anyone have any ideas how my petcock works?

[tkent02]

Loosen that screw to turn on the Prime function. Screw it back in to turn it off. The lever just selects between On and Reserve.
Don't believe the guitar man, a lot of stuff has to come off a GS550 to get the carburetors off. Everything has to move back.

[Mr.humbucker]

I would suggest you give my method a try ... I have 3 550's and have R&R the carbs a dozen times. They come off and go back on just as I have described. To reinstall a little WD40 on the carbs and rubber helps a lot. If my method works for you, you have made life just a little simplier for yourself. If it does not work for you, you can, as the mega poster suggests, remove a few more items to gain some room to work with. The bottom two scews in the airbox housing beneath the rubber are difficult to reach and re-install should you choose to remove them. If you do I would suggest you use a magnetic screw driver to hold on to the screws when you go to reinstall them. It is a Tight awkward area to work in beneath the carbs and above the engine espesially to see what you are doing. I replaced those screws with M5 10 cap scews/hex heads. I used a short allen wrench to get in there to tighten them up. The cap screws are easier to install and tighten. Good luck.

[team wild]

Thanks for all the help. I ended up taking about everything off. I am now waiting for it to be a little warmer out to remove the carbs. The rubber boots are so stiff in the cold. It keeps snowing here. I did end up taking off the bottom screws to the airbox, the whole time I'm thinking these will be fun to get back on. I'm sure some cuss words will fill the room hahaha. I was thinking maybe magnetizing my long screw driver.

[team wild]

ok warmer weather so i got the carbs out. I started to take them apart for cleaning. All 4 main jets are so clogged you can't see thru them. Cylinder #2 carb didn't have any fuel in the bowl and the bowl had a bunch of junk in the bottom. I just stuck a couple carbs in some Gunk dip. I am amazed how nasty these things are. No wonder this thing wouldn't start. The little tubes going into the Bowls are totally clogged. I hope these things clear up.