Hard to start and won't idle....

[JShapiro]

Okay, I've got the carbs disassembled and now I have a bunch of dumb questions:

The carbs look pretty dang clean. In fact, I'm not even sure it's worth taking the time to soak and wipe them down. Is this a bad idea to skip this step at this point? If I should clean them, what should I use?

How picky do I need to be about the condition of the surfaces? The jet needle (not needle jet) has some shiny spots on it that I imagine indicate some abrasion, although they look perfectly smooth and you can't see any indentation. The float needle has a ring on its taper from where it sits in the seat. Again, I can't see any indentation or pitting but you can see a difference in shiny-ness. Should I replace float needles and jet needles?

The o-rings on the pilot air screws are cracked. Should those get replaced?

The o-ring on one of the needle jets is in very bad shape. I am going to replace it. Could that be a main culprit in the problems the bike is having?

Can I use regular hardware store o-rings for this stuff or do I have to order special ones from a motorcycle shop?

The pilot air screws are a different shape than the ones in my Clymer manual. Below is a photo of my screw on top of the Clymer photo. Do I have the wrong screw and should replace it?

[cowboyup3371]

Get orings from www.cycleorings.com (Robert Barr is a member here and runs the place). There are passages you cannot see in those carbs so do it right and dip them in a can of Berryman's for 24 hours each.

[JShapiro]

Will Gumout carb and choke cleaner do as good a job as Berrymans? That's all they have in the small town I'm stuck in.

[tom203]

Let's see- you got old dried o-rings, probably shedding bits floating to little tiny orifices and likely clogging things up. Yes, clean them, no matter how "dang clean" they look. Someone will respond on where to get new o-rings for these carbs. Your carb cleaner guy saved a few bucks by not replacing them.

[pete]

If they don't have Berryman's, see if there's a Yamaha dealer close by you can get some Yamalube carb cleaner from, although I'm not sure if you guys have it in the US or not.

Edit: And yes, cycleorings.com, don't skip this or you will regret it!

[JShapiro]

Should I order the '80-'82 GS450 kit off of cycleorings.com? It seems to be the only thing for 2cylinder engines.

And should I replace my float and jet needles given how I've described their condition in my above post?

Lastly, is the different adjustment screw I showed in the above photo going to cause any problems?

I'm trying to order everything I'll need at once so as to minimize delays.

[pete]

I'm not sure how different the 78 carbs are to the later ones, but I do know the spring for the mixture screws is different (slightly larger on yours).

I'd get the kit and try it, most I would think would be the same...

[Steve]

While you probably can't do a proper carb cleaning out on the road, you maybe be able to do a valve check, if not a proper adjustment. ...

OK, so I didn't do it "out on the road", but I did do it in a motel parking lot.

When Mrs. Steve came to visit me a couple of weeks ago, she brought my box of shims.

I had a valve cover gasket here that I had just purchased from Z1, and did the shim shuffle right outside my motel door.

When I got done, I checked the carb sync and decided it was close enough that I was not going to try to improve it.

.

[pete]

OK, so I didn't do it "out on the road", but I did do it in a motel parking lot.

When Mrs. Steve came to visit me a couple of weeks ago, she brought my box of shims.

I had a valve cover gasket here that I had just purchased from Z1, and did the shim shuffle right outside my motel door.

When I got done, I checked the carb sync and decided it was close enough that I was not going to try to improve it.

.

I salute your enthusiasm and ability to "wing" it Steve (pun fully intended )! You definitely seem to have the knack for knowing just what to do with these beasts and any time someone gets confused or lost, more often than not there you are with a sensible solution that solves the issue...

You're definitely 100% added value to this forum Steve, and thanks for helping us all