Carburetor Manifold Boots? (is that the name?)

[countzen]

Well, I just removed my first carburetor from my first motorcycle after being quoted $420 for 'cleaning' my 4 carburetors.... on my 1981 Suzuki GS550(L?)

I have been de-carb-virginized! I was pretty afraid of doing it, but it wasn't as hard as i thought... nerve wrecking.. i tried to document everything with pictures, until the end when i had my hands full trying to remove the carb.

Anyway, i have several questions, but I will just focus on one per topic.

These things just FELL apart when i removing the carburetors, is that suppose to happen? I mean the rubber parts seperated and ripped fromthe screws and everything! http://flickr.com/photos/countzen/22617923/

Was there something I was suppose to do? Did I do something wrong?

[Hoomgar]

Well I looked at your photo's and I don't see the problem but if your saying that the rubber boots that bolt to the engine that the carbs go into crumbled when you took the carbs out then yes that is an issue. They were old and dry rotted and will need replaced.

[countzen]

??

How malible are they when they are brand spanking new? If they are as stiff as I have them now... it's gonna be a bizznatch to put the carb back in.

http://flickr.com/photos/countzen/22626659/

[Hoomgar]

Re: ??

How malible are they when they are brand spanking new? If they are as stiff as I have them now... it's gonna be a bizznatch to put the carb back in.
http://flickr.com/photos/countzen/22626659/

They should be fairly soft and pliable. If you can't bend the side of one the whole way in and have it pop right back out without showing any dry cracks in the sides then they are shot. They need to seal 100%

If they leak at all you cannot get the bike setup correctly. If they are showing signs of wear, (cracking, crumbling, stiffness) then I would replace them. If this is the type that uses o-rings replace those too. Even if the boots turn out to be good. Check the o-rings, often they need replaced. You need a positive seal at this spot or it is a no go situation.

To put the carbs back in you can preheat the boots and the air box boots with a hair dryer to make them more pliable.

[Anonymous]

As Hoomgar said. I would add that you may have some trouble getting the screws holding those boots off. Use a manual impact driver (about $10-$15 at a good hardware or car parts store), or you can try cutting a larger slot in them with a hacksaw or dremel tool and then use a larger flat screwdriver. It worked for me. Then replace them with allen head bolts and use some anti-seize compound or axle grease on the new bolts to keep them from seizing in the future.

Additionally, if your intake boots are as bad as they sound, you will also want to check, and probably replace, the rubber boot/hose between the airbox and carbs. These can harden and prevent a good seal between the airbox and carbs--another place where leaking air can screw up efforts to get the carbs tuned just right.

Both sets of boots are available from crotchrocket.com for a pretty fair price, but should also be available from a good local Suzuki dealer (where I got mine). Wait times are about the same I think. When installing, both sets of boots/hoses are designed to fit left or right, so be mindful that it may take a bit of experimenting (particularly with the airbox hoses/boots) to get the best fit.

After that, the carbs should pop in and out pretty easily. I usually pop #4 (all the way to the right) in first and tighten down it's clamp. Then I pop #1 and the rest in between in. (While trying to get the floats set, I must have done this close to a dozen times since installing my new boots, so it's not much trouble.)

Finally, it's a good idea to hit each boot/hose with some silicone spray before installing them to help keep them pliable. Then, each year during spring cleaning/maintenance, it won't hurt to repeat the silicone spray treatment. Same for all the other rubber on the bike. But now I digress . . .

Good luck.

[countzen]

Hehe...

Thanks for the info!

I am going to order a new set of boots online. I haven't tried to remove those yet, but I guess I should.. I will try this weekend.

BTW, the diaphragm and the internal parts are in excellent condition, except for one broken hinge, which apparently was being held together by some sort of glue. Any idea what will hold metal to metal??

I now have more issues with carburetor..... in that I think it's not the one that came with the bike originally!! I will post a new question later on after I take pictures.

[Anonymous]

Re: Hehe...

BTW, the diaphragm and the internal parts are in excellent condition, except for one broken hinge, which apparently was being held together by some sort of glue.[b] Any idea what will hold metal to metal??

Are you referring to the "posts" that the carb floats mount to? If so, this is what I was referring to when I mentioned being careful tapping the pin out that holds in the float. If this is the case, it looks like someone earlier may have broken it off and tried to JB weld it back, which most people tell me won't work.

When I first got my bike, the same thing had happened with someone previously. In the end (and after buggaring up my carbs trying to remove the mixture screw), I bought a replacement set of used carbs. When I was going through them to overhaul them, I broke the float post off #2 carb (the same that was broken on my original carbs--the irony).

It broke at an angle, so to fix the post, I ground down the breaks flat with a dremel tool. Then I drilled a small hole (with a drill press) in the base and in the broken post. Then I screwed an appropriate sized screw into the hole and cut off the top. Then I slid an appropitately sized nut over the threads sticking up (to take up the lost portions of the post that were ground off). And lastly, I screwed the broken post onto the small screw.

You may want to even by a small tap and tap the holed to match the screw. I tried that, but didn't have much success, and ended up letting the screw's threads sort of self tap the holes. You'll also want to make sure that the tops of both posts are even in the end.

This is what is meant by using your jeweler's skills. Other's on this site have done the same, and my brother tells me stories of friends doing the same on their Honda CB750s and having long-term success.

Good luck.

[countzen]

Update to my Rebuild Process!!

I finally got around to taking off the old Manifold Boots:

http://flickr.com/photos/countzen/35392317/

http://flickr.com/photos/countzen/35392318/

ANd Installed Brand New ones!!

http://flickr.com/photos/countzen/35392316/

Lots-o-work required with Impact Screw Drivers, I thought I was destroying the screw/Engine half the time.

And then while I was on it, I replaced the Old broken turn signal.. I didn't know I had to take the headlight off, and then open it up to get to the wires.

http://flickr.com/photos/countzen/35392315/

Anyway, will keep you all updated, and THANKS for all the advice!!

[duaneage]

The boots were probably what was giving you trouble in the first place, If the carbs are not too dirty inthe bowls try and replace the boots and reinstall everything to see if it runs better.

Forget the phillips head screws, use 10 mm bolts available from Homne depot or Lowes. They even have allen head bolts. This way you can easily remove them in the future.

[jimcor]

Re: Carburetor Manifold Boots? (is that the name?)

Well, I just removed my first carburetor from my first motorcycle after being quoted $420 for 'cleaning' my 4 carburetors.... on my 1981 Suzuki GS550(L?)

I looked at a shop's on line page for Mikuni carb restoration service. If your carbs needed: new parts (parts were not included in the $100 per body clean and resto fee [dual throat $150/body]), float post rebuilding, needle extraction or any kind of machining to go with the rebuild you could spend close to $1000.

[countzen]

Carb Rebuild Pricing

Yeah!! I paid $700 for the bike!!

So, I ordered rebuild kits, which were ~$20 for each carb (~$80 total) and just went to work on it myself.

My carbs already rebuilt, but I forgot to check clearnance stuff so I have to open it up again, but otherwise it's ready to stick back into the bike.

Hopefully I'll do it this weekend.

[Sleepy]

Where did you get the carb holders from? How much did you pay? I'm likely to need some soon.

[RichSPK]

Which end up?

I was installing new boots on my '80 GS1000G just now and was careful to put the ones marked "R" on the right cylinders and the ones marked "L" on the left cylinders, but then I realized that I don't know which end of the boots is supposed to be facing up! Is the "L" or "R" supposed to be on the top of the boot or the bottom?

Thanks!

[RichSPK]

Re: Which end up?

I was installing new boots on my '80 GS1000G just now and was careful to put the ones marked "R" on the right cylinders and the ones marked "L" on the left cylinders, but then I realized that I don't know which end of the boots is supposed to be facing up! Is the "L" or "R" supposed to be on the top of the boot or the bottom?

Thanks!

I'll answer my own question. The cylinders are tilted forward and you want the carburetors to be more or less horizontal. That means the carb boots have to be angled downwards, thus the "L" or "R" should be on the bottom of the boot when installed. I hope this helps someone else!