Newbie, gasoline iin carb

[romans4-21]

Hi, I'm completely new, and have a 1980 550l. It was backed into my my friends dad a while back. I replaced everything and all was fine. I just got it out of storage from this last winter, and it has an oil leak, and wouldn't start. I took it to a mechanic friend, he took everything apart, cleaned the carbs and all, but said to carbs are still flooding. I would really like to get this on the road quickly, but don't have the faintest idea of what to do or where to start. It's got 8,000 miles on it and is great shape except for the carb problems. Should I get them rebuilt or is there an alternative? Thanks so much for the help.

[J_C]

How are they flooding? Into the cylinders? My guess would be that the needle valves aren't functioning properly. Could be the petcock as well

[doctorgonzo]

Coulkd well be the petcock. That would "flood" the carbs as well as overfill and thin the oil in the crankcase causing it to leak.

[Dogma]

Leaky petcock is chronic on these, and the '80 vacuum petcock has a particularly bad reputation. It may be that yours is just on prime, and the float needles can't prevent them from overflowing. There is a slot in the petcock you can stick a screwdriver into, and it should be in the horizontal position for run, vertical for prime. Pull the fuel line off the petcock (not off the carbs) and check that this works. Also make sure you get a good strong flow when it is on prime. These are just the first steps to getting everything right, but we'll get you there.

Welcome to the forum, son of Abraham. Got pics of the bike?

[doctorgonzo]

If as dogma points out, if it's on run, not left on prime, then pull the fuel line. If the bike isn't running, no fuel should come out (on the "Run" position). You can also then suck on the other line (the vacuum line) and the fuel should flow.