Where's this breather go?

[Wallowgreen]

In the process of taking the carburetors off my 1982 GS1100GL to strip them etc. and after taking the stock airbox off I found a breather pipe sticking up on the left side of the machine (as you sit on it) that leads down under the engine and ends on the right hand side of the machine.

It looks like it came off the airbox somewhere but I can't see anywhere to connect it to. Anyone able to give me a clue where this should connect?

In the picture the back of the carbs are just visible top left and the shot is looking in from the left side of the machine.

[Steve]

Kinda looks like the drain hose that attaches to the bottom, left side of the airbox.

#6 in this picture:

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[Dave8338]

Wayward carb vent tube?

[bwringer]

I think that would be the hose that connects to the little cup around the fuel level sender under the fuel tank.

Most people just toss this hose -- it's only there in the unheard-of event that the fuel level sender leaks.


The airbox drain is thicker and should either be attached to the airbox or have the fitting still on the end.

[Wallowgreen]

Yeah, definitely not the airbox breather underneath the airbox, that's still attached.

Thing is I don't think I disconnected this in the first place and I know which pipe was mentioned under the gas tank, I'll check that but it does seem a little low to have reached all the way up under the tank. The carb vent pipes are still with the carb's on the bench also -- it's a mystery!

So I have a couple of further questions:

1. when preparing the carb bodies for dipping, I leave all the throttle linkage on each body - right? There's some kind of washer that looks like it might be bakelite, they will survive the dipping process will they? Can't see this in the picture with the notes as the carb body shown has this at the bottom but there's nothing in the notes about taking the throttle actuation stuff off the body.

2. the needle valve seat with the filter mesh on the end, is this part ok to dip? I think I can see it in the picture showing the small parts ready for dipping in the notes but not sure. I'd hate to dip it to find the mesh is made of plastic or some other material that would not survive the dip.

Thanks again gents, as always help really appreciated.

[bwringer]

Yeah, definitely not the airbox breather underneath the airbox, that's still attached.

Thing is I don't think I disconnected this in the first place and I know which pipe was mentioned under the gas tank, I'll check that but it does seem a little low to have reached all the way up under the tank.

So I have a couple of further questions:

1. when preparing the carb bodies for dipping, I leave all the throttle linkage on each body - right? There's some kind of washer that looks like it might be bakelite, they will survive the dipping process will they? Can't see this in the picture with the notes as the carb body shown has this at the bottom but there's nothing in the notes about taking the throttle actuation stuff off the body.

2. the needle valve seat with the filter mesh on the end, is this part ok to dip? I think I can see it in the picture showing the small parts ready for dipping in the notes but not sure. I'd hate to dip it to find the mesh is made of plastic or some other material that would not survive the dip.

Thanks again gents, as always help really appreciated.

The little mesh filter on the needle seat will just pop off -- don't dip it or it will melt the nylon ring that clips the metal mesh to the needle.

You don't really need to dip the needle seat unless it's gummy anyway. If it is, just pop the filter mesh off before dipping, clean it separately with carb cleaner and a toothbrush, and snap it back on before reassembly.



Not 100% sure about the throttle linkages. I've never removed them totally and it's always turned out OK.



As far as that mystery hose, it's not connected to anything at the bottom -- it's just a drain to the ground. I bet it's slipped down and the other end is resting on the centerstand or the ground.

If it were one of the carb vent hoses, I'd think it would have more of a curve in the visible end.

[paco13]

battery over flow? If batt. was replaced with sealed AGM it won't have the nipple so maybe thats what the hose to nowhere is from.

[Wallowgreen]

The little mesh filter on the needle seat will just pop off -- don't dip it or it will melt the nylon ring that clips the metal mesh to the needle.

You don't really need to dip the needle seat unless it's gummy anyway. If it is, just pop the filter mesh off before dipping, clean it separately with carb cleaner and a toothbrush, and snap it back on before reassembly.



Not 100% sure about the throttle linkages. I've never removed them totally and it's always turned out OK.



As far as that mystery hose, it's not connected to anything at the bottom -- it's just a drain to the ground. I bet it's slipped down and the other end is resting on the centerstand or the ground.

If it were one of the carb vent hoses, I'd think it would have more of a curve in the visible end.

Brian, I went back out to the garage and looked at the needle seat and sure enough there's a plastic collar holding the mesh on. This thing was so full of crud, I completely missed that before so thanks for the heads up on it. How this bike ever ran before is beyond me, everhting in #1 is either blocked with crud or in poor state somehow. At least the PO was honest when he said it hadn't been started in 18 months.

So far I've got the carbs off the machine, separated them and stripped #1, then it was deemed necessary by she who must be obeyed that we go "shopping". In the interests of keeping the peace, I went shopping.

Let's see what tomorrow brings....

[bwringer]

battery over flow? If batt. was replaced with sealed AGM it won't have the nipple so maybe thats what the hose to nowhere is from.

That's a good thought, too.

I forgot about that possibility because I switched to AGM batteries a while back myself.

[bmac]

Well, while you are at carb o'haul be sure to get those pilot jets cleaned out and be careful removing them. At times, those can be a PITA to remove. Apply a little heat if they are hard to remove to avoid stripping the heads which then leads to more problems. Also, while you have the carbs off, replace the intake o'rings. 15 minutes worth of work to eliminate hours of frustration later. I would also peek inside that tank and see what condition it is in, perhaps have it boiled out and sealed if there is rust present. You don't want to make a habit of removing those carbs to clean because of issues with rust particles floating around in your cleaned out carbs. I hate to be trying to spend your money, but I would also be looking at the petcock. These do not last forever. At least take it off and clean the filter reinstall and bench test with a vaccum source to see if it operating correctly. Their is nothing worse than sorting out all the issues and getting all problems solved having a crankcase full of gas from a faulty petcock. Also if that line is longer than 16" it probably is the gas tank sending unit collar drain, incase the unit leaks as stated. Good luck and have fun!!!!!! bmac

[Wallowgreen]

The latest on the breather is that it looks like it might be from the battery as suggested. The current battery has a clear drain and doesn't look stock. Nothing else seems to add up anyway, the breather from the sender unit on the gas tank is still attached to the tank and it's the right size for the battery drain.

I've changed all the o-rings on the intake boots but can't seem to find anything to tell me what the correct torque setting is to put them back on. I seem to remember when I did the 850, I found a torque setting somewhere (I thought it came on the notes with the o-ring kit) and I recall it talking about not tightening more than recommended otherwise it will shorten the life of the o-rings. Can anyone tell me what it should be?

Thanks again.