Carb Float Height Confusion

[Guest]

So now I'm ready to set the float height on my carbs, BS32 Mikunis. The book says 22.4 +/-1 mm is the correct setting. When i measure mine its at 20 mm. That's 2 mm out (or around 1/8 of an inch in real measurement units ). Can they be that far out and if so, how did they get that way? I'm sure of the measuring technique I used, its the same as the photo in the book. Am I missing something? I don't want to reset to a way-off measurement.

[Larry D]

Bend the tab and make them right. Mine were off 5mm.

I always wondered how they could be that far off. I think what happened in my case was that the po replaced the floats and just dropped them in without ever setting the height correctly.

[BassCliff]

Hi Mr. Flaggo60,

Also note that the measurement is from the rim of the carb without the float bowl gasket. I've read here that it's best to get the height set right in the middle of the range. But I'm glad there's a "range" because nothing is perfect.

Carb Specs-Float Height-Jetting

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[JTsGS650]

Not so fast. How's the bike running? If all is okay and your plugs look good I would leave them alone. After rebuilding my carbs i noticed that my float heights were off as well. This was due to the fact that the springs in the float needles were sagging. So when I measured them they appeared low. When you measure your float heights, look at where the float 'tang' touches the float needle and see if the spring is being compressed when you flip the floats upside down. I don't think this affects anything except being able to accurately set float height. So if it's running okay leave it be. Otherwise a replacement set is available through Z1 enterprises for about 20$. Gool luck.

[tejasmud]

I usually start at the OEM height with a stock bike then if it runs great so be it.

I find it sometimes necessary to alter the height to get the best low end so the engine will accept full throttle from around 2.5k rpms without a dead spot.

That PO might have been me. Sorry for the confusion....

[cp___32]

I asked a similar question last week, and put a post up to confirm that I was measuring the floats from the correct spot. My needle valves were a little saggy so I when I turned the carbs upside down the floats sat much lower than they should. You have to hold them with your finger to the point where they just start to contact the needle and take the measurement at that level. Flipping them over and letting the floats settle on their own might not be quite where they should be measured from depending on the condition of your needles

[Flaggo60]

I asked a similar question last week, and put a post up to confirm that I was measuring the floats from the correct spot. My needle valves were a little saggy so I when I turned the carbs upside down the floats sat much lower than they should. You have to hold them with your finger to the point where they just start to contact the needle and take the measurement at that level. Flipping them over and letting the floats settle on their own might not be quite where they should be measured from depending on the condition of your needles

Boy that really puts a ton of guesswork into the process! I adjusted the floats according to the 'book' as well as per the conversation that came up on this thread earlier and found that the tangs had to be approximately 20 degrees down now to meet the specs. I'm now thinking that this is totally out to lunch because the bike doesn't start, it just churns away and backfires once. Not sure if that is the source of the problem, as I also did a thorough cleaning and changed all O-rings, and also installed a Dynojet kit, (but according to the meager instructions that came with the kit, starting and idling should not be affected.)

Not sure where to go from here.