Odd issue with starting with the stock airbox...

[Roadstergal]

I searched, and couldn't find anything like this.

Last night, I swapped the stock airbox in.  It ran with the pod; I won't say it ran well, but it started and it idled at the right RPM.    So, last night I popped the stock airbox back in.  All that required was reconnecting the breather and the normal tank disconnect and reconnect.  I went ahead and tried to start it.  The lights dimmed, it turned over once.  Hrm.  With Pavlovian determination, I tried again, and it cranked and fired - and didn't want to keep running without some throttle.  I looked down and saw gas coming out onto the floor.  Yikes!  I took the tank back off and looked around.  I couldn't see where the gas was coming from; the tops of the carbs were dry, the airbox was dry; it looked like it was coming from somewhere on the bottom of the carbs, but I couldn't see where.  It wasn't the drain screws; they both drizzled gas when I opened them and stopped when I closed them.  I checked the gas lines to make sure they weren't pinched.
Put the tank back on, reconnect the lines.  The starter acts like there's a position in the engine it doesn't want to turn; the lights dim and you get one long-suffering crank, and then it cranks fine.  The battery has 12V and change.  Ideas?

[ditchdoc1017]

Hose on the T at carbs tight?Mine was leaking there it was hard to see.

[The Buddha]

Hydrolock ... gas in chamber ... preventing it from turning over ... stcuk float or somehting.
Cool.
Srinath.

[Roadstergal]

I started it this morning, and it cranked and started like nothing ever happened.  And gas started coming out of the drain at the bottom of the airbox.  Does that go with stuck float?  And could I have done that by attaching the airbox?  It definitely happened at that point.
Whack it and try to drain?

Edit - never mind, I see what I need to do from Kerry's "Inspect floats without taking carbs off" writeup.  I think I see how that guy managed to adjust his with the carbs on the bike, too.

[scottpA_GS]

Sounds like maybee the vaccum line from the petcock is letting gas in? Pull your vaccum line off and run it on prime. see if gas is getting in from the petcock vaccum... Mine did that.  :dunno:  I dont see what installing the airbox could have done.

[Roadstergal]

OK, I'm getting really bloody tired of this.  I've tried adjusting the float with the Kerry on-bike method (bend the tab, readout the level on a clear tube attached to the drain) and the Clymer method (carbs upside-down, readout measurement of float bottom height - gave a higher level by the Kerry method), and with both... well, a slight improvement.  Instead of vomiting gas out of the airbox, it runs fine for a little less than a minute and then belches gas out of the airbox.  If I have to take the carbs apart again, I'm tempted to toss the blasted thing on eBay in parts.  I can think of all kinds of things I'd rather do than work on this thing on my weeknights.

[davipu]

I'd park it in the corner till april and sell it then. but that's just me

[Roadstergal]

[The Buddha]

OK its possible you have 1 or more bad O rings that let fuel in the bowl even if float is shut ... that brass spigot is notorious for that ...
Cool.
Srinath.

[Roadstergal]

Yeehaw.  I'll give that one a shot.

[The Buddha]

If you take the carbs off the bike ... blow test the float 1 at a time ... if still on the bike ... I guess pressure test with the tank and prime 1 at a time ... and I actually set them by eyeball these days ... and over a 100 times checking them (not just GS'es eli's, virago's, KZ's XS's XJ's ... ) I have pretty much caliberated my eyes to be able to set it entirely by eyeball ... You can do it ... just need to have good O rings in the brass spigot and the float assy too ...
Cool.
Srinath.