99 No low end power. Carb issues

[jonny5neal]

So let me start this off with a little back story, as usual.  I put the bike in a heated storage about a year and a half ago.  I changed the petcock out, as the diaphragm in the petcock deteriorated.  With that, I changed the fuel line to the carbs as it was dryrot as well.  Put some sta-bil in the gas and put her up.

Didn't ride the bike in 2012, was preoccupied and never had a chance.

Spring 2013.
Pull the bike out of storage, start it up, and it runs rough.  Not much response with the pull of the throttle.  bike will not stay running with the choke off after being warm.  I realize that
1.  The new fuel line is paper thin now, as it was not before (turns out i was sold a hose that was not fuel rated, and the gas had melted the inside of the fuel line.)
2.  I get the bike home, pull off the gas line and find rubber bits in the petcock port, and bits inside the carb bowls.  Damn.
3.  I disassemble the carbs and clean them out, pull the jets, clean them, replace some old vacuum o rings in the carbs under the cap, run thin guitar strings through the clogged jets, put on new fuel lines and start it up.

The bike starts and runs rough still, but will stay running. It is responsive at higher RPM's, but i have to baby the throttle to get it up to the higher range.  I re-cleaned the carbs 3 more times after that, and placed a fuel filter 2 inches back from the lower inlet T on the carbs. 

Still running rough.

I take it to the local shop as I cannot figure it out anymore. 
i was told that the carbs are still dirty (hard to believe), as I have sprayed them with carb/choke cleaner multiple times and took a toothbrush to them, soaked the jets.

Technician tells me that one of the cylinders is not kicking in all the time.  He gets it back to the shop and has to clean the carbs every time.  I asked him if the fuel filter had stuff in it (little black rubber bits), and he says no, but there are some floating around in the carb somewhere. 

Anywho, they quote me $400+ to see if they can fix it, and i tell them no. I am handy and can work on engines.  But where to go from here?  I am going to pick it up, take the carbs all the way apart again, even pull the air screw, and soak them.  What should I soak them in?  for how long?  Should i order new Pilot an main jets?  Running stock everything. 

Any insight would be a great help! 
Watching bikes drive bye...
Jonny 5

[BeerIsSoAwesome]

I am going to pick it up, take the carbs all the way apart again, even pull the air screw, and soak them.

First off, my condolences. I've been chasing carb gremlins myself, and although mine are *mostly* gone (to the point where the bike is very rideable, with a few glitches) I know firsthand how frustrating it all can be.

Second, are you talking about the mix screws in the bottom-front of the carbs? The ones that come hidden behind a brass plug? It seems to me you'd *need* to remove those before cleaning or soaking. Each of those screws has a tiny little O-ring which is likely to get eaten up by carb cleaner, causing a vacuum leak. If you've been cleaning the carbs with those in, I'd check the condition of those before going any farther. I'm assuming that if they're damaged, they'll pull air through from the outside and cause it to run poorly in the lower RPMs, below 3,000 or so.

Hope this helps... my main problems turned out to be vacuum leaks.

[jonny5neal]

So I got the bike home from the shop.  They couldnt tell me much more than I already knew...  close to nothing.  The shop said that I may want to start fresh, new plugs, new oil and clean the carbs again.  The bike was blowing out white smoke from the exhaust when I took it in, and it still blows white when I got it home.  The shop said that sometimes when a bike sits, the fuel may end up running into the cylinder and somehow getting into the oil.  So I changed the oil today too. 

So new plugs, oil, and carbs cleaned once more.  Start it up, and same story.  White smoke, right cylinder rarely firing (I could pull the wire while running and nothing changes).  I changes some of the O-rings, one on the float, and one that goes from the brass fuel spout that dumps fuel into the bowl.  They were all brittle.  So I thought, wow, maybe there is a vacuum issue and I just solved it by placing new o rings on.

Put it back together tonight and still not firing on the right side all the time.  White smoke.

My neighbor was helping me, and puts his hand over the air intake on the right carb, and it kicks into life a little!  Starts idling higher.  Hmmm...   ??  Some fuel is coming out the little holes on the airbox side of the carb. What are those for?   My neighbor suggests that I pull the plugs and check them.  Well, the plug on the right side not firing was a little wet, and smelled like fuel.  While the plug on the left was clean and smelled like a clean burned plug. 

Could I be getting too much fuel on the right side (side not firing) ?  Compression checked out at 170 on both cylinders at the shop, and the coils checked out as well.  Could too much fuel be fouling out my right side and causing the white smoke? 

HELP!!!! 
Thanks
Jonny 5 is alive.

[Zithromax]

If you're looking for advice, my first observation is you can probably beat $500 for a carb rebuild. That seems kinda high. I would shop around for a quality reputable place that guarantees their work, or maybe even mail them to one of the experts around here? I'd help if I could, but I've been beaten my carb demons enough times to KNOW I don't have all the mad scientist tools to fix it "right".

[jonny5neal]

I have now taken the carbs off more times than i can imagine.  I have taken the carbs completely down, put them in a Chem-dip, replaced all the rubber seals to ensure no vacuum leaks and pretty much turned my carbs into brand spankin new carbs.

I start the bike up, and presto!  Runs good.  I turn the idle down as it was running high ~4K.  I revved the bike up to about 4-5 grand, with quick throttle response and no smoke from the exhaust.  I think "ITS ALIVE, ITS ALIVE, I HAVE FIXED IT!"  I go get insurance and plates the next day. 

Come home with the plate, put it on, start the bike and I am back to square one.... 

Right cylinder is blowing gray/white smoke, not responsive on the throttle.  I can slowly get it to rev high, but it will pop and blow out a large puff of smoke when I do so. 

barely wants to keep running when idled down.  I pull the right plug, and it reduces a little bit or rpm, but not substantial, as something is a miss.  Left cylinder is keeping the bike going.  Dealer said he checked compression.  I am starting to doubt that now.

New fuel, new spark plugs, new seals in carbs, no cracks in the carb to cylinder boot, inline fuel filter before the carbs, float height is good.  What am I missing? 

Starting to think I have a bad piston ring.  Could the valves be causing any of this? 
Alright experts, lets hear what ya got.

Jonny 5

[bombsquad83]

This seems similar to an issue another member was having.  Check your valves.  I'm guessing you are running tight on the exhaust side.  Hopefully you haven't burnt it yet, but it isn't looking good...

[Paulcet]

Did you check the float height with the u-tube method?  The 14mm (or whatever) measurement in the manual assumes perfectly straight and new parts.  Checking the actual fuel level in the bowls is the only way to know for sure, and will let you know if your float needles are sticking or leaking.  You may need a new set of these:


Check the black conical section of the float needle.  It should not have a step or groove in it.

[yamahonkawazuki]

So let me start this off with a little back story, as usual.  I put the bike in a heated storage about a year and a half ago.  I changed the petcock out, as the diaphragm in the petcock deteriorated.  With that, I changed the fuel line to the carbs as it was dryrot as well.  Put some sta-bil in the gas and put her up.

Didn't ride the bike in 2012, was preoccupied and never had a chance.

Spring 2013.
Pull the bike out of storage, start it up, and it runs rough.  Not much response with the pull of the throttle.  bike will not stay running with the choke off after being warm.  I realize that
1.  The new fuel line is paper thin now, as it was not before (turns out i was sold a hose that was not fuel rated, and the gas had melted the inside of the fuel line.)
2.  I get the bike home, pull off the gas line and find rubber bits in the petcock port, and bits inside the carb bowls.  Damn.
3.  I disassemble the carbs and clean them out, pull the jets, clean them, replace some old vacuum o rings in the carbs under the cap, run thin guitar strings through the clogged jets, put on new fuel lines and start it up.

The bike starts and runs rough still, but will stay running. It is responsive at higher RPM's, but i have to baby the throttle to get it up to the higher range.  I re-cleaned the carbs 3 more times after that, and placed a fuel filter 2 inches back from the lower inlet T on the carbs. 

Still running rough.

Jonny 5

Spray carb cleaner hardly ever works. its like putting a bandaid on an open chest wound. remove carbs get all plastic and rubber off of them, and soak in a gallon can of carb cleaner i go for 24 hours. reassemble, sync and theyre good as new

[jonny5neal]

Paulcet:  I purchased a new carb seal kit, and it included the parts you have pictured.  I installed them and made sure the little tab that pushes up the black conical piece was high enough to close off the fuel flow.  So that is covered.  I have checked the fuel height with a u tube method, and both sides seem to be spot on (just below the gasket on the cylinder side of the carbs, verified with wiki). 

yamahonkawazuki:
I removed all rubber peices from the carbs (even the idle air o ring), soaked  the carbs overnight in a chem dip for carbs.  Next day pulled them, cleaned them off, replaced all seals with brand new.  Started bike up.  Ran good for a min, then back to the right side not firing and smoke appearing again.

I know it is only the right side that is smoking, as i have the air box off and when i shut the bike off, an lift the slides, the smoke comes out of the right side carb and not the left. 

The carbs are like brand new again.  Taken them off too many times and have now ruled them out. 
Valves?

Thanks for the help guys.  Together we can beat these gremlins!
Shinny side up!
Jonny 5