one more quick question

[Puunjob]

what would an imperfect seal between the airbox and the carbs do

[pizzleboy]

I would cause your bike to leap 50 feet into the air and exploed into a mighty fireball for all to see...

No, wait...I have no idea, I'm not an engine guy.

[scratch]

I like your answer, pizzle!

But, unfortunately it would only cause a lean condition. I have a nifty little tool, it's a seal puller, but I use it to 'pull' the air boots around the carb mouths. It looks like a screwdriver that's been bent into a curly right angle, kinda neat. I wish I knew what it's technical name is, but I'll look at the Snap-on part no. and see if I can find it on the internet, and post the link here. It's really useful to get the boot on around the area between the carbs, where it's really hard to get to. You might be able to use a right-angle philips screwdriver/key thingie. The reason I suggest a phillips is to avoid tearing the rubber.

Oh, yeah, a lean condition will cause the bike to hesitate really badly.

[Puunjob]

by hesitate do you mean rough idle and when you crank the throttle it would might die and when you rev the throttle slowly  it would pause then kick it up and the rpm's would climb high but sound sickly

[yamahonkawazuki]

it would allow more air into the mix, leaning it out

[scratch]

by hesitate do you mean rough idle and when you crank the throttle it would might die and when you rev the throttle slowly  it would pause then kick it up and the rpm's would climb high but sound sickly

Yep. The bike will jerk back and forth while riding. "Hesitating"

Here's the link to the neat little tool. It's actually a MAC tool, the one in the lower right corner, SP29A.

http://www.panavise.com/nf/comm/indash/indashtools.html