Carb Cleaning

Tomorrow I plan to take the carbs off my 650 and clean them out and I'm just wondering what I need to know to do this. Obviously I need to run the tank clean as there is no fuel shut off (what were they thinking?). Which I'll note that my uncle has had at least 20 bikes covering every major manufacturer and he says he's never seen one without a shut off, as he searched my bike top to bottom.

I think taking them off sounds like the easy part and I may need to get some help putting them back together and re-sycing then. Which I'll admit that last part is something I know nothing about.

Is there an online source or something I could use and maybe even get through the process myself? And what should I use to do the actual cleaning itself? I'm pretty well mechanically inclined and figure things out quickly but I generally lack experience.

Anything else I should be doing while I'm on this operation?

And a final note is from what I can see through the opening there does not appear to be any rust in the gas tank.


Thank you for any help for a n00b.

 

Without any vacuum on it, the petcock won't pass any fuel if it's in either the on or reserve position. It will puke gas only if you have it set to prime.

There are several threads here that thoroughly discuss carb spelunking. You should read them before starting in on your own set.

 

Read Rick Massey's thread on carb cleaning in the XJ FAQ thread before you start. The petcock, as previously mentioned, only feeds fuel in the "on" and "reserve" positions when vacuum is applied to the little port on the backside of the petcock. (there should be a little hose going to #2 cylinder induction boot). If you have fuel running out of the fuel line in either on or reserve position, you need a petcock rebuild. There is no other way to turn the fuel off. Likewise, fuel should come out of the hose in the "prime" position

 

Just a question about cleaning/polloshing your bike, there's been talk of airplane remover, just curious as to an alternative product that would be found at say a wall mart or a canadian tire, im in the mood to do some cleaning. as my Dad bought a 1986 honda shadow yesterday and is in mint shape with alot of shiney crome, not only that but my best friend bought a bike, he got a 1994 yamaha 535 Virago and his bike is clean as a whistle! so i dont want to be left out! i know i have alot of hardcore cleaning, with alot of elbow grease and was just curious to see what other products are a ++++ and ones to stay away from! thanks in advance guys!

 

The hardest part I have found is getting the protective coating off the aluminum. But There is a trick to it. Cheap too, Get a bottle of acetone or finger nail polish remover and wipe it on the dull offending part. NOT THE PAINTED PARTS though. Make sure you do this only to the aluminum parts. This will cause the clearcoat to bubble up. If you can get the parts off the bike and soke them, this much the better. Now just wipe it off. Then comes the fun part polishing the aluminum. There are all kinds of polishes on the market. I use mothers billet polish. Works well. Dont fret. When those two bikes are as old as ours. They will be in the same boat. Happy polishing.... One other thing. Wear protective gloves. Nasty stuff. A can of b12 chem tool works as well. Just more expensive and will get all over the bike as it sprays out. Unless you can find it in the quart can. Soak a rag in it set it over the part and take a 10 minute break. When you come back. wipe the bubbling part down. It may take more than one treatment.

 

As for tips on the carb rebuild.
Get your digital camera out and take lots of pictures at various points of dissasembly. This will help jog the memory as to what goes where.
Remember there are rubber seals in the body of the carb where the butterfly shaft is and they WILL get ruined by carb cleaner.

 

Any covers and aluminum pieces you can remove, it's nice and really fast to have a buffing wheel on a grinder, squeeze some polish onto the piece, rub it to a glaze, then put it against the buffer running and watch the shine come out.

But remember, you have to keep a polish on it like waxing often if you live in a humid area, if not it will oxidize quickly, or consider after you get it all beautifully polished, spray a rattle can of clear coat back onto the piece to keep the weather off the metal, future cleanups are then just a wash and wipeup.

 

Cannon, I bought my Aircraft remover from Walmart. works great at removing the aged funk on aluminum!