Carb disassembly

The Clymer manual says DO NOT seperate the carbs (from the rack) or misallignment will occur on reassembly. I want to do a complete cleaning so it seems I need to seperate the carbs from each other. Is reallignment that difficult?

 

I do it all the time. You just need to sync them again ( thats what they mean by "realign" )

1) bench sync ( visually to get it close )

2) install and vacuum sync ( to get it perfect )

Other than that the only other thing to worry about may be the fuel rail seals, which I had to replace the 1st time around. No biggie though. Just a trip to the hardware store...

 

The "misalignment" is not the sync issue!
They are referring to the actual alignment of the carb bodies to themselves.
It is recommended to lay the carb bodies "air intake" side down on a thick piece of glass to assist in reassembly.

 

Huh. Interesting... Ya learn something every day...

 

Hold it ...

You DON'T have to separate the Carb Bodies from the Rack to do a thorough Cleaning of the Carbs. That's not Cleaning. That's an Overhaul! You only have to Overhaul the Carbs if the Throttle Seals need replacing or you have Leaks in the Fuel Connection Barrels.

Taking them apart fromm the Rack is inviting trouble if you don't necessarily have to do so.

All the Cleaning you need to do can be done with the four-pack together and stripped-down completely.

If you split them ... particularily if some of the Fuel Connections are Plactic ... you on a slippery slope that might cost you having to do it all over again if the Fuel Connections LEAK after you reassemble the rack.

 

This bike sat for years. An 81 XJ550RH. It did run on initial start up though, no leaks. I did a thorough cleaning of the carbs while they were together and on the rail. Changed the fuel line. I put the assembly back on the bike, turned the fuel on, and fuel began puring out around the T pipe at the center carbs. With no other choice I went ahead and split the 4-pack. The T-pipe was plastic and had no o-rings. Rick, you mentioned plastic barrels. Did these have o-rings? I wonder if that primary connection is stock as it is with no o-rings. When I changed the fuel line I suppose I could've knocked the barrell loose enough. In any case I ordered the parts manual main connection and all new o-rings. I hope that solves the problem. Alignment, I am guessing, means to be sure o-rings and barrels are seated and spaced correctly?

 

I'd look for some Parts Carbs that have the Aluminum Fittings with O-rings and replace the Plastic Only part.

I did "Save" one of those Plastic Connectors one time.
I couldn't get it to stop leaking ... so, I added a layer of Heat Shrink over the ends.

Remember to leave about a 1/4-Inch of the Heat Shrink beyond the end of the fitting. You need that extra to "Anchor" the Heat Shrink from "Bunching-up" when you press-in the Plastic Fitting.

If you get jammed-up ... I might have a Barrel but not a Tee.

 

Plastic? Aluminum? We are talking about the fuel line connections between the carbs aren't we?

The two carb racks that I have are both brass fittings with o-ring seals.

The alignment issue is with the carb bodies being straight/square with each other. This way there will be no binding of the butterfly valve system or the enrichment rod assembly. The fuel line will "pop" into place and can move a certain amount.

 

Yes, we are talking about connections between carbs. I've noticed a lot of "stock" variations on these bikes. Like working on late model British bikes where some bolts were UNC others Whitworth and so on. My connections are aluminum except for that center piece. Thanks.