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Float taking on gas
- Thread starter Dastommy
- Start date
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- Tags
- carburetors
You guys aren't getting the whole story here. Tommy sent me a normal e-mail earlier this evening asking about this. I didn't tell him to repair the float, I offered him a good used one as a replacement. From his description of a "rattle" instead of the sound of liquid fuel sloshing around inside the float, I suggested as scabber did, that maybe it was a piece of solder or flux broken off from the original manufacturing process. Maybe there's nothing wrong with the float at all. I told him to test it by submerging it in hot water and watching for bubbles.
What started this whole ordeal was a badly leaking petcock. Besides dripping off the back outside of the petcock, it's leaking through the outlet, not ceasing to flow fuel when the motor is off. His tank is also rusty inside. I suggested he check the float needle and seat to see if it had crud lodged in it. Since the fuel flow from the tank wasn't being stopped and obviously a float needle wasn't closing, he was finding giant puddles of gas under the bike in the morning. Maybe he does need a float but top priority here in my book is fixing the petcock. Stop the fuel flow and even if the float needle seat or a bad float cause a leak, it won't be much. Certainly not the gallons he's finding on the floor now, lol. Oh, I gave him another petcock to try too.
What started this whole ordeal was a badly leaking petcock. Besides dripping off the back outside of the petcock, it's leaking through the outlet, not ceasing to flow fuel when the motor is off. His tank is also rusty inside. I suggested he check the float needle and seat to see if it had crud lodged in it. Since the fuel flow from the tank wasn't being stopped and obviously a float needle wasn't closing, he was finding giant puddles of gas under the bike in the morning. Maybe he does need a float but top priority here in my book is fixing the petcock. Stop the fuel flow and even if the float needle seat or a bad float cause a leak, it won't be much. Certainly not the gallons he's finding on the floor now, lol. Oh, I gave him another petcock to try too.
How are we to know about leaking petcocks when every post has been about the float.
Time waster
Sounds like someone needs to heed advice.
Time waster
Sounds like someone needs to heed advice.
I know. He was supposed to go home and fix the petcock. He was going to check the float needle seats for crud as well. Somehow he got side tracked and fixated on the float. That won't cure a bad petcock. It's still gonna leak, lol.
angus67
Welder's penetrate deeper!!
clear as mud
Stone Hands
XS650 Enthusiast
I suspect I have a similar problem with my floats. Not leaking but I may have them upside down when I put back together. How do i know which way the floats are to hang when the carb is upside down and the float bowl is off. I have a 72 XS2. I think I am flooding out the bike. Smell gas and fouling the plug. When I pulled the float pin and took the floats off, the little pin that the "float tang" pushes on appears to have a spring on it as it moves up and down. I have never seen a "o ring" with this float needle. Where does the float O ring go? Could me my problem of not staring.
stoner the early float needles don't have o-rings they are on 80-83 BS34s only BUT leaky float valves are common on all years. I used to mess with trying to fix them, but don't anymore, put in new ones. The float pretty much won't install upside down unless you are REALLY persistent or have big tools.
Stone Hands
XS650 Enthusiast
Thank you GGGary. On my 72 xs2, when you have the carb off the bike and inverted with the float bowl off, you can easily slide out the float pin and take the floats off.
You can put them on either way. I know however one way is correct. On one method one the float is turned back upright, the float hangs down very low and the float pin is almost not held in by the tang on the float. On the other way, the float only hangs down slightly and holds the float pin easier. My guess is that is the way it is supposed to be. I checked out the float distance per the manual and on one method the distance is almost dead on the other it is not. Still will play with it to figure it out.
You can put them on either way. I know however one way is correct. On one method one the float is turned back upright, the float hangs down very low and the float pin is almost not held in by the tang on the float. On the other way, the float only hangs down slightly and holds the float pin easier. My guess is that is the way it is supposed to be. I checked out the float distance per the manual and on one method the distance is almost dead on the other it is not. Still will play with it to figure it out.
hint; the hangs way down position is wrong, don't think the float bowls will go back on with the floats that way. Do a quick dip of the floats in a cup of HOT water, bubbles = toast.
