No wire on float needle to hold to seat

[MAndrade1980]

Hi all,

Like everyone here I'm on this site daily. Love it! Finally got an 81 XS to work on. I just finished cleaning the carbs and noticed on one of the float needles, there is no wire holding it to the seat. Will this be a problem, is this something i can just purchase and replace? Again, complete newb here, dying to start this thing up, although it had been sitting outside for years before i purchased it. I will post pictures if needed.

 

[xjwmx]

I have an '81 too. I think you mean wire holding the needle to the float. Something 'dramatic' has been done there so you ought to replace both needles and seats (and o-rings). Mike's rebuild kit is a good way to get them. His rebuild kit for the stock bs34 that I assume you have is good. Also, Mike's site says throw the little strainer on the seat away. That is foolish. Use filtration ahead of the strainer, but put the strainer on the new seat. If it's still there.

 

[MAndrade1980]

Thanks so much for the reply! Love his site, everyone here is so quick to reply, and knowledgeable. I'll definitely order that rebuild kit and get that thing back together, and hopefully have the bike running soon.

 

[xjwmx]

That's the best thing, since who knows what has gone on and it's important for it to be right, there. When you get the new seats, look at the holes, both sides, with a magnifier. If you see any raw brass standing up, take a q-tip with some of the cotton removed and wrap some 0000 steel wool on it and give it just one or two light twists to shave it off. I haven't used the bowl gaskets from the kits because my original gaskets are okay and they look more expensive to me than the ones in the kit. After you get it back together, carefully set the float height to 22mm using the method on this site, not the clear tube method, which some of us doubt is accurate enough in reality.

 

[jayel]

it's not really needed however with the float bowl off the float can drop far enough the needle valve can fall out, with it in place the float can't drop that far