Topic: 1977 cb550 K troubles

[Krayzie Se7en]

Hello all,
Quick background on the bike, i bought it about 2 years ago and it sat for about a year. Previous owner said that it was his friends and it was sitting for about 7 years. 12,000 original miles on it.

Alright so this summer i decided to get it going for my brothers and so far so good, but i hit a couple of little problems. First i cleaned the carbs (thanks TT) and set the float height. Cleaned the tank with "The Works" and got a in line gas filter. I also got new spark plugs, a battery, oil filter and new 10w40.

Alright well as i was taking out the carbs, i removed the clutch cable from the clutch and it snapped down really hard. Didn't think much of it till i tried to put it back on. It was really hard to move up. I got the cable back on but it barely even moves. I read something about hitting the clutch with rubber mallet. So i tried it but nothing. What should i do?

When i removed the carbs, i also took out the air box to clean it, but now it seems like its to far from the carbs. The only reason i say that is because i can get the boots on the carbs. I know the 2 long ones for on the outside and the smaller ones go on the inside, and there is a top and there is a bottom. There is a little excess rubber like a little tab, is that the top?? Don't get me wrong, the rubber boots do get on the carbs, but just barely. Before i took them out, they seamed to fit perfectly on the carbs. Are my carbs in the far on the engine side?? any help would be appreciated.

And lastly, i ran the bike last night. Just to make sure that i wasn't leaking any gas and well hell, to listen to it ROAR! wooooo. But i didn't want to come down from 3k rpm. I messed with the idle screw alittle and it was just all over. It would settle down but it sounded like it wanted to die out. Could it be that i didn't have to boot completely on, with no air filter?? Or is there something else that may be causing this. The throttle cables work fine and snap back when i let go. Also i think i benched sync'd my carbs with a 1/8 drill bit like i read in the FAQ section.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Thanks
Jorge

[Sporkfly]

You're on the right track I'd say, sounds like you've got a leak somewhere. Somebody brighter than myself should be able to chime in.

[Krayzie Se7en]

 

[bistromath]

Boots aren't on all the way. They're an absolute whore sometimes, to fit those brittle old rubber boots over the carbs. Boil 'em in hot water for five minutes to soften them, then keep 'em soft with a hair dryer while you put them on the carbs.

[TwoTired]

When i removed the carbs, i also took out the air box to clean it, but now it seems like its to far from the carbs. The only reason i say that is because i can get the boots on the carbs. I know the 2 long ones for on the outside and the smaller ones go on the inside, and there is a top and there is a bottom. There is a little excess rubber like a little tab, is that the top?? Don't get me wrong, the rubber boots do get on the carbs, but just barely. Before i took them out, they seamed to fit perfectly on the carbs. Are my carbs in the far on the engine side?? any help would be appreciated.

I might guess that you mixed up the mount brackets for the filter box, or oriented them incorrectly, thereby moving the air box too far rearward.  It's not obvious how they go in correctly.
On my 78 550K the boot "tabs" face each other between inner and outer boots.

And lastly, i ran the bike last night. Just to make sure that i wasn't leaking any gas and well hell, to listen to it ROAR! wooooo. But i didn't want to come down from 3k rpm. I messed with the idle screw alittle and it was just all over. It would settle down but it sounded like it wanted to die out. Could it be that i didn't have to boot completely on, with no air filter?? Or is there something else that may be causing this. The throttle cables work fine and snap back when i let go. Also i think i benched sync'd my carbs with a 1/8 drill bit like i read in the FAQ section.

I can only guess...
--The slides are not evenly adjusted and need a vacuum sync.
--The choke cable is mis-adjusted and/or the fast idle cam/stop is interfering with full slide closure.

Check the head pipe temps for evenness.  Cold/colder pipes likely mean the slow jets/ slow circuit is not flowing freely.

Cheers,

[Hush]

If your boots fit on with rex clips ( band clips? whatever they are called in your part of the world) back them right off...no seriously they might seem loose but as soon as the rubber boots streach over the end of the carbs these clips will stop you fitting the boots, back them right off!!!

[TwoTired]

For the Cb500/550, the rearward band clamps should be completely removed for carb extraction and installation.

Cheers,