Topic: Any hope for leaky carb floats?

[MJL]

Specifically the brass ones?

[Don R]

you can get new ones

[BVCB650]

Solder them up, then drown them and look for bubbles.

[750Caferider]

I've got the fiber kind on my 78... Does anyone know of any brass ones that would fit my Kehins?

Cheers,

Anders

[Tretnine]

I hear you can polish them by sanding down to superfine grit. Otherwise pack a rubber mallet.

[tlbranth]

Seems to me that you'd have to go easy on the solder otherwise it might throw off the fuel level - but maybe the chamber is big enough it won't make much difference. If you try it, fine sand the area to be soldered and use some plumber's flux. To keep the other soldered parts from falling off, wrap them in wet paper towel. This is plumbing knowledge - not mechanical so it might not work. Oh, and I'd use an iron - not a torch. And make sure the float is empty. And do it at least 50' from the house and wear a helmet and an asbestos suit.

[BeSeeingYou]

I had leaks on my XS650 brass floats.  Clean up the area with a bit of sandpaper and then use soldering paste/flux.  I used a soldering iron as a plumbers torch would be way to hot and not have the pin point accuracy you need.  Worked fine for the summer till I got around to getting a new set.

[MJL]

you can get new ones

 $35 each.

I was thinking maybe there was some thin epoxy or sealer I could dip them in.

I thought about solder, but these holes are microscopic and I'd have to solder them all the way around, not to mention that I would end up heating the air inside and I dont want them to collapse when the air inside cools.

[Gordon]

I was thinking maybe there was some thin epoxy or sealer I could dip them in.

I don't think you're going to find anything that's light enough and can go on thin enough so it won't add too much weight to the float and also be able to stand up to constant gasoline immersion. 

[ekpent]

I  got rid of them in a 71 I redid this summer and changed them out with later model plastics. Carbs work great One had a hole and another fell apart.Honda bagged them out for a reason,plastic floats will work fine and eliminate a potential problem.Just got a batch on a part buy-out-how many do you need if you stick with them??

[BeSeeingYou]

you can get new ones

  $35 each.

I was thinking maybe there was some thin epoxy or sealer I could dip them in.

I thought about solder, but these holes are microscopic and I'd have to solder them all the way around, not to mention that I would end up heating the air inside and I dont want them to collapse when the air inside cools.

I don't know this for sure but from the parts diagram of some Honda carbs the floats look the same as my XS650 brass floats.  $12 at www.mikesxs  Might be a possibility.  Epoxy is fuel proof but the stuff I am familiar with is not available in real small quantities, the smallest being quarts and would cost nearly what a float does.  The stuff you see in the hardware store is not thin enough out of the tubes but you can heat it in the microwave to thin it out (5 or 10 seconds) but it really speeds up the cure rate too so you have to be quick.  If you have cracks like I did the thin layer of epoxy may also crack sooner or later but it should work on small holes.

[mark]

...........Honda bagged them out for a reason,plastic floats ...........

....are cheaper to make.



Sirius had brass floats for the 350 twin at around $14 last time I looked. was told the fours were different.

The 550 runs just fine with floats borrowed from 350t carbs anyway. no more soggy spongy plastic.

[MJL]

I  got rid of them in a 71 I redid this summer and changed them out with later model plastics. Carbs work great One had a hole and another fell apart.Honda bagged them out for a reason,plastic floats will work fine and eliminate a potential problem.Just got a batch on a part buy-out-how many do you need if you stick with them??

These are, uh, non-Honda parts. Thanks anyway, I guess it's off to the dealer.

[ekpent]

Stock Honda brass float still mounted in some 71 carbs. I see Babbitts has them for 27.88 each new if you need to order them.