Topic: Was carb slides, now fuel line routing Q

[Scott S]

 I cleaned the carbs really well the other day. I didn't completely de-rack them, but I did loosen them all and removed the two end carbs so I could replace the balance tubes.
 I bench sycnhed them last night.

 I noticed today that if I go to wide open throttle the slides are slow to return. The were free and closed faster before I worked on them. Do I have something out of adjustment? Maybe something's too tight after reassembly?

 Also, do you like to run the fuel line over or under the balance tubes in order to route it out of the holes on the rack?

[Brian G]

Maybe something's too tight after reassembly?

Could be - I had the same problem with my BSA which was diagnosed as having over-tightened the nuts in the carb-to-manifold mounting studs. The tension distorted the carb body so that it was no longer perfectly round and the slides were being squeezed slightly.

Of course, those carbs are made from that famous Amal cheese....

Hth

[Scott S]

 It's the #1 slide. It's tight and causing something to stick or bind. Haven't figured out why just yet, but at least I know which one it is.

[Scott S]

 Got it. There must have been a piece of trash stuck in the #1 slide or needle. I loosened and checked everything and it was still tight. A few squirts of carb cleaner and it freed up. I sprayed the bore, the slide, needle, etc. thoroughly and it's all good now.

 Now, about that fuel line....over or under the balance tube to fit through the holes in the rack?

[Sporkfly]

Sometimes when the fuel in there dries out they'll feel tight/sticky. I've noted this with my carbs. Generally when they're filled with fuel and back on the bike they free up. Careful with the spray carb cleaner it doesn't like rubber.

[HondaMan]

Fuel line: over the balance tube, horizontal to the hole(s) in the rack. The left set goes to the forward spigot on the petcock.

The slides: loosen the top ring 1/4 turn on all 4 carbs, then open the throttle all the way. Hold it there and tighten the rings. This aligns the "foot" inside the slides, on those little rod ends.

[Scott S]

 I aligned that "foot" on the #1 and it's good now.
 When I ran the line over the balance tubes the linkage hit it...GRRR! So, apart came the carbs AGAIN  (I had them back together once yesterday before I noticed the pin for the spring had fallen out) and rerouted the fuel line.
 I just need to re-synch them and find some breather hose that fits.

 Was there a braided hose cover on the stock fuel lines? Mine had about a foot of braided steel cover. Not sure if that's factory or some dress up item the P.O. did.
 I have pics on my camera but haven't uploaded them yet.

[HondaMan]

I aligned that "foot" on the #1 and it's good now.
 When I ran the line over the balance tubes the linkage hit it...GRRR! So, apart came the carbs AGAIN  (I had them back together once yesterday before I noticed the pin for the spring had fallen out) and rerouted the fuel line.
 I just need to re-synch them and find some breather hose that fits.

 Was there a braided hose cover on the stock fuel lines? Mine had about a foot of braided steel cover. Not sure if that's factory or some dress up item the P.O. did.
 I have pics on my camera but haven't uploaded them yet.

For a while in the 1990s, Honda sold cloth-overbraided fuel line for these bikes. It came cut to length for the 500/550/750 bikes as a fixed part number.

All you really need for a perfect fit is 5.5mm ID hose. The K0-K2 bikes had 5.0mm, but this often caused the spigots to pull out of the petcock when removing the hose: we had to fix a lot of those. The 5.5mm hose came out on the K3 and stayed until the K8.

[Scott S]

 Is this how the lines are supposed to be routed? I saw a pic online if them routed this way but the Clymer manual shows them coming out the side with the choke plates.
 I hope this is correct...it was a royal paint to replace the fuel line without de-racking the carbs for a 4th time!

[Scott S]

 Anyone? On the fuel line routing question?

[brett_bike]

If it's a 500/550, than that is correct.

[Scott S]

 Whew! Good to hear. I really didn't want to take the rack apart and re-synch AGAIN!