Larry (and anyone else who might have a suggestion...) -
Here's what I'm seeing...
I pulled the carbs with a minimum amount of swearing. I started on the first carb, popped the top cap and worked through the long list of steps to get that long needle valve out. It was perfect, with NOTHING on it that looked grimy/slimy/otherwise. Took me an hour to get it apart and back together again.
I pulled the float bowl and took apart the part of the slide with all the holes. It was clogged city. Great call Larry.
Additionally, the tiny "plug" that sits beneath the slide with all the holes (how about those technical terms!) was plugged. I soaked them in carb cleaner and blew them out. I've done three of the 4 carbs and found the same thing each time. You nailed it on this stuff, Larry.
Here's what I'm wondering: do I need to pop the top caps on all 4 carbs to clean the actual needle jet? It was remarkably clean, and there's really nothing going on up top except the sliding of that needle valve. I'm thinking that the lion's share of the problems are in the clogged holes on the lower slider (accessed via the float boat). Not taking out the top portion of the needle would save me some serious effort (that felt like doing open heart surgery with all those tiny parts laid out everywhere!). I'm afraid I'm going to muck it up with all that tab bending, slide pulling, link removal, etc. The real breathing happens in the bottom portion anyhow, correct?
Here's what parts I'm talking about...
