Cost of carb removal & cleanout?

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The carbs on my 2001 must be gunked up. I wasn't able to stabilize the gas before the last layaway - the starter solenoid and battery were shot, so I couldn't run anything through the carbs before we left AZ for the summer. Now that I've got those two items fixed, it starts, but runs really rough until 2500 rpm or so, at which point it takes off just fine. I'm assuming that the idle/low speed parts of the carbs are in need of a good cleanout. I've tried SeaFoam and it helped, but not enough. So can anyone give me a ballpark idea of the cost of having the carbs removed and cleaned? I don't have the space, tools (or patience!) to try it myself, but I don't want to stick a ton of money into a 15 year old bike. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
 
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You might try some bk44 about 4 oz to 7 gals.
Otherwise, it is pretty easy to remove the darbs yourself, and depending on the stealership about $100 to clean them.
If the stealershipmreomves and replaces you are looking at about 4-6 hrs labor.
Did you mean BG44K Fuel Injector cleaner?
 
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Ron

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I'm assuming that the idle/low speed parts of the carbs are in need of a good cleanout. I've tried SeaFoam and it helped, but not enough. So can anyone give me a ballpark idea of the cost of having the carbs removed and cleaned? I don't have the space, tools (or patience!) to try it myself, but I don't want to stick a ton of money into a 15 year old bike.
Couple questions. How much is a ton of money? 4-6 hours of labor is $400-$600 around here. Is that a ton?

How bad does it run? Can you deal with it? Keep running the Sea Foam or BG44K every tank of fuel. It will eventually clean it out.

Which is easier for you to deal with, money or rough running?
 

Mark

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You can pay a bunch to have the carbs cleaned; but, be sure to strip all the plastic they need off yourself before you bring it to them. They'd just break pieces and lose some of them anyway! :)
They'll need to pull the gas tank and disconnect all the controls before they pull the carbs to clean them.

However: If you can start it and it runs, even poorly, you're getting getting fuel through the low speed jets.

More tanks with Seafoam rotated with the BG at the max recommended rate would be my choice.

Good luck!
 
OP
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If it was just a rough idle I could live with it, but when it kills pulling away from a stop it becomes more of a safety issue, especially 2 up.

Mark, what has me concerned is that if I'm getting fuel through the low speed jets, is that happening on all 4 carbs, or is 1 (or more) blocked? I'm guessing that it would start on 3 carbs, but stumble.

Where can I find this BG stuff locally? I'm in Mesa, AZ.

Thanks all for the replies!
 
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What part of Arizona? I might be able to help ya. I've long ago lost count of the sets I've cleaned.
 
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George, I'm in Mesa.

One other oddity in this mess. When the bike is idling and I apply brakes, the idle speed drops. I thought that it might have something to do with a voltage loss from the brake lights, but it does not do this when I switch the headlights to high beams. Not sure what to make of that.
 

Mark

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Gee lemee think 250 miles divided by 65 = 5 rs sounds like a long weekend tome!
You haven't been on AZ highways and freeways recently... if you do 65 you're being tailgated constantly. If you're doing 75 you're keeping up with traffic and that works out to 3.33 hrs (if rs means hrs! ).
:D

And I think somebody might have thought George meant you ride to him... If I know George he meant that coming to Mesa would give him a chance to eat at Queen's! :D
 
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You haven't been on AZ highways and freeways recently... if you do 65 you're being tailgated constantly. If you're doing 75 you're keeping up with traffic and that works out to 3.33 hrs (if rs means hrs! ).
:D

And I think somebody might have thought George meant you ride to him... If I know George he meant that coming to Mesa would give him a chance to eat at Queen's! :D
Mark has it right, I come to you, you buy the pizza. He knows how it works, we just did one of his bikes less than a year ago, in his garage in Tempe. :D Happy to introduce you to Petar and his crew at Queens. :D

I have all the right tools too and they are easy to pack. What's your schedule? Call me, 928-530-2120.
 
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George, I'm in Mesa.

One other oddity in this mess. When the bike is idling and I apply brakes, the idle speed drops. I thought that it might have something to do with a voltage loss from the brake lights, but it does not do this when I switch the headlights to high beams. Not sure what to make of that.
Hmmmm, easy enuff to pull a couple fuses and check things out. Idle speed is a function of the spark, of course, controlled by the 'lectronic module. A drop in voltage could maybe do such. Multi-meter to the rescue. We'll figure it out.
 
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could do, Jim. I think I'll come down Friday, do Mel's bike, then meet folks at Queens on Saturday around noonish? Need to make a couple phone calls first.

(Ain't it great to be discussing a 500 mile round trip in early January with no regard for the weather. I'm gonna miss some Arizona.)
 
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George, I sent you a PM.

It looks like a mega-shot of Berryman B12 spray got it going well enough to avoid the carb pulling.
 
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Just an update. I put some B12 concentrate in the gas, and yesterday took a 240 mile trip to use it up. It's running much better now, so I can highly recommend the Berryman stuff as being worth a try if your carbs are gunked up.
 

Mark

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I would keep using it for a while or switch to Seafoam with every tank to clean *everything* out...
 

mstrong01

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I have a question about Berryman's, and no, I'm not trying to start anything (like a dreaded oil/tire type thread)- legitimate question. Is Berryman's save to run through the bike? I heard tales from the old V4 group from the 80's models that B12 wasn't good to run through the bike, and that Seafoam was a better choice. Something about the rubber diaphrams, blah blah blah...I could see doing it the way mentioned here, pouring it in then running it all out in one drive. Thoughts? Advice?
 

Mark

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I used Berryman's in the '01 about 8-9 years ago.
No issues (other than the jets clogged when it was parked for too long).
 
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I heard tales from the old V4 group from the 80's models that B12 wasn't good to run through the bike, and that Seafoam was a better choice. Something about the rubber diaphrams, blah blah blah...Thoughts? Advice?
I have been building V4 carbs as a biz for 15 yrs +/- and have a good rep. Here is my take on that. It seems like running carb cleaner thru the gas mix is safe but I don't recommend putting a heavy dose. 3 outcomes are common.
1 - The idle/slow circuits are partially clogged and the cleaner flows thru and clears them out. Yay!
2 - The idle/slow circuits are completely clogged and the cleaner can not flow thru and you wasted some carb cleaner. It was worth a try.
3 - You got a lot of sludge in the bowls/lines/tank and the cleaner loosens it up and completely clogs the idle/slow circuits. Again, it was worth a try.

NEVER, EVER spray starter fluid, carb cleaner etc in the intake of the carbs. Few folks will admit to it but I do see melted diaphragms all too often. Starter fluid/ether will melt nitrile rubber on contact. Carb cleaner less so but will leach the oils from the rubber and contribute to an early demise of the diaps. diaps and chemical damage.jpg

My favorite carb cleaner for hand cleaning during a rebuild is Berrymans B12 Chemtool in the spray can. Great stuff til the EPA makes them change it some day. You don't want to use it on anything where it will come in contact with rubber seals or diaps.
 
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