My DIY Manometer (to sync carbs or Starter Valve)

Yea, I can go out and spend $100+ USD on a manometer, but I enjoy making a tool, if I can ...
(FWIW, I also made a brake pressure bleeder using a Roundup pressure sprayer, but that's for the Jag forum ...)

So, I had a previous DIY manometer, but thought I'd upgrade ... here's mine - couple of photos follow.
Parts:

1. 10 foot of 1/4 x 0.170 vinyl tubing (local hardware store)
2. 10 foot of 7/8" x 5/8 vinyl tubing (local hardware store)
3. 3/4 inch (decreasing OD) rubber plugs x 8 (local hardware store)
4. 3/16 inch "F" connectors x 2 ("Dorman" at Oreilly auto parts)
5. 3/16 inch restrictors x 4 ("Dorman" at Oreilly auto parts)
6. 4 foot x 1 foot shelf (local hardware store) - flat white would be great.
7. 2 inch wide clear packaging tape (I used 3M, Walgreens).
8. Quart of 80\90 weight gear oil (I used Castrol I have on hand)

Build the component parts

1. Cut 1/4 OD tubing into 4 x 2 foot lengths.
2. Cut 1/4 OD tubing into 4 x 2 1/2 inch lengths.
3. Cut 1/4 OD tubing into a single 1 1/8 inch length.
4. Cut 7/8 OD tubing into 4 x 2 foot sections.
5. Cut shelf to 4 inches wide x 27 inches long

Build

1. Drill 3/16" holes in the center of each rubber plug.
2. Slide each 2 foot length of 1/4 OD tubing into 4 of the rubber plugs (from the larger OD end) until the end just slightly protrudes past the smaller end.
3. Slip on each of the 4 restrictors onto the [other] free end of the 1/4 OD tubing.
4. Slide each 2 1/2 inch length of 1/4 OD tubing into the 4 remaining rubber plugs (from the larger OD end) until the end just slightly protrudes past the smaller end.
5. Slide the 1 1/8 inch length of 1/4 OD tubing onto the "single finger" of both "F" connectors (you know, the "base" of the letter "F"), effectively connecting them together (you'll have 4 fingers un-connected at this point).

As the shelf material I bought was brown, I painted both sides flat white.

1. Lay the 4 sections of 2 foot of 7/8 inch tubing onto the shelf, and with an assistant, wrap 2 inch wide clear packing tape around the tubing and shelving, about every 2 inches.
2. ( Be sure that, at the "bottom end" of the shelf\tubing, each tube is even with each other)
3. Next, slide each of the 4 rubber plugs that have the 2 1/2 inch length of tubing, at the bottom end, up into the 7/8 inch tubing.
4. Grab the 2 "F" connectors that are coupled to each other, and connect each of the four "fingers" into the four 2 1/2 inch sections of vinyl tubing sticking out of the rubbers stoppers just installed.
5. Stand up the manometer on the floor and lean against the wall.
6. My Castrol gear oil has a decreasing OD snout ... choose any *one* of the single 7/8 tubing, and at the top, insert the gear oil's snout and squirt in some gear oil.
7. The level of the oil in each of the four tubes is 5 inches.
8. Finally, take each of the 4 remaining rubber plugs (with the 2 foot section 1/4 inch OD hose) and slide onto the top of each of the four 7/8.

To use:

1. After warming up the bike, and having removed the airbox and such, and removed the "5 way tee"
2. Plug each free end of the 4 restrictors into their respective hose (to starter valve). I plug each tube, "left to right" into cylinder 1-4.

I have used this manometer to sync the CBR1000F's carbs ...

In retrospect:

• 2 foot seems a bit "tall" for this manometer, but I discovered when I initially checked the sync, cyl 4 was so far out, the other 3 cyl's sucked it dry and cyl 2 had so much more vacuum, it rose up within 4 inches of the tube's upper length (mostly because I initially used transmission fluid).
• I am going to drain the 80\90 weight gear oil and use 140 weight.

A couple of photos

Hooked up to bike and free-standing ...



EDIT: added a video (thought not quite synced):

[video=youtube;aXL2AMY2pq4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXL2AMY2pq4[/video]

Nice job.

Good job.

When I had my Ninja, I made my own manometer to sync the carbs using two small glass bottles, a couple of corks, tubing, and water.

Very nice. My first thought was gear oil would be too thick but it works better than any other DIY ones I've seen. Don't think I'd change the weight.

Nice job!

Nice job~! I used ATF in my home made one.

okmurdog said:

When I had my Ninja, I made my own manometer to sync the carbs using two small glass bottles, a couple of corks, tubing, and water.

Click to expand...

I assume you're referring to this type of manometer ... where it's not important that the levels in each bottle are even, but that there's no fluid movement:

What's nice about this type is that if one or more cylinders has more vacuum and one is really low, and that bottle gets sucked dry

[video=youtube;GaTRyHxvneY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaTRyHxvneY[/video]

Pete in PA said:

Very nice. My first thought was gear oil would be too thick but it works better than any other DIY ones I've seen. Don't think I'd change the weight.

Click to expand...

I tried ATF and MMO, but because they are so thin, the tendency was, for the weak cylinder, the fluid would get sucked up pretty quick. I actually went from ATF to 40 weight, but it was "too sensitive", so switched out to the 80\90.

The reason I want to go to 140 weight is because I can lessen the amount, by say, an inch in each tube (to 4 inches), and then I can cut the height of the unit down to a foot.

doesn't the oil swell up all the rubber and vinyl after a while ??

Al st1100 said:

doesn't the oil swell up all the rubber and vinyl after a while ??

Click to expand...

Never had the issue ... drain it if it's a concern, then fill at next use

Pretty nice deal there. May have to try this myself but got to find a place to build it! My apt. complex frowns on anyone doing much of anything mechanical in the parking lot.

SmashVol said:

Pretty nice deal there. May have to try this myself but got to find a place to build it! My apt. complex frowns on anyone doing much of anything mechanical in the parking lot.

Click to expand...

Understood. Except you could be referring to a couple of different things:
a) Building the manometer
b) Syncing carbs or TB

For (a), I built the manometer inside the house (not in the garage)
For (b) ... yea, probably not a good idea to sync carbs or TB in the house ... seek out a friend and do it at their house and avoid the apt manager hassles