airbox flooding

[Anonymous]

hey, i have a 97' katana 600 and it wouldnt idle and took forever to warm up so last week i finally cleaned the carbs and then it ran better than ever (already had new plugs and a clean air-filter).

i filled the tank the other night and today it was empty and it wouldnt run. i took it down and found the airbox was full of gas. is my petcock bad? im under the impression that on "ON" it requires a vacuum to bring gas from the tank to the carbs so im wondering if the petcock is bad. anyone have any ideas?

also, what are the plastic pieces in the carb that hold the floats and have a small hole in them that leads up to the small brass tube on the outside of the carb? any help or advice would be appreciated. thanks guys.

zach

[Yellow]

That's correct; in the "ON" position it should only flow gas when there is engine vacuum. Try it by removing the gas tank from the bike and check in which positions gas flows. The petcock is bad if gas flows in the ON or RES pos, in the PRI position this is normal...

It sounds like you're talking about the needle valve... but tell us the number of the part your talking about:

http://67.15.65.225/spst/1997%20GSX600F/08.htm

If your float(s) are stuck (so that the needle valve is always open) AND your petcock is bad gas would fill up the airbox...

[Special K]

I've also seen cases where a full tank of gas is enough of a pressure of weight to push gas into the carbs and overcome those poor little weak floats, thereby dumping gas thru a leaky petcock into the carbs and it flows out......into the engine and floods the cylinders (fills them up) then it flows into the airbox. Bet your air box drain hose is full too!

Drain it all, turn the engine over a few times easily.........with plugs OUT preferably,then check petcock.

Pretty much a sure bet its a leaker.

If it would help,K&N makes a rebuild kit and I keep a few here.
I also have rebuilt petcocks, but do it yourself and save my labor! 8)

[Paladin]

How much is your rebuild kit (Petcock Kit?) and what all is involved with that? Not to thread jack or anything, but similar happened to me as well. Had to look twice and make sure it was not a thread I had posted on already.

Do you sell the special tool to compress the valves to remove the shims? I've got a couple shims I think that need to be replaced and need to know what tool to use. The basic Clymer book says, to use the Special Tool and a Magnet. I love the details in that book... NOT! I need to find a Factory Manual soon.

[Yellow]

How much is your rebuild kit (Petcock Kit?) and what all is involved with that? Not to thread jack or anything, but similar happened to me as well. Had to look twice and make sure it was not a thread I had posted on already.

Do you sell the special tool to compress the valves to remove the shims? I've got a couple shims I think that need to be replaced and need to know what tool to use.

Didn't somebody in your valve adj thread say that you only need to pry the rocker arm to the side; not compress the valves (sounds way overkill to me)? I've got a friend who did his shimmed 95 Kat a few weeks ago, and he didn't use any special tools, just pryed with a screwdriver...

The basic Clymer book says, to use the Special Tool and a Magnet. I love the details in that book... NOT! I need to find a Factory Manual soon.

My Haynes is about that detailed too... I'd love to get my hands on a Factory manual as well!

[DAWG_4_LIFE]

what excatly does the petcock do and where and what postion is it supposed to be on when it is running and when it is off

[Paladin]

Well the petcock controls the flow of fuel. Pretty much straight up an down, little arrow pointing down should be on and used when the bike is running. Now if the little arrow points forward, that is considered RES or reserve and should be used when rolling and your pretty much out of gas. I've also seen photos as this being the setting for Off and when the bike is turned off and not running. It should not allow the flow of fuel when the bike is not running. The last setting is arrow pointed to the rear and is for PRI, this should be used when priming the Carbs with fuel. I had an instance where I was low on fuel and the RES did not seem to do the trick at least at the time. So I went from RES, back to ON and then to PRI and made my exit and the gas station. Hope that helps you out and I'm sure others can correct anything I might have got wrong here. Just trying to help.

As for valves, I've heard you have to be careful and keep them compressed. You don't want that rocker to slip back. Lets just say I want to do it right and not screw anything up. I'm not looking to jack the thread, just thought I'd ask SpecialK at the same time. I'm interested in the rebuild for the Petcock, if that is what he sells and just tagged the other question on at the same time.

[Anonymous]

thanks for the help so far guys, im gonna tear it back down and check it out this weekend. last time i had it apart it would leak a little fuel when the petcock was on the "ON" position (not a full stream, but a small constant stream).

Special K, if you happen to read this - can you PM me some info about a rebuild kit or one of your reman. petcocks. what is the kit that K&N sells?

thanks guys, its been a big help.

zach