Carb tricks

[skid jackson]

06 300

Can you remove the carb without pulling the gas tank off?? If so whats the trick. I made an attempt but got nowhere. Pulling the tank is pretty simple so it's not a big deal. Just curious.

my carb has the ltr jet kit. 178 main 45 pilot. What is the difference between keeping the 178 and raising the needle one clip or leaving the needle in the 3 position and putting a 180 in?? I had a more experienced 2T rider tell me the jetting was pretty good but not spot on. He said he wasn't the greatest carb tuner but thought i might try raising the needle one clip. While I had the carb apart I decided that it would be easier to put hte 180 in than to wrestle with that Spring over the slide .....

Which leads me to my last question. Any tips or tricks for wrestling with the slide spring?? I usually use a screw driver and my hand to bunch it up then wrestle the cable out. any better techiques out there??

[Cruiser]

I dont know on the 06's but on my 03 and 97 I can pull the carb off. Its much easier without the tank. Or just pull the seat and the 2 lower subframe bolts, pull the subframe up and it gives extra clearance on the boots.
Steve

[Nick]

Loosen the clamps, pull the carb toward the rear of bike until its out of intake, turn towards you and pull it out. install is the reverse. Not necessary to pull the carb to change the needle or jets though.

[eff]

Originally Posted by Cruiser

Or just pull the seat and the 2 lower subframe bolts, pull the subframe up and it gives extra clearance on the boots.
Steve

This is what I have to do. My '04 is just too tight otherwise. I usually remove the tank too.

As far as the spring, I hold it back with my fingers from over the top of the cap and with the same hand remove the cable end from the slide. No need for tools, that sounds harder.

You really don't need to remove the carb to change the jetting. You can just rotate it in place and change them. Two things. 1, be careful of dirt so make sure the bike is clean and put a clean rag in the top of the carb. 2, be careful that the float pin doesn't fall out and get lost. BTW you will need to remove the chain guard too.

[Treesmacker]

I use a hemostat clipped to the cable under the spring ( while spring is compressed) then you can remove the slide very easy. While the spring is compressed, then rehook the slide to the end of the cable release the hemostat and your done.
You do not need to remove the carb to change the main or pilot jet. Just remove the fuel hose, cap & slide, lossen clamps then rotate the carb and remove float bowl.
The Gas Gas has to be the easiest bike to rejet!
Good Luck!

[juzzasmith]

Originally Posted by skid jackson

06 300

What is the difference between keeping the 178 and raising the needle one clip or leaving the needle in the 3 position and putting a 180 in??

The difference is in the throttle range that the needle and main jet are most effective.

The needle clip position has most effect between 1/8 and 1/2 throttle and the main jet has most effect between 1/2 and wide open, although their effective range overlaps.

If you raise the clip position on the needle you will make the mixture leaner between 1/8 and 1/2 throttle, if you drop the clip position you will make it richer.

So if you raise the needle (by dropping the clip) you'll make it richer mostly in the 1/8 to 1/2 throttle range, and if you but in a 180 main you'll richen it mostly in the 1/2 to full throttle range.

This diagram shows the effective range of each component.
http://www.keihin-us.com/tune1.htm

[skid jackson]

I like that hemostat idea for the carb spring!!

juzzasmith
thanks for the needle clip v. main jet run down. I rode today with the 180 in place and it seemed a bit better. Maybe it's a little rich so its not as snappy. Now that i know about the hemostats maybe next time i'm into the carb I'll put the 178 in and mover the clip position.

hmm according to that chart my change to a 180 shouldn't have done much below 1/2 throttle. Most of my riding is in the 1/4 to 1/2 range, maybe it's a placebo effect!!!

[GMP]

I just hold the slide in my left hand, grab the spring with my right finger tips, and "walk" it up the cable, until there is an inch of free cable between my fingers and slide. Now just push the cable down and lift up and out of the retainer. Takes a few seconds, no tools required.

The carb only needs to be rotated for all jetting changes except float level. On the '07, there is no solid mounting (bolts) holding the airboot to the airbox, just an "H" gasket style fit, and not a tight one. Excessive pressure on the boot toward the airbox could dislodge the airboot from the airbox.

[JTT]

I'm a hemostat guy too, makes life easy.

As for your jetting, it's an interesting experiment to take some "White out" or tape and mark your throttle tube so you can glance down and see where the throttle setting actually is, rather than where you "think" it is. Beware, it's also a humbling experience to see how rarely most see the main jet

This will tell you what area you need to make adjustments to, needle or main.

[Brian VT]

Originally Posted by Treesmacker

The Gas Gas has to be the easiest bike to rejet!

Nope. You can't get at the pilot without removing the bowl. On some bikes you can access both jets by only removing the drain bolt.