Carburetor issues!

[travis103192]

So I have a 1985 Honda 250sx and it ran great for the first 3 months I had it, but it kinda chugged a little after a little while and was concerned, so I checked things out and found that the boot connecting from the carb to the air box wasn't even connected to the carb and was just rubbing against the outside. That was adjusted and I wanted to see if my carb was really dirty from riding the tracks which it was, and I also noticed the pilot screw looked a little bent, I found that it was kinda corroded in there while cleaning the carb out, I cleaned everything up and ran normal once again. I later went on a 25 mile ride back to my mom's house but stopped at my girlfriends house right in between since I noticed it was acting really funny, I looked and saw that my pilot screw was completely gone and would only run if it kept getting throttle. I ended up not even looking for just a new pilot screw and just bought a whole new moose rebuild kit for it from dennis kirk for the price of about $20, I got the kit and began to replace things, I figured why not replace everything I can while its here except for the needle jet and the third jet in the bowl that doesn't have any threads in itit which I don't actually know what it's called, my step dad insisted on replacing it... with a chisel?!?!? I didn't really seem to realize what just happened since I was just appalled by the sheer stupiness that happened so quick. The tip of the chisel broke inside of the and mushroomed everything out beyond repair I then had to buy a used carb in decent condition from a salvage shop and replaced everything the way I did before without letting him try to get involved. Everything got replaced as should have been and cleaned but I left the jet needle and that other jet ( the one that was destroyed ) alone put it back together and gave it a shot. she ran fine and all of the sudden flooded out and now if there is gas on it floods, I have to figure something out since I opened that thing up and checked and cleaned everything about 5 Times now and still floods. I checked the float and float valve each time and everything is clean an there are no scratches and I'm pretty sure it's clean after many cleanings, maybe I have the jets to loose or tight, I need specs for how many turns for each jet since my book doesn't tell me that. someone please help me, I am also getting a new air box complete setup for it and should be here tomorrow. thanks for any help.

[Flyingw]

Hi Travis. I am somewhat of an SX/ES carb expert. If you put a new float needle in it and it floods, chances are there is debris in the needle seat. It doesnt take much at all to keep the float needle from seating so take a Qtip and cut the end off. Take the cut end and stick it in the hole where the needle goes and gently spin it around against the seat. Shoot some carb cleaner through the hole and reassemble. Put the carb back in and hook it up. Dont worry about installing the airbox, just the carb, throttle cable, choke cable, and fuel line.

The jets you turn until they stop. DONT TIGHTEN REAL TIGHT. Just snug. Turn your pilot screw in till it stops then back it out 2 turns for an 85. When you assemble the pilot screw be sure you have the right order. Screw, spring, washer, oring. You never put the oring right against the spring.

Let me know how it works. You can call me if need be. 405.420.1114. I'm Jim

[Flyingw]

Also, what does the inside of the tank look like? Rusted? Do you have a filter between the tank and carb?

[travis103192]

I literally did everything exactly as said and also with a soak in kero and also lots of sea foam, maybe there is just tarnish that's is really badly built up, I usually rub it with a q tip and comes out completely white so I figured it was clean. I really appreciate it so much for giving me your number for assistance. I have my pilot screw at 2.5 is the only thing different but that shouldnt have anything to do with it, I will take it down, I will go through and recheck everything you said tomorrow and hope things go well if not I guess I might give you a call, thanks again I really appreciate it a lot Jim.

[travis103192]

There is very and I mean very light rust a little more toward the bottom, I just completely replace the petcock brand new and I installed a fuel filter right about a month before all of this junk happened.

[Flyingw]

Now I should also mention that these ES/SX carbs do have a bad habit of leaking out the overflow but tapping the bowl or shaking the trike will help the needle sit in the seat where its supposed to.

Just so I'm clear, gas is running out the overflow? Thats the nipple on the bottom of the bowl.

[elevatorman]

you should let Jim rebuild it. then its done and good. i let him fix mine and no more carb issues.

[travis103192]

Yeah it's the overflow, I have had quite a bit of experience with carburetors in the past but I am just mind blown by this right now by this one, I installed everything exactly the way I have always known how to, exactly the way I uninstalled it, and everything I could do with my book, and I have gone through and rechecked everything numerous times. I must not be cleaning it as good as I think I am, but I really don't want to carve it clean.

[Flyingw]

Ya know Travis, did you inspect the bowl drain screw and bowl drain screw seat real good? If thats leaking it would appear that its coming from the float chamber. Inspect the bowl real good.

[travis103192]

yeah, I have 3 different carbs for it and I actually lost the drain screw for it last night so I put in another one which actually probably had a better seal but it still did the same thing.

[fastatc70]

Does the carb have a removable float needle seat. I had a problem with exactly the same simptoms and I found a pinched seat o- ring. Remove the seat and inspect. You can also remove the carb from the trike. Remove the bowl. Connect a hose to the fuel inlet and add fuel from the tank to the carb. If you hold the carb level and raise the float by hand lightly you can see where the fuel is coming from. Be careful with the fuel spilling as we all know it is flammable. Water can be substituted for gas. I have found very small cracks in the carb body causing the bowl to overflow

[Flyingw]

No they dont fast. Its a brass insert pressed in to the carb body. The needle has a rubber tip on it.

[Flyingw]

What is the QA number stamped on the side of the carb just below the fuel hose nipple? QA02A? QA01A?

[Flyingw]

Travis, try a different bowl just to rule that out.

[travis103192]

I'll give it a shot but one bowl has a crack and the other is pretty oxidized. maybe try a different float, they look identical but maybe I'm just not seeing something?

[Flyingw]

How many good and bad SX carbs do you have Travis?

Dont worry about the oxidation on that one bowl. Just make sure its clean inside.

[travis103192]

I have three carbs, my original which one of the jet openings is destroyed otherwise perfect, I ordered a pile of poop carb from eBay for $11 and got some decent spare parts from it but the shell is in no way usable, and the current one which is a Frankenstein carburetor of all three having a little of each into it. Right now she is running like a champ, the carb is now running fantastic and my air box setup is in practically brand new condition and the New petcock is great and stops gas like it's supposed to. I used an acid base solution to clean out everything in the carb and I guess it worked, I cleaned it so many times and this time it worked, who know how long that old salvage trike Sat in that junkyard I guess and how much stuff built up in it. Well now I'm a happy camper with an amazing trike running again, thanks for all the help from everyone!

[Flyingw]

TOTALLY AWSOME TRAVIS!!!!!!!!! Ride it like you stole it. The one part to keep an eye on especially where you are is the vent mechanism in the cap. They have a real bad habit of corroding closed and causing weird problems. If its the original cap I would consider ordering a new one from Service Honda while they are still available. About 40 bucks. Rock on Brother.......

[travis103192]

Hey Jim, cool, and I really appreciate your help so much, I really do. I have had some issues with the cap actually like gas comes out the vent a little even with my new gasket I made a while back. Is that the deal with some imploded tanks I've seen. Some tanks I've seen were imploded after sitting for a while and I wondered why. And by the way, I rode it like it was stolen after work today and last night!

[Badbmwbrad]

I followed this saga with great interest. Your perseverance in resolving this problem is admirable.

Last week, I installed a Moose rebuild kit into an ATC 110 carburetor (model PB20A). The kit included a needle jet. This jet looks like a shouldered brass bushing and is unthreaded. I tried to remove the old needle jet by inserting a wooden dowel through the throttle bore into the needle jet. The jet is apparently pressed into the carburetor body. It wouldn't move when I tapped on the dowel with a mallet so I abandoned further effort to remove the needle jet.

How is one supposed to remove the old needle jet?

I have several different varieties of carburetor cleaning solutions including Sea Foam and a particularly volatile cleaning spray. To remove oxidized aluminum, I've used a small buffing wheel and Dremel tool. What is the name of the acidic solution you used?


Right now she is running like a champ, the carb is now running fantastic and my air box setup is in practically brand new condition and the New petcock is great and stops gas like it's supposed to. I used an acid base solution to clean out everything in the carb and I guess it worked, I cleaned it so many times and this time it worked, who know how long that old salvage trike Sat in that junkyard I guess and how much stuff built up in it. Well now I'm a happy camper with an amazing trike running again, thanks for all the help from everyone!

[travis103192]

It's actually this soap we use at my work for our floors, I work at a gas station but we also have a small repair shop as apart of it being full service so I grabbed some of that soap. We have to wear special boots when we clean the floors cause my boss says it will eat away at your normal boots. I figured if it ate away at boots that easy maybe it would get rid of the junk that I couldn't get to in my carb. It is an orange powder soap that works when mixed with water, I'm not sure but I think the brand is Zep. We use a lot of stuff from that company and I think our floor cleaner is that same brand. It will also turn green when it touches water, anyway I made a solution of that and cleaned the carb. I hope this helps you out man.

[trike savior]

had same problem with my sx you have tarnish on your needle seat. i agree with the q tip idea but what i normally do is use a real small phillips screw driver. it will essentially cut you a clean needle seat. just use moderate pressure and spin it back and forth between your fingers. you can test it before you install on bike. leave bowl off and hook up to tank, just holding carb it in your hand. work the float but do not push hard or you will mess up rubber tip of needle. with a little pressure it should completely shut off flow and stop dripping.