Calling all of those who run newer carbs in older bikes!

[cmyoch]

I'm battling getting my '76 back on the road. The carb rack is out for a thorough cleaning. The bike came with '81 GL1100 carbs (VB48A). I snapped the head off of one of the air mixture screws which I'm trying to source right now but my question is this. Those of you running newer carbs in older bikes (1100 carbs on a 1000 engine) are you setting your air mixture screws to the factory spec of the carb or should I set them to the factory setting of the engine since it's running the "hotter" cams, larger ports, etc?

Unfortunately, I cannot shell out the cash right now for a '76 carb set made for my bike. I have to make what I have work. This is getting extremely frustrating looking at a non running bike in my garage. I was half tempted to go the single carb route but don't want to throw good money away on that either.

Just looking for your thoughts and what works for you in this situation??

Thanks!

[AussieGold]

hello,
i understand exactly what you are going through, although i didnt really consider the single carb conversion.
i have an AU delivery ( i am in Australia) LTD that i could not get to run smoothly. i pinpointed the problem as carb related. a process of elimination. luckily, i have two other GL1000 , so swapping parts to note changes was easy.
eventually i realised that the carb problem was above my skill level. enter PISTOL PETE.
after several emails i bit the bullet and sent the rack to him. it came back with a few small parts changed and fully rebuilt.
performed brilliantly and still are.
the cost , even taking into consideration we are halfway round the world, was very good. his service and communication are second to none. the cost , i believe, is comparable to the single carb/manifold route. remember , a good skill level is needed to dial in the single.
but i think having the stock system running well is a good option as well. so, my advice is , count the pennies and email Pistol Pete ...

[Sandy]

Pretty sure Pete has retired, no longer an option for rebuilding carbs.

[AussieGold]

a quick check of Pistol Petes facebook page shows him to be quite active on the rebuild and supply of carb stuff. maybe an email to him will find out for sure. sad news if his business no longer does this work.

[robin1731]

Pete does good work. Check Randakks page for his list of approved carb rebuilders.

To answer your question though. No matter what carbs you use, set the mixture screw to the best idle. Do the idle drop procedure to get them right. Factory settings are a starting point.

.

[cmyoch]

Well his website indicates that he's still in business. The 2017 price sheet shows $500 for a set of 1100 carbs. I'll be in a SCC for under $200. I really don't want to go this route. If this cleaning doesn't do the trick, I'll try to source a '76 carb rack somewhere.

How frustrating...

[Toehead]

The delta cost is all the air cutoff valves., which can be bypassed and discarded (if you want).

[RB]

Randakk posted a source for replacement air valves..a while ago..same as for a newer..KAw or SUz..search his site.