Carb advice

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chalkysexplorer
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Carb advice

Post by chalkysexplorer » Fri Jul 14, 2017 10:54 am

Ok, so this is a weird one. Found this site because I'm researching a Bandit 400 project for my wife. I've got an '02 ZX9R but have had a '92 GSXR-1100 and an '82 Katana 1100 in the past. When she said she wanted a bike I started looking at possible candidates. Something without a fairing and a 400 I4 looked good.

Found a '92 local to me in Portland, OR. It's rough, but mostly all there and not something I don't think I can fix. I mostly play with mid 80's turbo Mustangs so I know how to scoure the internet looking for info and unobtanium parts!! The biggest problem is the current owner decided to clean the carbs and couldn't get the pilot jet out of #2. He then proceeded to snap an easyout off in the jet!!!

I've spent the last couple of days looking at options, getting it machined out, edm machining (??), melting the brass jet with nitric acid, looking for a replacement carb body......

I'm thinking the best solution is to find a set of GSX600 BST33's, they seem far more common, and use those body's with the original 400 externals and some new jets, and 0-rings from Litetek.

Any thoughts? i'd appreciate your advice.

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Re: Carb advice

Post by SevenThreeSeven » Fri Jul 14, 2017 9:11 pm

I don't know about a GSF400 as a wife-bike. I like my GSF400 but I have to be in the right mood to ride it, its an angry little thing. I'm just thinking it would be a very rare type of female rider who would consistently enjoy the high RPM mayhem. I'm a guy who really loves high RPM, small displacement bikes but I have to admit that most days I prefer my VFR800 to the GSF400 (or EX250, my other small machine).

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Re: Carb advice

Post by chalkysexplorer » Fri Jul 14, 2017 11:35 pm

I hear what you're saying, but she's a petrol head!!! She loves autocrossing my '86 SVO Mustang. I explained to her that it would take more work to keep it "on song", but she says that she wants a fun bike she cam rev. She also like tge way it looks which is a plus as she had a thing for Ninkas for a while!!!

Thanks for the tip. I've read a bunch of you're stuff here and it's been very helpful!!

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Re: Carb advice

Post by Variablevalves suck » Sun Jul 16, 2017 1:14 pm

Yes mate you probably have no other option than to restack a 600 set,

You only have to do the one carb then keep the rest as spares.

Seeing as you are in the US its worth going on the banditalley site as its US based, someone might even have a spare body you can have.

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Re: Carb advice

Post by chalkysexplorer » Mon Jul 17, 2017 7:36 am

"You only have to do the one carb then keep the rest as spares."

Wait, the 400 is a 32mm and the 600 is a 33mm, won't that cause an imbalance or a fuel problem?? I found a body on eBay, http://www.ebay.com/itm/96-SUZUKI-KATAN ... 6016.l4276

Would this work, if so I'll grab it tomorrow. Thanks for your help.

BTW, picked the bike up Saturday, paid $450, came with a new rear tire and what appears to be a V&H full system. It's a rat, but it has potential and we got it to fire with starting fluid and hands over the intake ports:):):)

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Re: Carb advice

Post by Variablevalves suck » Mon Jul 17, 2017 7:05 pm

Ah sorry I have jap import B4's and they all have 33mm carbs as standard.

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Re: Carb advice

Post by chalkysexplorer » Mon Jul 17, 2017 9:32 pm

Disaster avoided!! A local machine shop was able to get the parts out with thier EDM machine, so hopefully we're good to go!!

Spent lunchtime stripping the other three down for a good clean and to see what's missing. Only going to need to get a coupla jets, some screw and a coupla springs. :)

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Re: Carb advice

Post by chalkysexplorer » Tue Jul 25, 2017 6:24 am

'eello All, well I'm excitedly awaiting the UPS man tomorrow because he has a box with a whole bunch of carb parts!!! I went through what was there and got what we call in the SVO world "scope creep" One thing led to another and I have pretty much everything but the body's shafts and butterflies coming my way.

I ordered both kits from Litetek, new stock main and pilot jets, float needles, some springs, plugs and screws and one diaphragm that needed replacing. I've been soaking the bodies in a solution of Pinesol and water for the last few days which has done a very good job of breaking the grease and muck down. It's also done a good job of dissolving the yellow zinc dichromate plating of some of the parts, but we have gold paint for that:):) The bodies and bowls (exterior only) will get a nice coat of Duplocolor's cold cast aluminium for good measure.

I also got to work on the wiring over the weekend. The previous-previous (??) owner, apart from the god awful flat black paint, had added switches to the top triple top kill the headlight and tailight. Genius had also added a 130W headlight so that got swapped for a 55/60W. This caused the blinkers not to work. So Saturday morning I removed all that and got to work cleaning up mess of wiring under the seat. With that done I picked up the new Dunlop Pilot ( :grin: ) rear tire and airbox (complete with K&N) from the previous owner and also tracked down a 195deg. thermostat......from a Buick apparently. We'll see if it fits.

Hopefully :whistle: a plan will come together and I'll have all my bits and pieces by Saturday and I can get the carbs bolted together. The I'll bolt them on and hopefully I can get this thing to run!! We'll see!!

In the meantime, I've been madly researching theses little Bandits. Very cool bit of kit Can't wait to ride it!!!

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Re: Carb advice

Post by Variablevalves suck » Fri Jul 28, 2017 9:12 pm

Hope you get it sorted.

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Re: Carb advice

Post by chalkysexplorer » Sun Jul 30, 2017 9:47 am

Good news, Bad news!!!

Well, today was interesting. I spent yesterday bolting the carbs together with all the new bits and my new CV slide springs arrived this morning, so with those dropped in I was ready to go. For reference, 102.5 mains, 32.5 pilots and 2 turns out on mixture screws. I had already replaced the coolant and thermostat (195 deg) and the oil and filter. I dropped a new battery in as the one that came with the bike was bad.

A mate was helping me, I'd just fixed the integrated LED tailight on his 01 Monster S4, a crappy dry solder joint on the control board sent it haywire!! Bugger to find!! We connected the cables, rigged up our external fuel source, a Dasani water bottle with a nipple and inline filter, pulled the choke, hit the starter and vroom!!! She fired up and ran!!!

Thought I'd done all right till it got my IR temp meter on the pipes 350, 363, 105, 355. Hmm....Bugger. It'd sound great if it was a Triumph, way quieter than my clack-aty ZX9R!! Turns out the plug wire was loose from the cap. Tighten and test with spare plug, have spark at valve cover. Re-fire, still no heat on pipe 3. Do a compression check, 150, 145, 130, 140. Not stellar, but not terrible. Call an old mechanic friend who suggests to test the coils. Primarys are 3.5 & 3.7 Ohms, Secondary are 33.62 & 33.89 k Ohms. Thought maybe a bad plug, throw in some new CR8EIX's, that aint it either.

I'm a little stumped. Any thoughts?? I haven't checked valve clearances because the previous owner said he did them but I think that's my next port of call. I'm definately getting fuel to #3, I drained the bowl, double checked the mixture screw and if I blip the throttle, there is a fuel mist matching what the other three are doing.

Any advice greatly appreciated.


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