what website could I get the kouba if I decide to get one ?


drain plug as in the float bowl drain plug?
so the hose from the top of the carb connects to the fuel hose then u open the bowl drain screw?

and then it should be right where this green line is?








lol , you're right... a work free bike sounds good , but part of the reason why I bought a bike is so that I can have something to work on. I had a truck but it was too big and expensive... bikes are like half the cost and 1/4 of the space. my garage is small to begin with but now I have room for the bike + work bench and tools + plenty of extra empty space

 

Google Kouba fuel screw. Kouba is here in Boise where I live. He's fabricated a number of motorcycle parts.

Drain "plug" is an incorrect term. Sorry. Let's just call it a drain. Would "float bowl drain" be most correct? The drain has a little screw valve to open and close, and a nipple below where the fuel runs out. The clear level hose connects to the nipple with a worm-gear hose clamp to hold it tight without leaking. This hose you see here connects ONLY to the nipple. It is open to atmosphere at the other end, above where the picture does not show. It is NOT the hose connecting to the carb vents or fuel supply. The green line is correct.

 

Personal opinion without measuring anything. That float setting looks totally acceptable, if anything, slightly high, but I don't think so. To the green line would have gas going out the overflow or something - that would fill the entire bowl..

 

Mark, I'm not quite following you.
Are you saying that the green line is too full? I'm pretty sure that's the level that TNC and others told me to target, making the bowl completely full. The meniscus in that pic is just barely over the top of the bowl, but within 1mm. I believe the overflow tube inlet is above the top of the float bowl by several mm.

 

Ahh.. guys,,, I know it's been a long time since float level has been discussed.. but -

Clear tube method: Level should be .5mm above carb/bowl mating surface, plus or minus 1mm..

His green line is "good" , the fuel level, as pictured, is not.. Edit: old eyes fooled me, thot the level was waay too low... in fact it's just above the mating surface - perfect..!

Oh, I love seeing a carb in a vice - put an extra turn on it for me..lol ( kids, don't do this at home..)

 

How is the fuel level as pictured not good? It is within the tolerances you just provided.

 

Oh crap ! The fuel level in the tube is just above the mating surface....lol ... Old eyes... My bad...

Yep, that fuel level is perfect...

 

To me, the bowl is the part bolted on the bottom and with that setting is definitely full. If it is too full and it will run out of orifices into the carb throat and overflow.

If that level is a bit high that fuel level setting could be why he has a few drips and smelled fuel every time when the engine is shut off. Think about it. If that level is a shade high.it will drain a bit out of the overflow and possibly some into the carb throat through the pilot.

If I remember right the actual overflow tube in the bowl is roughly even with the mating surface of the bowl. I think if the bowl is placed on a table upside down it lays flat on the gasket surface, the overflow is even with or slightly lower than the gasket surface. That would mean any bit over the gasket surface would go out the overflow. Overflow goes on the floor and gas in the throat may create smell out of the air box. Any fuel that gets in the throat of the carb will essentially flood the engine, possibly the reason you cannot start up shortly after a shut off. After a bit of time that bit of overflow evaporates out the bike starts as normal.

I would venture to say that if it got it dropped a couple mm down to the gasket level or a shade lower that may eliminate his fuel odors and maybe the starting problem. I'd tweak the float tang to drop the fuel level to the bowl mating surface or a shade below.

I doubt that even a hopped up 351 can suck enough gas to run a bowl dry if the fuel level is even with or a shade below the mating surface of the bowl and body. By the time the bowl drops a few millimeters the float valve will be flowing more than the engine can take.

I had a bike that ran more fuel out the overflow tube than into the engine. When I first rode it the bike would only go about 1/2 hr on a tank. Then a friend noticed fuel running out the overflow full tilt when running (I always turned gas off when not running). We lowered the float level simply bending the float needle tang a bit - no measures, no time - and it went from 1/2 hr/tank to a couple hours/tank. 125 MX bike, never had fuel starvation so we never bothered measuring the setting - don't fix what ain't broke.

 

Klxster - thanks.

Mark - It's been a while, but I'm pretty sure the overflow tube is several mm taller than the top of the bowl. The bowl can't be set down flat. I googled some images and the manual yesterday, but none of the pics or the drawing make tube height obviously clear. The pics above are mine, not horror fan's, and I never had any problems with overflow at that float/fuel level. Well, except when the bike got all tired and decided to lay down.

 

Just don't tear your meniscus, I have, no fun