I wanted to check what jets were in Keith's TTR250 carb as his bike runs extremely well and I wanted to copy his setup on a carb that I have just rebuilt.
On taking off the float chamber, I was a bit surprised to find that a previous float post repair (Chemical Metal or similar) had failed
As I have the kit to repair it we did the job at mine today.
It took all of Keith's concentration
The reason for me doing this follow up note is that I followed my own instructions carefully and encountered some problems:
Firstly we found it difficult to keep the small diameter "bendy" drill bits on target despite centre punching so, having got a couple more carbs of my own to repair, I will invest in a set of centre drill bits to see if that helps. I will let you know.
Secondly, the 4mm tap was very tight in the hole made by the 3.3mm drill bit despite it being the "correct" one. So tight that it broke the side out of the post stub
We got over this by drilling the hole out with a 3.5mm bit and were able to use the 4mm tap to the depth we needed with no further problem.
I would be really interested to hear from anyone that has used this "thumbscrew" repair system and whether they had similar (or other!) issues please?
Flushed with the success of repairing the float post on Keith's carb, we went on to do the repair on 4 other carbs that I had here.
With each repair, we refined the process and by the fourth carb we had it down to a fine art
The centre drills I had ordered from Amazon had arrived and made the job of drilling the "post" and the thumbscrew a lot more accurate as they provide a guide hole for the drill bit and stops it bending and wandering off the centre punch mark, as long thin drill bits are apt to do.
Drilling the hole in the thumbscrew to take the float pin is tricky as it is an awkward shape to hold in place. A simple solution was to rest it on a small block of wood to keep it level.
I bought a cheap set of taps a long time ago and, in retrospect, I should probably have bought a better quality 4mm tap to do this job. Nevertheless, it did the job and the thumbscrews screwed in perfectly.
Proof of the pudding.... I am really happy with the repairs and now need to rebuild the carbs.