Hydraulic lock with the petcock off

[Captjack]

I can understand that float valves might leak causing a cylinder full of gas but how can it happen with the fuel shut off.

Just to make sure, I shut off the fuel and let the engine run till it was starving.

I'm thinking I have two problems, petcock (slow leak) AND front left float valve not closing.

So how do you adjust and clean the float valve?

Do you have to remove the entire carb set or is there a trick?

 

[gordonv]

Best thing to do is to do a search for hydrolock.

You are right, you have to have 2 things go wrong to get a hydro lock, EXCEPT I read, for cyclinder # 6. That is the one that feeds the vacumm to the petcock, and if your petcock diaphram leaks, you could get fuel traveling down that to the cylinder.

Other wise, you need to have a bad petcock (wont turn off) & a float valve stuck. Which allows fuel from the tank to travel past the petcock, and through the float bowl to the cylinder.

I check my petcock every week on Monday on the drive to work. Half way through my commute I turn the petcock off while on the highway, to see if I run out of fuel. Other wise, I never turn it off.

When I get another Valk, I'll be changing it all out for an electric fuel pump and filter I already have from a Shadow 1100.

[Captjack]

Ii had a problem with the stock vacuum petcock shortly after I got this 2000 Interstate.

At that time I replaced the stock one with a manual and thought I had solved my problems.

I guess not.

 

[Ricky-D]

Ii had a problem with the stock vacuum petcock shortly after I got this 2000 Interstate.

At that time I replaced the stock one with a manual and thought I had solved my problems.

I guess not.

 

What brand stopcock?  Most here go with Pingle.

***

[Fritz The Cat]

Does a belly tank eliminate this problem?
 

[Captjack]

So what I need to know is how to fix the float valve.

I tried searching the board but don't find anything about the carb, just the petcock.

Do I need to pull the entire carb pack or can this be done in place.

It looks like a real bear removing the  entire carb set but if thats the thing, then so be it.

Any Ideas?

[John U.]

The float valve and the floats can be purchased seperately. The floats can't be adjusted and are probably fine if they are not fuel soaked. Your trouble is probably the valve itself.
Check out numbers 4 and 20 on this page:
http://www.hdlparts.com/fiche_section_detail.asp?section=148084&category=MOTORCYCLES&make=HONDA&year=1998&fveh=3466

[John U.]

I neglected to mention that yes the carb bowls can be accessed without removing the entire carb bank. The tank will still need to be removed along with the air filter box. The intake tubes must also be removed then the carb bank can be lifted one side at a time and tied or bungeed up to the frame.

I'm not sure that it's easier that way. It helps if you can lift the bike. A right angle screw driver is needed. Small dextrous hands will help, so will a mirror.

I also forgot to mention that grit from the tank is the likely culprit. You should take a look and most likely replace your petcock screen which is also purchased seperately. A high flow fuel filter will help as well. Golan makes a good one, pricey though.

[Farther]

Does a belly tank eliminate this problem?

An R&M Works belly tank does.

[Captjack]

It looks like the first thing I need to do is build that wooden lifting base for the bike.

The petcock is a golan and I am wondering what is allowing it to leak with the selector in the off position.

At this point I am considering whether to re-install the original vacuum operated switch ( after a rebuild) or a pingle or see if there is something I can do for it.

Anyway the inline filter is a must.

Thanks to everyone for helping a noob out.

 I have ridden most of my life but this is my first F-6 and it is a completely different animal.

[Ricky-D]

I wouldn't get all worked up just yet.

The thing to do is to remove the float bowl and drop the float by removing the pin.

Best to work over something in case you drop something. It will be easier to find.

After removing the float, the pin will come with it and you'll see it has a rubber tip.

You can inspect it but you probably will find nothing apparently wrong with it.

That's because it is still Ok. Just a piece of junk got lodged there and allowed the needle to leak a bit.

With the needle removed, let some gas drain to remove any other contamination.

Clean the bowl and put it all back together.

The filter screen in the tank, the one attached to the stopcock ought to be good enough to stop anything that will clug up the carburetors.  In-line filters have been reported to cause problems with fuel starvation so I would not recommend anything like that.

It would be good to determine why the stopcock didn't function properly.  Rust in the gas tank is a rare exception and easy to spot thru the filler neck.

When there is a float valve problem it can usually be attributed to prior messing with the fuel delivery system including the tank. Small particles can be dislodged and allowed to then transit  through the system and if large enough cause the float needle to lose function and let gas bypass regardless of the stopcock.

If the stopcock is functional there is not enough gas in the downstream to (1) fill the carburetor to overflow (2) and enough gas left over to cause hydrolock.

Get that stopcock working or replace it with one that will work.

***

[Patrick]

I too wouldn't get too excited.. You can open the drain on that carburetor and try to flush the 'junk' [technical term] from that chamber and see if that helps.. It may need to done a couple times.. Just leave that sparkler out for a couple tries..
A fuel lock can occur with a properly functioning petcock, there is enough fuel in the supply lines..
I believe the best prevention is an in-line filter.. I use one available at your friendly local fuel filter store.. I think most of the fuel starvation issues have come from leaving the fuel line a bit too long ending up with a slight kink in it..

[John U.]

I believe the best prevention is an in-line filter.. I use one available at your friendly local fuel filter store.. I think most of the fuel starvation issues have come from leaving the fuel line a bit too long ending up with a slight kink in it..

I agree that the best prevention is an inline filter. If it were true that the petcock screen is sufficient to stop any junk in the tank then where did the grit come from that is probably preventing the float valve from seating?
If in fact the petcock is failing to stop the fuel flow, take the petcock apart an clean it, you may find that grit from the tank is what is also causing problems there.
I also agree that rust in the tank can be a problem, it was for me.

[gordonv]

If you have had hydrolock, then you most likely know which carb/cylinder is the problem, and that is the only one you need to fix. You might want to do the rest, but you need to do only that one.

Not every having to do it, from the above posts, I would think it would be just a little more work to fully remove your carb assembly from the engine, and work on a nice bench.

Do a search, or someone else will chime in, there is one side that is easier to remove the assembly off the bike from.

[Captjack]

I don't recall the golan petcock having a screen, but I may be wrong about that. If that is indeed the case it would explaine the float valve AND the petcock failure.

Since this has happened several times(4-5) I guess I'm really lucky that it hasn't hurt anything.

When I pulled the spark plug I found it really sooty so it has been running real rich.I wonder if it has been staying wide open pretty much all the time.

I did come across one of the bolt on jack adapters. This one mounts under the side stand and uses the same bolts to secure it. What a surprise, they are really bolts and its kind of tight to get a wrench on top to hold them while you turn.

Its a hassle, but there are lots of those kind of things on the bikes that I have ridden most of my life.

At this point I am thinking about rebuilding the stock vacuum operated valve and going with that.

I'm wondering if I just need the gasket kit ~$18 or if it is worth getting the diaphragm housing assy~$28.

After that I think I should at least be safe.

Next I'm thinking pull the drain plug and let the carb (front left, # ?) free flow and see if that fixes it. It probably wouldn't hurt to do all of them really.

Anyone have any other ideas or advise? I'm just learning how to keep the fat lady happy and singing, so all ideas are welcome.

Thanks all

[Bone]

Real sooty was it #6 cylinder ? My 98 Tourer started fouling #6. I would pull a different plug and switch with #6. I could ride 50 miles and the #6 would start fouling.  When I got home the guys here told me it was the petcock. Pulled it and the diaphragm had a tear. The gas will run down the vacuum line right into the cylinder.
I by-passed the vacuum shut-off and that made the petcock a manual. It has to be turned on and off manually.
I have a rebuild kit but haven't installed it yet it's been 2 years or so