S&S Carburetor Rebuild
Q: I recently rebuilt my S&S Super E. I followed Bob step by step though the process. After reinstalling the carb back on my bike. It won’t start. I removed the air cleaner and discovered no fuel is being sprayed into the intake manifold. I’m assume it is the accelerator pump. The problem is I manually squeezed fuel through from the bowl during the rebuild process. Other possibilities could be the acceptor screw adjustment. And correct throttle cable adjustment. What are your thoughts and suggestions.
Thank you for you input
A:Make sure that your accelerator pump is assembled correctly, with all o- rings, ball bearings, diaphragm, springs and actuating rod. It is very important that the spring is on the correct side of the diaphragm. Be sure that your throttle cable can open the carb all the way to the throttle stop. Verify that you have fuel getting to your float bowl. You can do this by removing the brass screw at the bottom of the float bowl and, hopefully, draining your fuel into a small container. If no fuel exits, your needle valve may be hung up, or float height may be incorrect.
Q: Hi fellas, I spoke to Dennis today. We talked about my 2003 softail 88TC and not being able to start. Here’s where I’m at with this bike. It’s a 2003 Night rain that I’ve modified to a chopper over the years. In September I had to park it. And was unable to get fuel stabile in it. So it sat with a half tank of gallon. In October it was starting with the RPMS at about 5000. I would kill the engine and adjust the idle screws on the carb. I had a local HD shop look at it. All they recommend was for me to replace my S&S super E. That’s when I decided to rebuild the carb it’s been on the bike sense 2004. I’m military and it’s been shipped to and back from Hawaii twice, Missouri, Chicago , and Tennessee it also had sat for extended periods of time. I had S&S 585 cams put in 2012 in HI. It ran pretty good. I also have Vance Hines Big Radius 2in 2 pipes. Other than that there’s no other engine modifications. I did bump up my jets to .074 and increased my slow jet Today I drained out all of my old gas about 2.5 gallons. And put in about 1 gal of clean premium. When I crank the bike it will back fire. It fires a couple of times it but will not turn over. The bikes starter will click after about 5 cranks. So what do you think? I’m open to ideas. I’m in Tennessee a lot of the shops aren’t very reputable. I also have a tank liner issue. I discover that my tank liner is breaking apart in the inside. Any advise on that issue.
Thanks for your help Dave
A: Definitely no reason to replace your S&S carb when you can rebuild it but; if you are losing your fuel tank lining, you will need to start at your tank and make your way down.You need to find someone who can completely flush your fuel tank and re line it. Best bet would be a shop that repairs radiators. If you need to replace your fuel valve, try going with Golan. Top quality. Replace your fuel lines & clamps. Use an in line filter if the tank is still in question.Purchase a complete rebuild kit for your carb. Follow along with our video and take your time. Make it new again. Be sure to replace your intake seals when your carb is off. No reason to be all the way there, and not take care of that. Intake seals can be a big part of your problem.Inspect your throttle and Idle cables. If they are in question, replace them. A bound cable could have been the reason for your idle racing. Finally, start with a fully charged battery. If the battery is over 4 or 5 years old, you need a new one. Especially if it’s not a HD battery.Thank you for your service to our country.
Hogger Follow up: Hi you doing I wanted to let you know I got my bike running. It was the battery. When I pull it the stall date was May 2008. Well pass it due date for replacement. After picking a new one up from the Harley shop the bike fired up on first crank. A decent amount of black smoke can out of the exhaust pipes. After adjusting the idle screw the bike was running solid. I changed the oil Ann primary oil fired it back up and took it for a ride. It was about 30degrees out at the time. Overall after the rebuild on the carb, rejetting, and tuning the bike has never run better.
Related Videos and Harley Tips:
Carburetor Video Class
Throttle Cable
Harley Tips Search
Share tips, start a discussion or ask one of our experts or other students a question.
Make a comment:
Already a member? Sign in
I have a tapping noise sounds like around the clutch area when I pull the clutch in you can’t hear it when I let the clutch out you can hear it I have a open primary on my S&S motor what could this be
For fuel tanks, GTL Advantage out in calif. does complete clean and epoxy. with warranty. they do great work. 818-759-4724... our local HD store even recommends them .
<strong> Ticket 17927 I took off my throttle spool spring when rebuilding it an now I dont know how to put it on the right way.. I tried to put it on an when I installed the carb the throttle will not snap back closed when I release the throttle. I have to manually push the throttle closed? what did I do wrong
I have a s&s B carb on my 77 ironhead sportster. it also has electronic ignition. I can get the motor started with carb on full choke, but as soon as I take the choke off the motor shuts down. The carb was rebuilt by S&S. I just can't get the motor to idle.
I am rebuilding my S&S Super E Carb. and like a dummy I broke off the Fast Idle Pickup Tube. can I remove this myself or should I see if S&S will replace if for me?