Hose replacement and carb removal

[bernasj]

I have removed enough parts of this Aspencade to replace the throttle cable and for the life of me I cannot shake the little voice that is telling me to replace the rubber in, around, and under the carbs. I do not want to do this, but I sure don't want to go back in there in 6 months. I do not see a diy tutorial covering carb removal. I don't want to pay for this so I am searching for counsel. Thanks in advance for any and all experience. Gday.

[virgilmobile]

I have a 88 gl1500.
I HAD to do all the rubber hoses due to deterioration and leaking vacuum.
Be prepared....Take 2 aspirin before starting,keep some band-aids near.
You do have to drain the radiator.The carbs have a heater coil mounted on the bottom.
2 tools that are a must....a 18" #2 phillips and a 14" needle nose....angled at the end works best.
The phillips is to reach the screw on the rubber carb coupler(accessed from each side) after the covers are removed.
The needle nose removes the coolant lines after the carb is tilted backward.
you will be saying....You've got to be kidding...a few times.
The carbs took me 3 hours to remove the very first time.The second and 3rd time was 1hr 45 min.
All this to get to the vacuum hose under the rubber mat below the carbs.
It's tedious but all can be done in a day.
There's plenty of posts about the carbs...like this one...viewtopic.php?t=11863&p=57753

[TennX]

I feel your pain, mine runs like a swiss watch, but I know I need to go thru it....once I get started I won't quit till everything is attended to...man Im glad I got my VTX for the down time....good luck

[bernasj]

Thanks so much Virgil. I will purchase the needle nose before I start, the #2 phillips I have. If I had a nickel for every time I worked on this machine and said " you got to be kidding me" I could trade it in on a Cadillac. I am not pressed for time as I will be doing drive shaft spline lube and have just finished timing belts. I also have to try and find out why the shock won't fill when I press the button. Thanks again, I feel a little more confident and less scared when I look at the birds nest of hoses. Gday.

[bernasj]

Thanks TennX. My 96 also runs like a bear, starts so quick sometimes I haven't time to let off the starter switch.

[virgilmobile]

Thanks so much Virgil. I will purchase the needle nose before I start, the #2 phillips I have. If I had a nickel for every time I worked on this machine and said " you got to be kidding me" I could trade it in on a Cadillac. I am not pressed for time as I will be doing drive shaft spline lube and have just finished timing belts. I also have to try and find out why the shock won't fill when I press the button. Thanks again, I feel a little more confident and less scared when I look at the birds nest of hoses. Gday.

I used white out and marked dots on either side of the hose couplers(4 on the left) so I wouldn't get them mixed up.If you have a question, just post.