My Rancher has been getting harder and harder to start then
one day would not start at all. Plenty of battery power. I
was going to use ether see if it would help start it. When I
took of the air filter parts and cranked it over I noticed
it was spraying gas into the air box. There was a small
puddle of gas in the bottom. I pulled the spark plug and
gave a small squirt of ether into the cyclinder put in the
spark plug and cranked it over several times. Nothing
happened for about ten cranks then it detonated the ether
in the muffler. Any have any ideas?

 

Maybe carb float is stuck open and you are flooding out the carb, and it leaks back into the airbox? Trouble is, if that is true it is also leaking into the combustion chamber and past the rings, so check your oil for fuel contamination!!! If it has fuel in it, the oil is worthless and don't even start it until you change the oil and get the carb straightened out.

 

Yes it is spraying like a fine mist into the box. I have left the air filter off.
I checked the oil it seemed fine but I had changed it just a day before
this happened. I quess I will pull the carbuerator out and clean it.

 

These carbs float needles tend to stick. Just a little bit of grit under the needle is all it takes. Mine have stuck on both my Rancher 350 from time to time, and what I do to fix it is go land a few big jumps to jar it free, and that has always done it for me....

 

I have cleaned carbs and the amount of dirt it takes to mess one up is hardly noticeable to the naked eye, a good cleaning of the needle and seat and of all the jets should solve your problem.

To help prevent it in the future, run some carburator cleaner that you add to the gas at least every other month, and definanlty on a ride after the bike has been sitting around for awhile. This prevents alot of problems like this.

 

I believe that you have an exhaust valve not opening or intake staying open. Put your hand over the carb inlet & crank. I bet it sucks & then blows against your hand. That isn't a carb problem, it's valves. Hopefully you just need to adjust. I just got a TRX200S doing this.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: ScottMO

I believe that you have an exhaust valve not opening or intake staying open. Put your hand over the carb inlet & crank. I bet it sucks & then blows against your hand. That isn't a carb problem, it's valves. Hopefully you just need to adjust. I just got a TRX200S doing this.</end quote></div>

This is a possibility if it is actually spraying out of the carb, rather than just flowing on its own. Done a valve adjustment lately???

Also, consider the possibility of a blocked crankcase vent.

 

It does suck then blow. No, I have not done a
valve adjustment lately nor do I know how. I'll
search for that.
A blocked crankcase vent? I'll look for that also.

 

To save someone from typing alot I have already found
instructions on how to adjust the valves.

 

To save someone from alot of typing, I have
already found instructions on how to adjust the
valves.