Hello All,

I'm having some trouble with two of my 4-wheelers. My '05 Raptor 660 began leaking fuel (constantly) from the float bowl drain tube and would refuse to start. If it started, it ran for a few seconds (while backfiring loudly) and stalled. I removed/disassembled the carbs and cleaned all jets and the float bowls. After putting everything back on in the bike, same problem: the fuel leaks out of the drain tube (on only one of the carbs) until I have to manually shut off the fuel petcock.

The Beartracker story - My '99 Yamaha Beartracker has started and been a beast for many years. Today, I cleaned the carb and started it up. I can hear a clicking sound with each rev of the piston. At first, I thought the piston head was hitting the spark plug, but that doesn't seem to be the case. The power has dropped significantly and I noticed the engine gets EXTREMELY hot. The oil dipstick was warped and melted. What could be the problem? What is the loud clicking noise and why is the bike getting so hot (at night, the exhaust is cherry red).

Any help is greatly appreciated!!!

 

for the raptor you need to adjust your floats.

a member here named "Freez" or "Freeze" (can't remember if there's an 'e') posted an excellent write up on how to adjust them. do a search for the "clear tube method".

 

Raptor = float
Beartracker = running too lean or valve adjustment? I wouldn't run it that hot til I solved it. It all started after the carb cleaning?

Good luck

 

The Beartracker wouldn't start, so I'm not sure if the problem existed before of after the carb cleaning. The last time I ran the Beartracker about 4 months ago, there were no problems. Could it be something with the carb?

 

You can overheat an engine by running too lean, but to melt a dipstick, I don't know.... did you change your needle height or fuel mixture screw when working on the carb? Check your jets, and set the carb back to starting point for fuel mix,idle, needle and float. Adjust your valves.Those are a quick, cheap starting points. Good luck

 

Ok... I got the Beartracker running like new. I figured maybe the ticking sound was a valve issue, and it SURE was. When I pulled off the tap cover over the exhaust valve, I saw a loose nut in the corner next to the valve. It had unscrewed itself from the valve stem! Because it was not longer attached to the arm, the valve remained closed keeping the exhaust in the cylinder. This explains the extreme overheating. I replaced the nut onto the valve stem and tightened it down. After reassembling everything, the Beartracker had restored power and no more clinking (the nut flying around).

I still need help with the Raptor.... it leaks fuel out of the float bowl drain tube. When it runs, it sounds like it's running rich and it backfires loudly before stalling. I think one carb is working fine but the other carb is causing it to stall. What should I do? I pulled the carbs out and cleaning out the jets and everything inside. Is the float stuck or a valve of some type stuck?

 

sounds to me like the float is stuck down allowing the fuel to keep flowing into it.

When you pull the carbs again check and see if the one that keeps pouring the gas if that float is moving freely.

Then remove the floats and see if there is a weight difference in the two of them. If there is then you might have a sunken(soaked) float. Also check the needle and seat above the float.

 

Ok.... I disassembled the Raptor carb (again!) and found that the valve assembly was "frozen" open from tarnish. I removed the float, removed the valve assembly and got it back to working order. Everything looked good and the drain isn't leaking anymore. I replaced the battery with a brand new one and .....

It wouldn't start.

I had to open the air box and cover the air port for the left carb. With my hand over the left carb air port, the bike started right up and even idled. As soon as I moved my hand, the left carb makes a coughing sound, idles rough, and the engine stalls with backfires. What else could be the problem???