I Could Never Do This Again, But Why Would I Want To ......

So I check the float level on my Monoblocs, and find that I need to make an adjustment. I remove the fuel banjo, and needle seat, and the needle remains in the carb catawompy in the seat bore. I give the needle a little flick with the tip of a small screw driver, and it literally jumps out of the carb, bounces on top of the gearbox, bounces off and falls between the engine plates. I hear tink, tink, then nothing ..... it never dropped to the floor.

Now, this needle is in the unobtainium category. It is huge .... the seat has a 0.200" dia. orifice, and adequately feeds my fuel hungry Atlas. I would run out of gas with a standard needle.

Looking from the top is impossible, too many obstacles in the way. Looking from the bottom yields nothing.

Nothing to do except remove the battery box and oil tank, hoping to get a better view. No luck.
Removed both carbs for a better view ..... no luck.

After several hours of peering and muttering, I resolved to remove the inner primary cover, which of course means pulling the clutch, engine sprocket, alternator and rotor.

There it was, lying dead center on top of the lower frame rail, hidden by the flange of the inner primary cover when it was in place. Somehow, the needle had to travel horizontally to get into the gap between frame rail and primary cover!

Had I known where it was, I could have flicked it out of there with a bent piece of wire. Now I have to put it all back together.

Has something similar happened to you?

Slick

BTW ..... I will be offended if you like this!

I like it!

Not really - and similar things have happened to me - Murphy's rule I think.

So you're saying you JUST NOW "joined the club"?

Wow, you had beaten the odds...

While pulling the Amal slide out of the carburetor while still mounted, the needle slipped out of the clip and went into the cylinder. Just my luck the intake open. My wife could tell how upset I was and I explained what had happened. "Now I have to pull the head" I said. She suggests I pull the plug and use one of those little "springy things that grab stuff". Fat chance of that working but I pulled the plug and she got the tool. She pushed the plunger, lowered it into the spark plug hole and pulled the needle out first try. Not the first or last time I've heard "you always think my ideas are so stupid and that I am so dumb"

brokeneagle said:

While pulling the Amal slide out of the carburetor while still mounted, the needle slipped out of the clip and went into the cylinder. Just my luck the intake open. My wife could tell how upset I was and I explained what had happened. "Now I have to pull the head" I said. She suggests I pull the plug and use one of those little "springy things that grab stuff". Fat chance of that working but I pulled the plug and she got the tool. She pushed the plunger, lowered it into the spark plug hole and pulled the needle out first try. Not the first or last time I've heard "you always think my ideas are so stupid and that I am so dumb"

Click to expand...

Its always the stupid things that work, same thing happened to me once and my wife made a suggestion, but of course I didn't even think of trying her idea and after about a hour or so I tired her way and it f*cking worked, but I manned up and told her it worked her way, the worst thing
about it she always remind me about it, even now after a few years, I just bite my tongue as she always brings it up when mates are around lol.

Ashley

brokeneagle said:

While pulling the Amal slide out of the carburetor while still mounted, the needle slipped out of the clip and went into the cylinder. Just my luck the intake open. My wife could tell how upset I was and I explained what had happened. "Now I have to pull the head" I said. She suggests I pull the plug and use one of those little "springy things that grab stuff". Fat chance of that working but I pulled the plug and she got the tool. She pushed the plunger, lowered it into the spark plug hole and pulled the needle out first try. Not the first or last time I've heard "you always think my ideas are so stupid and that I am so dumb"

Click to expand...

Your tale deserves a bigger "aw hell" than mine ....

Slick

Least you know what how everything is going in the clutch etc now

ES2 chuffed to a halt. Among other checks pulled the bottom nut off the Monoblock to check for crud - none found. Nut then slipped and shot into the inaccessible space between the oil tank and battery box, which is largely filled with a birdsnest of wiring, ignition coil, regulator.
Unload bike, seat off, battery box removed, nut retrieved, reassemble. At least it was a nice sunny day.
Managed to ride home at 30mph, problem later diagnosed as an inadvertent fill with ethanol fuel causing a prostate issue in the fuel system.