damaged screw heads- help!

Another update- ordered the replacement screws and some o rings via Steve Jordan in Bookham. The screws are not £11 each- screw and o'ring for each carb is about £3-4. Looks like a misunderstanding about the particular part with Spares Direct.

Will pick those up by the weekend and a set of long nose molegrips and set to work. Fingers crossed now that the Cable doesn't need replacing.

What lube should I shove at the end of the cable folks, just to keep it clean (in case it is intact)?

I'm guessing just spray the plunger parts with carb cleaner then use a can of air to dry them.

Can I use anything on the screw to stop it seizing, or is this going to be another of those regular maintenance things that the SV just loves?!!

Yes, exactly what I did. I used regular carb cleaner on the plunger parts and hit it with some compressed air before putting it back in.

As for the cables, I used the same cable-lube setup I used for my throttle cables and clutch cable. Can of cable lube (looks like WD-40 to me...) that came with a little device that clamped on to the exposed cable and lets you force lube through the cable sheath.

If you put a decent screw in there, one not made of a nice sharp cheese like the original, you really shouldn't worry about it seizing in the future... If you are really worried about it though, you could use your equivalent of this. Basically, spark plug anti-seize. Be mindful that anti-seize compounds work as a lubricant when first applied, so shoot for the lower end of the torque range specified when torquing your bolts/screws down, or you'll end up overtightening anywhere from 10 - 30%!

[yorkie_chris]

Copper slip.

Cheers guys- I'll look into the lubes shortly. I wasn't sure if copper slip would be appropriate to put near the carbs, but I gues the screw will be isolated from the air/fuel flows.

[yorkie_chris]

Originally Posted by thedonal

Cheers guys- I'll look into the lubes shortly. I wasn't sure if copper slip would be appropriate to put near the carbs, but I gues the screw will be isolated from the air/fuel flows.

It's fine near the carbs just not in the airflow. I use it on float bowl screws and clamps etc.

Nother update. Got the rear carb screw out. The plunger was fairly clean- gave it a spray, a buff and did the same with the plunger socket and cleaned out with a cotton bud.

Big mole grips did the job in the end- the new ones I got just didn't do it.

As for the front carb- sheesh! What a mess. I'm going to have to get the carbs off to get at that. The front of the front carb is well grimed up and the end of the cable, screw head and retaining plate are all looking well....er...weathered!

It's a good bet the inside's fairly shabby too. Though listening to the carbs while moving the choke lever produces a scritchy spring moving sound at both ends- so I'm fairly confident the cable's intact.

I think, in the New Year, I may buy a set of spare carbs from a breakers, strip them down, then have a second unit to swap over, so I can keep them clean on a regular basis...

[yorkie_chris]

It's a pain in the rse. Just grease everything properly and it'll be right for months.

Spray grease in the cable splitter, normal grease in the choke lever, copper slip on the screws. PTFE spray/GT85 on linkages and stuff.

Originally Posted by yorkie_chris

It's a pain in the rse. Just grease everything properly and it'll be right for months.

Spray grease in the cable splitter, normal grease in the choke lever, copper slip on the screws. PTFE spray/GT85 on linkages and stuff.

Cheers again! Not to mention a damn good buffing up before I bung it all together- and smear copper slip on the outside of the plate/screw.

So- would a quick spray of Wurth Dry Chain lube do the trick where the cable links into the plungers? (just on the cable end, mind)- this appears to be outside the fuel/air flow.

Quick question on removing the carbs- am I better removing the throttle cable from the handle bar? It looks less likely to upset the balance of the cable than removing the cable from the carb assembly.