Petcock won't shut off

[jpr1968]

Originally Posted by vonh

I think I read some where that you can remove the fuel line at the T just befor the carbs turn the bike on and pump out the fuel if thats what your looking to do. If you just want to drain the carbs then pinch the line as mentioned above then drain it from the bowls. Fastest way to drain the tank is syphon it out directly from the tank into a can.

That won't work. The vacuum side of the petcock is seperate from the fuel side. The petcock diapragm may have a hole or tear in it that is allowing gas to get by. The only time I ever shut the petcock on my bike is for gas tank removal. When I store the bike for winter I just add some stabilizer(Startron) to the gas, ride or run the bike for 5 minutes or so and shut it off.

[GrumpyOldMan]

FYI, '86 VT1100 does not have a vacuum operated valve.

[John Hopkins]

It sounds as if you might have some muck from the tank stopping the petcock from shutting off completely..as you are laying it up for the winter this is the time to remove the petcock and give it a good clean..it's a pretty easy job.

John.

[miragebass]

That's a good point John. And I usually put sta-bil in they fuel before winterizing my bikes. I'm off work tomorrow and I'm gonna try to tear into it a bit (after temporarily capping the lines). Thanks for all the advice everyone. Very helpful stuff on this forum.

[vito]

Originally Posted by miragebass

That's a good point John. And I usually put sta-bil in they fuel before winterizing my bikes. I'm off work tomorrow and I'm gonna try to tear into it a bit (after temporarily capping the lines). Thanks for all the advice everyone. Very helpful stuff on this forum.

Get it fixed right....before you lay up for the winter.
You have to be certain that no fuel is getting to the carbs as the bike sits. All it takes is for the floats to stick open or the float pin to miss it's mark or not seat all the way and you will end up with fuel in your crankcase. I messed up a half decent Yamaha Radian that way.

Good luck with it and let us know how you make out.