Several of the items we decide we want to put on our bikes require that we rejet our carbs or have our carbs rejetted.  While I encourage people to get to know their bike and how it works with these upgrades, only you can decide if you have the mechanical aptitude for performing this yourself.  In this posting I wanted to show those who may not know, what to expect once they finally get their carbs off the bike.  Now mind you this is from my VStar 1100, but this will give you some idea of the level of complexity and delicacy of a set of carbs no matter what you may be working on.  If you look at these pics and say "I don't have a screwdriver" run do not walk to a mechanic and have them do it for you.  This is one case where the screwdriver may cost more than the mechanic!

In this fist pic we see the carbs as I took them off the bike (after I drained all the gas from them!) and set them on my bench.  Now you may notice the color.  No, my bench is not painted pink, those are clean shop towels!  I find newspaper works well also.  Make sure you have a clear, clean space before you do anything!

On the bottom of these carbs is the float bowl.  The float bowl houses your jets as they pertain to this project.  What we will be working on will be the main jet and the pilot jet as those are the most common ones you will need to change out.  I have removed the float bowl (I only work on one carb at a time and NEVER separate them!  There is no reason to for this and getting them back together properly is a huge pain!) and set it aside for this picture.  Now some time back I had changed the screws on my float bowls as the ones that come stock are a very soft brass screw and you will most likely have to use needle nosed vice grips to remove them and screw them up totally!  I replaced with a SS hex screw which works much better.  If you get a jet kit, chances are these will be included if your carb is like mine!

In the next two photos you will see close ups of the main and pilot jets.  Note that the size is stamped on the head of the main jet and the shaft of the pilot jet.  These are made of soft brass also.  Make sure you use a screw-driver that fits perfectly so that you do not destroy the jets!  Also on these carbs the main jet is in a holder of sorts that extends it up higher.  I had to use a wrench to hold the extender to remove the jet.  When you replace these they should be snug to fairly tight.  Do not crank them down as hard as you can!

When you are done and you put the float bowl back, it will probably be a bit difficult, do not force it!  Play with it a bit and you will feel it snap into place!  I use a little Blue Loctite on the float bowl screws just so they don't vibrate out later.  Do yourself a favor and do not use the Red Loctite.  Stronger is not better!  Don't ask how I know this!  So once both carbs have the bottom end done, I move on to changing out the needle or add/remove shims, whatever is required.  To do this, we have to go to the top of the carbs.  Now the bottom will not rest flat on the bench and the parts can be fairly delicate, so I just keep a roll of duct tape handy, lay the roll down flat and it creates a perfect cradle for the carbs.  Here is the top

Under these black "caps" are the diaphram and needle assemblies.  First I take this picture.  That way as I am reassembling it I don't do something stupid and put a bracket in the wrong place or whatever and have to redo the whole thing!  Now I unscrew this while holding the cap!  There is a spring involved here and it will come flying out if you are not careful!

Once we have that off and set aside, we remove the diaphram and needle assembly.  The diaphram is a very thin rubber (or rubber like material) and while fairly tough can be damaged easily.  They can also be fairly expensive depending on your carbs and the age of your bike!  At any rate, they just lift right out

Once we have them out, we are going to take a pair of needle-nosed pliars and pull the needle assembly out of the housing.  Now these are very snall plastic parts so no gorilla strength should be used as these parts too can be expensive!  On my carbs they are held in by friction and come out fairly easily with a slight pull and screwing motion.  A lot of people will recommend doing this part with the diaphram and needle assembly in a clear plastic bag, as again, we will be dealing with a spring that can fly off in some direction and may never be seen again!  Once you get this apart you will be looking at the needle, spring, shim(s) and the holder or keeper.

When reinserting the finished diaphram and assembly into the carb, be very careful!  Make sure the needle lines up with the holes, etc.  It is pretty easy to damage a needle and a damaged needle needs to be replaced.  You can never straighten it out or whatever to make it function the way it should.

Well while these are not exactly instructions for rejetting your bike, I hope it gives you kind of an overview and helps you to decide whether or not this is something you are able to tackle without a mechanic.  So two small facts on that.  First I've found that if I work on it first and then have a mechanic "fix" it it usually costs more money.  Secondly, there is no shame in realizing that something is beyond you ability to perform.  I won't attempt brain surgery for that very reason...well okay and because I think it's kind of gross!

Ride safe

Mike