Re: power loss
Here's a little tip for cleaning carbs that will save you time and money -
Take pictures of the carb before you remove it. Make sure to get pictures of the hose routing.
If you have more than one carb, do the first one completely before you touch the others. This way you'll have a reference for reassembly.
Remove the carb(s) and all of the rubber tubing.
Soak the assembled carbs in paint thinner or mineral spirits. Brush them with a nylon bristled brush (parts brush).
Get a plastic tackle tray and number the holes.
Take plenty of pictures of the carbs before and while your disassembling them.
Disassemble the carb according to the Merc manual and place the parts into the tray so they are separated. Log each part and note the characteristics such as jet sizes, etc.
Once disassembled, soak the components in Gunk carb cleaner for 24 hours.
Remove the parts from the cleaner and wash thoroughly with Dawn dishwashing detergent and warm water. Use soft nylon tube brushes to clean out holes, ports, etc. Do not grind the brush into the holes just brush them out softly. A soft tooth brush also helps.
Blow the parts dry with DRY compressed air. (aChris said it because he knows that wet air means a dirty carb).
Take a small wire brush and clip off a bristle or two. Use a pair of needle nose plyers to hold the bristle and pass it through the tiny holes in the carb throats. DO NOT REAM THESE just pass that tiny bristle through the holes to make sure they are clear.
As a side note: Some will argue with doing the previous step. I've done it on numerous carbs and never caused a problem. If you don't want to do it then don't just make sure the ports are clear using whatever method you prefer
Re-clean everything with warm soapy water again and blow them dry. I know, sounds repetitive and it is but just do it.
Here's a cleaned carb compared to a dirty one - Normal soaking in gunk won't get them this clean. I also glass bead them with 80 grit glass beeds. You don't have to do this unless you want to. Extra steps are involved but can be worth the effort.
Any new metal parts such as jets, floats, needles, seats, etc., need to be washed in warm soapy water also.
Use loctite red (271) on the screws that hold the butterflys to the shaft. I use loctite blue on the vent jets but you REALLY need to be careful that you don't use too much. Probably not for the novice. One tiny, tiny dot is enough.
Remember, when you're buying parts for your carb, by new parts not old ones from someone on eBay that's bought an old lot from some out of buisness shop. This will help to ensure that your parts are capable of handling e-10/15 fuels.
Finally, don't think this is going to be a afternoon project. Take your time. If you need to soak parts individually to keep from mixing them up then do it.
If you can't read the numbers on the jets then soak them individually so you don't get them mixed up.
Above all, remember, clean is the name of the game. Give you carbs a fighting chance from the start and you'll have fewer problems down the road.
The picture I've shown is where I dissasseble dirty parts. When I put them back together I do so in a clean environment.
Here's the parts tray full of cleaned parts -
And here's the carbs after re-treating with Aluma-Prep, De-ionized water, and Alodine 1210. If your wondering why not just leave them shiny and brite, the answer is corrosion and E-10/15 gas. Alodine is a metal conversion chemical that convertes the surface of the aluminium to a highly corrosion resistant substrate. It was what was on the carbs from the factory. If you've scrubbed all the alodine off your carbs, you should seriously consider re-treating them.
Not as pretty but super clean and highly functional
