Author Topic: Bandit still leaking gas after rebuilt carbs, petcock, plugs & gas filter. help!  (Read 13354 times)

Offline Ericchino3

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2002 bandit 1200 still leaking has after $650 in repairs for rebuilt carbs, petcock, new plugs & filters.  Uuuugh!   I'm about to bury this bike bc of ongoing gas leak,  any suggestions??

Offline Rainrider

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Are you certain that the petcock is good? I've heard of people buying new ones only to have them leak when the bike sits for a few days. If it only leaks wen it has been sitting try putting  a clamp on the main fuelline below the petcock. If that stops it rebuild the petcock or get one that is not vacuum activated.
If you then still have problems you probably have a stuck float.
Of course any decent shop knoes all this and should have found the problem by now.

Offline ventYl

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was the fuel system cleaned? isn't fuel tank rusty? this way not even brand new petcock can be sealing.
Bandit 400 1991 - stock except of swap from GK75B to GK75A

Offline ae86andkp61

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My buddy has a 1200 about the same age as yours, and at one point when the tank was taken off, the small black hose coming off the tank filler drain/overflow got pinched under the tank during re-install. He rides it in all weather, and parks outside sometimes, and the water didn't have a way to drain out, and it started rusting the drain tube from the inside! The tube passes from the little hole next to the filler cap through the tank and out the bottom of the tank towards the back right side. Once the rust became pinholes, he had a very aggravating slow leak that took a long time to figure out!

We finally discovered it after getting tired of yanking the black rubber extension tube out of the way, so I put a rubber vacuum cap on the bottom of the metal drain tube coming out of the tank and the leak went away! It wasn't a great permanent fix because any water getting into that tube can leak into the tank, but it was a good way to problem solve.

Hope you figure things out!

Offline Ericchino3

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Thanks guys!   Was told by shop it was Petcock again.  Rebuild kit failed. 

Now after carbs rebuilt, new petcock, 3 month old plugs, filters, oil, new petcock & battery it now stalls out after starting a few times in this colder Fl. wheather.  Lol!  Any ideas?

Offline ventYl

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When it will crank again? After some time? Is vacuum line / petcock assembled correctly? I don't see any reason other than petcock / insufficient fuel delivery so that bike will stall.

Next time you crank it up try to rev it a little to see if the time untill it stalls will be shorter. If yes then the fuel is suspect. If not maybe something very weird in ignition is.
Bandit 400 1991 - stock except of swap from GK75B to GK75A

Offline Rainrider

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Agree that it sounds like fuel starvation. Was the tank cleaned when the petcock was removed? Are you running an in-line fuel filter that could be clogged?

Offline Ericchino3

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Mahalo guys!  Thanks for the input.  I was told ethanol  gas, water in tank & cold weather was the problem.  After draining gas & using K100 Gas treatment it went away.  Shop told me to add a half a btl to every other tank of gas due to condensation build up in Fl.