Carburetor Cleaning?

berryjames74 · Post by **berryjames74** » Mon Aug 22, 2011 3:53 am

Hey all......anyone know of a step by step instructional on how to clean the carb on a buddy 150? I am a novice with mechanics and I believe that my carb is plugged after sitting for the winter/summer....Thanks!

bigbropgo · Post by **bigbropgo** » Mon Aug 22, 2011 5:14 am

I am posting this without really looking around here for myself. But YouTube has a couple that might help. Even if its a different scoot, the motors are close enough to work.

bigbropgo · Post by **bigbropgo** » Mon Aug 22, 2011 5:19 am

On second look, its the first post in the technical library.

Post by **ericalm** » Mon Aug 22, 2011 9:44 pm

Here's the link:
topic17556.html

Be careful with the 4 Philips screws on the bottom of the carb (float bowl screws), they're a bit soft and I managed to strip one of mine when doing this! My dealer says the Buddy toolkit screwdriver is actually a good size for these.

ScooterTrash · Post by **ScooterTrash** » Tue Aug 23, 2011 3:33 am

ericalm wrote:Here's the link:
topic17556.html

Be careful with the 4 Philips screws on the bottom of the carb (float bowl screws), they're a bit soft and I managed to strip one of mine when doing this! My dealer says the Buddy toolkit screwdriver is actually a good size for these.

beat me to it

djelliott · Post by **djelliott** » Tue Aug 23, 2011 5:30 pm

ericalm wrote:Here's the link:
topic17556.html

Be careful with the 4 Philips screws on the bottom of the carb (float bowl screws), they're a bit soft and I managed to strip one of mine when doing this! My dealer says the Buddy toolkit screwdriver is actually a good size for these.

It's a good idea to replace them with some good quality hex bolts. It'll make it a lot easier next time you have to open it.

berryjames74 · Post by **berryjames74** » Tue Aug 23, 2011 10:50 pm

Thanks......I guess I didn't look hard enough. Should be a good weekend project!

viney266 · Post by **viney266** » Wed Aug 24, 2011 12:35 am

ericalm wrote:Here's the link:
topic17556.html

Be careful with the 4 Philips screws on the bottom of the carb (float bowl screws), they're a bit soft and I managed to strip one of mine when doing this! My dealer says the Buddy toolkit screwdriver is actually a good size for these.

^^^You need a hammer type impact driver with phillips bit. Works wonders.

And, for OP..Make SURE you have the pilot clean...check it again!

LPcreation · Post by **LPcreation** » Mon Jun 18, 2012 8:04 pm

Sorry to bump such an old thread but I'll be doing this for the 1st time.

Can I get a rough idea of long this should take? I know we all work at different speeds, but am I correct I can probably do this job in a few hours?

Thanks in advance!!

Beamster · Post by **Beamster** » Tue Jun 19, 2012 12:11 am

Before going to all that trouble, try replacing the gas with new treated with a dose of Seafoam treatment, run it a bit if possible but atleast get it to flow into the carb and let it sit overnight.

That has done the trick for us three years in a row.

After that, always add Seafoam in all the gas.

mhardgrove · Post by **mhardgrove** » Tue Jun 19, 2012 1:37 pm

This is going to sound strange, but trust me, if you need to clean the jets boil them in lemon or lime juice from one of those squeeze containers. Where the jets are brass they wont react with the acid in the juice, and any crap in them will come right out. I boiled mine for 3-5 minutes and they came out as clean as can be! Let them cool, then rinse with water, let em dry and you are good to go.

Also, where you are working with gas BE SAFE!!! Do this in a place that has lots of ventilation, use common sense, blah blah blah!!!

Good Luck!!!

Post by **ericalm** » Tue Jun 19, 2012 1:44 pm

Probably in a few hours. I would think…

BuddyRaton · Post by **BuddyRaton** » Tue Jun 19, 2012 3:04 pm

mhardgrove wrote:This is going to sound strange, but trust me, if you need to clean the jets boil them in lemon or lime juice from one of those squeeze containers. Where the jets are brass they wont react with the acid in the juice, and any crap in them will come right out. I boiled mine for 3-5 minutes and they came out as clean as can be! Let them cool, then rinse with water, let em dry and you are good to go.

Also, where you are working with gas BE SAFE!!! Do this in a place that has lots of ventilation, use common sense, blah blah blah!!!

Good Luck!!!

I do a lot of work with brass (restoring antique clocks). Shiny doesn't necessarily mean clean.

LPcreation · Post by **LPcreation** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 8:33 pm

Thanks for the responses guys! I'll try the seafoam trick 1st and then pull the carbs if need be. Thanks again!

50CC Cape Cod · Post by **50CC Cape Cod** » Wed Jun 20, 2012 10:42 pm

I have 2 scoots that sat in hibernation a few years. The Seafoam worked
great on one and did well on the second but had a partial clog in the pilot jet so had to clean that one out by hand. Overall it works great.

mhardgrove · Post by **mhardgrove** » Thu Jun 21, 2012 12:23 am

it doesn't actually make the brass shiny, but it sure does clean them out if you don't like using harsh chemicals. I don't like using chemical dips if I can keep from it, and the lime/lemon juice trick is something my grandfather taught me. It doesn't hurt the jets, so thats what I do

to each their own.

bluto · Post by **bluto** » Mon Aug 03, 2015 10:22 pm

Thanks to all who posted tips on this thread and others. My GF's 125 would not idle and I suspected the pilot jet was plugged and that was the case. A few things I learned fixing it...
I did not have to remove the carb completely, getting it loose from the boots enabled me to turn it over and remove the bowl. The bowl screws are probably JIS, NOT phillips and that might be why many have stripped them...this had been causing amateur MC mechanics grief for many years as the difference is not obvious, was not aware myself until recently. The toolkit screwdriver did work as suggested and fit well.
I only removed the pilot jet, figured the main jet was OK and some Seafoam would take care of any deposits, and the less I did the less the odds of screwing the carb up in the process;-) The pilot jet was completely plugged and the orifice is TINY and hard to clean so I tried heat from a torch and that did the trick and boiled the varnish out, followed that up with Seafoam spray and compressed air.
Anyway put it all back together and the scooter now runs great and idles well...