With a vacuum carburettor, polishing gives you a finish that’s somewhere between used and new—or maybe even better.
The stock carburettor’s low maintenance cycle is genuinely a lifesaver. With a TMR or FCR, you’d have to service it every 1–2 years just to keep it running.
After polishing, it’s got a sharp, brilliant shine. Even a vacuum carburettor can make a statement? Welcome to the good times.
Here’s some cross-application info. Stock carburettor CV and BS models are basically universal, I think.
When you’re stuck, sourcing from other makers is probably the better move.
This time the starter valve 13411-26E00 was BO—out of stock—so I looked around and found that Kawasaki uses something similar, and I sourced that instead.
The length is a perfect fit. By the way, the Kawasaki version is a few hundred yen cheaper, so that’s a note for my future reference.
The GSX1100S Katana and similar BS carburettors don’t have a BS starter valve option, but you can cross-apply parts from other BS carburettors.
The slide valve wear is minimal, which is reassuring.
The needle hasn’t worn down either.
The durability of modern float valves is just incredible—truly grateful.
Check that the pin moves freely.
Look for excessive shine in the grooves. Shine means wear, which creates resistance and can destabilize the fuel level.
Taper section wear—and I mean, with modern rubber-type four-cylinder carburettors, I rarely see worn ones.
If the rubber has its bounce and rubber feel, it’s basically fine. When it goes bad, it feels like hard plastic. Using it as long as possible means I’m taking on more risk.
Sure, going all-new, all-new is definitely safe, but understanding how far you can push parts, what fails, and what you can cross-apply—that becomes a learning opportunity.
Float-arm style carburettors definitely hold their fuel level more steadily.
But this time there was a slight difference, and my experience-based theory got shot down.
The Mikuni fuel filter fit perfectly, so I installed it.
After that, I synced the carburettors and it was purring smoothly.
