82 LTD FREE REV

[SkiDog74]

 Resurrecting an 82 LTD, was able to get it running initially but not well, poor idle etc. Removed and cleaned both carbs which were some of the nastiest carbs I've ever seen. Put them back on yesterday and once it fired the engine just took off instantly! Shut it down right away, checked all the cables and intake boots, all looked good and moved freely. Tried again and same thing. Not familiar with Keihin butterfly's, could this be caused by sticking or not properly adjusted floats? Plugged idle circuit? Any ideas?

[rminier]

 I'm not familiar with the Keihin butterfly's, either. Are both butterfly valves closed nearly completely with the throttle at idle? There's no way the idle speed should be really high if the valves are nearly closed.
Floats or idle circuit shouldn't cause it to want to rev way up....unless...an idle jet is completely missing from the carb(s)..leaving a huge opening.
Are the throttle return springs so weakened that they allow the butterfly valves to open when the engine starts?
About the only other thing it could be is a MASSIVE air leak.....from the carb boots....or more likely the crank seals.
If you get it calmed down and running at a reasonable RPM, try shooting some Gumout carb cleaner inside the drive clutch at that crank seal....a noticeable increase in RPM's is a dead giveaway of a bad seal....unfortunately, you can't do the same thing at the recoil end.

[SkiDog74]

Thanks for the response. After re-cleaning the carbs, re-inspecting the boots and re-adjusting the cables it now has decided it will no longer start. I'm really leaning towards crank seals now as I know that can make for hard starting. Looks like I'll be pulling the engine this weekend and changing seals. Hopefully I can just pull the bottom case half and lift the crank to put the new seals on. Good Times...