[grubsie]

Thanks for the tips guys, I really do appreciate them. I had decided to just live with it the way it is. It's not a terrible thing and the bike is really a blast to ride anyway. It didn't start any better when I first got it but it runs way better now.

I took it out today for a good ride. I put about 60 miles on it. Either I am getting older or my butt cheeks forgot how hard the seat is. I was walking like I got off a days long ride on a horse.

When I was going through all the suggestions you guys gave me along with some of my own trials, I finally repaired the leaky petcock. Its the original one. It took very precise cutting of a piece cork gasket material to make the leak stop. It never leaked bad, just kind of seeped slowly enough that in time the bottom of the petcock would form drops that were landing on the engine and staining the finish on the engine, Plus the smell of gas in the barn was sickening. There was never a problem while the engine was running, just when it sat with the petcock open.

The reason I am bringing this up is I always turned the petcock off whenever I shut the engine off. Now that the petcock is fixed, I have been leaving the petcock in the on position. The strong smell of gas came back but nothing visual anywhere on the bike or the floor, however when I checked the overflow hose that comes out of the bottom of the float bowl, it was wet with gas. Not dripping, just really wet. I run it down the back of the engine so it probably dissipates on the engine before dripping on the floor. So I started thinking that the float maybe sticking or dirt in the float needle. The funny thing is, if I set the bike on the center stand, the symptom goes away. It only happens on the side stand.

I am grasping at straws here now. I have had that carb on and off the bike more times than I care to think about. Not to mention the how many times I've cleaned and adjusted things and replaced parts etc. So now I am thinking that the float is sticking somehow when the bike is leaning to the left. Could also be doing it leaning to the right but I haven't checked that type of situation yet. No side stand on that side.

Tell me I'm on to something here people. Please please tell me I'm on to something. This is the magic bullet. Yeah Yeah. This is the ticket.