Hey guys, just wondering if it is possible to clog the air filter with too much tacky foam air filter spray? I recently cleaned mine sprayed it and Kneaded the thing very thoroughly with some real tacky foam spray now my bike is barely running, there's gas in the air filter housing drain and the spark plug is carbon fouled. Any ideas?

absolutely, you should be trying to remove as much filter oil as possible before re-installing. the filter should be almost dry but still tacky. filter oil getting sucked through the carb could definitely foul a plug.

HTH

+1

Also let the filter sit out for awhile after you treat it to give the solvents time to evaporate.

I did, and I'm pretty unskilled. So it's definitely possible.

I don't use the spray; I have a jug of air filter oil. Just preference, I guess. My procedure is:

Buy another filter right now so you have two. (Not only does this make for more efficient time, but you always know you have a good one ready to install.)

Never wring the filter; just squeeze it.

Take out the current one, rinse and squeeze it through kerosene until clean. Then wash it with mild dish soap and rinse thoroughly.

Leave it out to dry. This could take many hours, but it doesn't matter, because you have another unused one right here.

Take the fresh one and put it in a ziploc bag with some filter oil. Squeeze and knead it until it's soaked through and through.

Preferably with disposable gloves, take the air filter, and squeeze all the oil out of it that you possibly can. Every bit of oil you can squeeze out counts as "excess".

Clymer says to put a layer of lithium grease around the base of the filter where it touches the airbox in order to make a good seal. Why lithium grease, I have no idea, but that's what I do.

Doublecheck as best you can that the air filter is seated against the airbox. I heard a story of a guy going on a dusty ride and losing a motor because all kinds of crap got sucked in past the mis-seated air filter!

Washed it out and put her back in, started up. Thanks fellas.