What do you think about this carbon removal technique?

[Tsani]

Question.  What causes carbon build up?  The only bike I've ever decarboned was a 1970 something Kawasaki 750 triple which was a 2 stroke and I understand the carbon build up from the oil on a 2 stroke. I've had big twin Harleys since the mid '70's and never a carbon problem and why mostly bikes and not cars?

Sly

Carbon is a combustion by product. Cars do develop carbon. A lot of bikes are run pig rich which helps carbon build up. Also lugging the bike a lot will help build it IMHO. A lot of car run a lot leaner thus reducing the chance of carbon build up but they also have water cooling system to keep em from having a melt down. The carbon build up on my buddies bike was actually quite thin except the rear where he had oil being sucked in via the intake vale seal. Carbon happens.

[Don D]

Kroll is a good product. When used through the TB straight on a hot motor so much that at idle you stall it and let it sit an hour, roll it with no plugs in then refire it and take it out for a hard run the motor cleans right up. Then change the oil

[Ultrashovel]

Carbon removal used to be a big problem when we were using heavily leaded fuel. It made big deposits of carbon everywhere. I haven't noticed much carbon buildup on my bike, at least nothing that would indicate it.

In the old days people used to "blow out the carbon" by heading down the road for a mile or two at WFO. It didn't do much, but you felt a lot better afterwards, particularly if you had a bitchy woman back home. LOL.

I would avoid putting chemicals into my engine at all cost. JMO.

[HogMike]

Am I understanding some are having issues with excessive carbon??
Newer bike?
Modified?
Just for reference, 2010 with 50K miles, heads removed for cam/gasket change.
Never did any sort of carbon removal.

[HD/Wrench]

HOGMIKE  I would say that its been a lean condition. Complete lack of color in the chamber is another indication of heat/ lean.  Do you have pictures of the cylinder color wise and pistons in the ring land area . Yes today  running an engine lean produces heat, heat vaporizes anything that did not burn. Up to a point as to hot it gets

[les]

Am I understanding some are having issues with excessive carbon??
Newer bike?
Modified?
Just for reference, 2010 with 50K miles, heads removed for cam/gasket change.
Never did any sort of carbon removal.

Some of the carbon on the top of my pistions was actually pounded flat from smashing against the quench area.  Typical symptoms:  Sounds like lifter chatter when cold (5 to 10 minutes), absolutely no lifter chatter type noise no matter how (melt down) hot it gets.  Also, run the bike until hot, shut off engine, gradually cool engine with hose set on mist (about 15 minutes) until you've removed the heat out of the cylinders, start engine and you get a lot of the lifter chatter type noise until it gets hot and then goes away again.  Finally, run bike until hot, stop and have dinner, about two hours come out and start engine and get that chatter.  All of those highly indicate your carbon is touching the top.

[Ultrashovel]

Am I understanding some are having issues with excessive carbon??
Newer bike?
Modified?
Just for reference, 2010 with 50K miles, heads removed for cam/gasket change.
Never did any sort of carbon removal.

Looks OK to me.

[HogMike]

HOGMIKE  I would say that its been a lean condition. Complete lack of color in the chamber is another indication of heat/ lean.  Do you have pictures of the cylinder color wise and pistons in the ring land area . Yes today  running an engine lean produces heat, heat vaporizes anything that did not burn. Up to a point as to hot it gets

More details: this bike had the "stage 1" exhaust system, mufflers, a/c change that most do, it was also on the dyno with the TTS. (Had a re-tune after the cam/gasket upgrade).
"Lean is mean" right? LOL
I never pulled the barrels to see the pistons, but the bores looked fine.
Never had a issue of "too lean" over 90K miles.
I'd have to go back to check my map to see where the mixture was set in the closed loop area, but I remember it being enriched a bit, maybe to the limit of closed loop, just don't remember.
I DO remember the bike ran just fine and was well mannered.
IMHO there is a fine line as to "too lean" tune. depends a bunch on HOW you ride!

[WhipLash96]

put a tablespoon of Marvels Mystery Oil in your gas tank at every other fill up. Ride as normal.
Three or four tanks of fuel ran thru the bike...and the carbon will be gone. 

Ray

I do this often but I also t as ke a spray bottle of water and while the bike is running and air cleaner off, I boost the rpms and spray water in the carb. A steam clean along with MMO.

[CW#]

We used to spray carbon tetrachloride in the carb with the engine revving when carbon build up was more common in the pre EPA days. Worked great.

C#

[HD/Wrench]

hog 




BG has a very nice canister for injector cleaning and a misting nozzle to clean intake / plenum , valves ( DI vs non DI) We sell & use the amsoil cleaner 3 oz in every service for the customer. Part of the package. 

[Mountainman streetbob]

Kroil is some cool stuff if you want to put something on the piston dome.  I have used it as a test with pistons on the bench coat the piston and leave it over the weekend the carbon is almost all turned to a gel like coating and it comes right off..  I have used it to clean guns for years works great for heavy fouled barrels

[citabria]

If it's that bad, you really should pull the heads, clean them up, check the cylinder condition and change the valve seals.

[les]

If it's that bad, you really should pull the heads, clean them up, check the cylinder condition and change the valve seals.

Why?  I've got nothing to loose by trying to expel the carbon without taking it apart.  If I have to take it apart, then I'll do it.  But if it don't cost me anything to try to dissolve that carbon, why not give it a shot?

[Big Cahuna]

There's a guy with a you tube video that did a good job at showing what he did with his lawn mower's carbon. He used a bore scope to see just how much carbon was on the piston. Then he did the Seafoam trick of using 1/3 of a can directly into the intake. It smoked but removed some of the carbon. I think he did it twice, then he poured the last 1/3 of the can directly into the cylinder and let it sit for a while. Then he cranked the motor over with the plug out, then put the plug back in and fired it up. Then again he took the plug out and used the bore scope again. You could see how much carbon was removed by comparing the pictures he took. It removed about 1/2 the carbon. So by adding more to each tank of gas, it should clean the remaining carbon up. He also tried it with Techron, but it didn't work hardly at all to remove his carbon.,,

[clawdog60]

Kroil is some cool stuff if you want to put something on the piston dome.  I have used it as a test with pistons on the bench coat the piston and leave it over the weekend the carbon is almost all turned to a gel like coating and it comes right off..  I have used it to clean guns for years works great for heavy fouled barrels

Liquid magic.
The oil that creeps.
Stinks bad.