In the past, these things have been a mystery to me. Yes, I know what they do, but then again, I know what a jet engine does too. My experience with carbs has taught me to leave the bastards alone, and if there's a problem, take them to a competent mechanic. They obviously will not work in their present condition, and there's no mechanic to take them to - so back to researching just how to dismantle, rebuild and "re-mantle" them.
The function of a carburetor is to take gas and air, mix it up, and shoot it into the cylinders so it can explode and power the engine. Why they have to consist of so many little inexplicable parts has always mystified me. I find an exploded diagram of my carby, and a good article on the net about rebuilding them. The diagram helps me to know what and how to pull them apart, and the article tells me what to replace and how to put it all back together.
I've now gone from the biggest part on the whole bike (the frame) to some of the smallest (the internal bits of the carby). My plan is to take lots of photos as I pull the thing apart, and lay them out on a towel on the kitchen table. This I do. (note to self - close the window blinds behind the table otherwise Scamp the dog, will launch himself onto the table in order to bark at passers by, thus knocking all the bits onto the floor where they will be lost forever).
This is where I have a good idea. I bought a dozen or so small plastic storage boxes at Home Depot ($1.39 each). They're labeled "shoe boxes". Every little project can now be housed in its own little project box, along with replacement bits etc. Very tidy, and it means I can start or pause any of the several little projects I am doing simultaneously without losing those little bits.
There are rebuild kits available by mail order and I get a set. This lets me replace all the gaskets, O-rings, and the needles (which are rusted). Once apart, I meticulously clean all the parts and put it back together, as per the rebuild article. I won't bore you with the week-long effort to remove the top screws which were seized in place and caused me to utter many naughty words. Anyway, I now have what I believe, are a pair of perfect carbs.
At this point, I begin to wonder... In the past, I would do some major maintenance job on a motorcycle, go for a test drive, realize its not quite right, pull the whole job apart to see what I did wrong and fix it again. BUT - I'm restoring a whole motorcycle and in essence doing maybe 100 major rebuild jobs but will not be able to actually test any of them until the very end. What the hell will happen then? Maybe I'll need to completely rebuild everything I had done before??? Shit - that's not a good thought! The short term solution to this is blindingly simple - and involves a bottle of Jim Beam, some ice and diet coke...
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