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Accelerator Piston stuck on 2006 BF20

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Uglybowhunter

New member
My Accelerator Piston is stuck on 2006 BF20, I had a low idle issue and managed to clean the carb after a couple of tries thanks to an older post on this website. Now my accelerator piston is stuck all the way up, this is with the bowl off the carb, is there a trick to free it up?? It worked fine before my last cleaning.
 
Those accelerator pistons are just about worthless. Unless you are fast twisting every time you would never miss it if you took it out and threw it in the trash.

They stick easily but will usually move. If it's stuck at the bottom you can slam the float chamber down on your work bench holding it upside down. Put down a piece of cardboard to slam down on so as not to booger up the seal channel edges.

If it's stuck up top, a large tipped punch and a hammer will move it down.

The problem isn't the piston really it's the cheap metal cylinder it rides in wears quickly, goes WAY oversize and allows the piston to cock sideways and gouge the cylinder walls. A new float chamber and new accelerator pump kit is ONE fix. Leaving the piston out is ANOTHER.
OR you can just put it back the way it is and you will forget about it soon enough. The engine doesn't much care as long as the passages are clean.

Good luck.
 
jgmo said:
Those accelerator pistons are just about worthless. Unless you are fast twisting every time you would never miss it if you took it out and threw it in the trash.

They stick easily but will usually move. If it's stuck at the bottom you can slam the float chamber down on your work bench holding it upside down. Put down a piece of cardboard to slam down on so as not to booger up the seal channel edges.

If it's stuck up top, a large tipped punch and a hammer will move it down.

The problem isn't the piston really it's the cheap metal cylinder it rides in wears quickly, goes WAY oversize and allows the piston to cock sideways and gouge the cylinder walls. A new float chamber and new accelerator pump kit is ONE fix. Leaving the piston out is ANOTHER.
OR you can just put it back the way it is and you will forget about it soon enough. The engine doesn't much care as long as the passages are clean.

Good luck.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the quick reply, punch and hammer it is lol, I am just glad it will idle again and that is thanks to your advice on a previous post. No more feathering the throttle.
 
Update: I used the punch and hammer and freed up the piston and removed it, the spring and a ball bearing came out. I want to put it back together but I have no idea where the ball bearing goes, it does not show up in the parts list.
 
Hi,
The ball bearing was meant as a check valve to trap fuel in the pump chamber. It is now useless as it is IMPOSSIBLE to put it back and have it stay put.

As I've stated many times, these accelerator pumps are pretty much junk. Useless junk....inasmuch as they don't really work well even when brand new.

If you desire to have the pump function as it was intended by Honda, you will need to buy a new float chamber and accelerator pump "kit".

With a new float chamber you will see the little ball bearing press "captured" into the pump chamber inlet orifice. That orifice is at the end of a little "tunnel" on the bottom of the float chamber. That tunnel is how fuel gets to the pump chamber.

Otherwise, save your money, throw the ball bearing, away and put the thing back together. Make sure the little rubber bellows is in good shape and get back to boating. You won't miss that pump working "correctly" even a little bit.

I will say though that if the accelerator enrichment tube gets clogged, the engine won't run well. I can see where keeping the pump operational and shooting fuel out the the tube orifice every time you twist the throttle it WILL help in keeping the tube and orifice clear.

So, it's your call.
 
Understood and I will remove the ball bearing and take her for a run, thank you very much for the help, I love my Honda and can't wait to have it purring again during idle.
 
I'm sorry but beg to differ, the motor does not run well well when cold if the accel pump is not working. You can drop the ball back in and the spring will hold it in place. You also need to ensure the passage to the fuel nozzle in the ventury is not blocked. It is well worth the effort to fix this issue properly
 
Beg to differ back!

Accelerator PUMP has NOTHING to do with idle. The SPRING will NOT
hold the check ball in place.

Granted the pump CIRCUIT, including the venturi tube and its orifice, MUST kept clear or engine won't start and run correctly hot OR cold.

Been there, dunn it many, too many, times.
 
Are the new ones improved or the same design? A new one from the Honda Dealer here in Canada is $480 the taxes, If I order one from the US it is about $350 after shipping, duty and taxes by the time I receive it. Thats a lot of money for me unless it is a new design and doesn't plug up so easy.
 
Same-O same.
But the only things that typically need replacement are the danged accel piston components (I've already expressed my views on THAT) and the jet-set tube with oring. The jet set will crack and/or become IMPOSSIBLE to get completely clean.

Otherwise keep the carb properly drained of fuel and run quality, water free fuel and you will have NO problems.
 
Update, put carb back together including the accel piston, the check ball is only held in by the accel spring, I agree with jgmo that the ball probably won't stay in but even if it comes out it won't hurt anything but the operation of the accel piston (no big loss). I test drove it and it idles now and accelerates fine, it feels a little boggy. I think I need to adjust the idle mixing screw, I set it at 2 1/8 turns out, does that sound right, I am at sea level if that matters.
 
2 1/8 is correct.

When you say "boggy", do you mean when accelerating or cruising or both?

Yeah, that ball will be "floating" around in there when you take it apart again.

Actually, it would have been nice had Honda made it so that the spring WOULD hold it in place.

If you are "bogging" as you try to get on plane (I don't know what you're pushing) then, of course, it will not be "snappy" without that pump helping. If you were pushing a pontoon...no big deal. But, if you're trying to dig a heavily laden 12 footer aluminum or a larger, loaded R.I.B, you DO have to compensate a bit for missing "squirt" that you would get from a new accel pump.

If it drives you nutz that it doesn't fire off and "pop" the as you'd like, then you just might want to go for the full Monty fix of new carb bowl and piston kit. $32.72 (item 5) + $7.44 (item 14) + shipping. Refer to link below.

https://www.boats.net/catalog/honda...l-range/20hp/bf20d6-shta-2006/carburetor-auto

Around $50 but far from $189.56 (item 11) + MORE shipping.

Good luck.
 
It is very snappy now and gets on plane no problem , but a couple of times it died out while cruising, appears to starve for gas but only once in a while. I'm going to get some fresh gas, if that doesn't work then maybe the float is sticking??
 
Yeah, anything is possible i guess. Although, dying out while cruising sounds more like it could be sucking air in through a fuel line or connector OR, ironically enough, starving for fuel because the tank isn't venting properly.

How old is the tank and lines? Have you tried a different tank?
I have seen this symptom caused by a worn fuel hose quick disconnect at the engine too. Vibration causes the pin that opens the valve when you plug the ends together to wear and not create a large enough passage for good flow. Look at that very carefully.

And, while it probably IS some sort of fuel delivery issue, here's hoping that you don't have an intermittent ignition problem of some kind. That could be even harder to find.
 
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