Snowmobile Repair: 1994 Puma, air screw, pilot jet

Question
I have a '94 Arctic Cat Puma 340 with a single Mikuni. The sled would not idle so I removed the pilot jet to clean it It was completely plugged and I couldn't clean it, so I replaced it with an identical one. Now it still doesn't like to idle, it smokes like crazy and it sounds like it's straining to get to a top speed of about 25 mph. the air screw is set at one and a half turns out and the idle stop is about two turns out from slide contact. It ran good except for the idle until I tried to fix it. HELP!

Answer
Hello Stephen,

  I think it is possible that at some point when the carb was disassembled, something wasn't installed correctly. Since you mentioned that the jet was clogged so bad it wouldn't come clean, that means the inlet needle and seat probably need to be replaced. If they are sticking open, or not sealing, it will flood the engine just enough to make it run terrible. I would recommend installing a carb kit, and it should be good to go. Remember to use a fresh set of plugs after the carb kit installation, too. Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions. Good luck with the sled! --Arcticatman