2001 Sportsman small issues

[Sonders]

Hey all, I recently bought an 01' Sportsman 500 HO from my brother in-law that he's had since new.  It runs awesome, just has 2 slight issues that I am addressing.  1st issue is fuel dripping out of overflow.  I did some searching around and saw that the O-rings in the carb wear out and allow fuel to leak, so I replaced both the Orings inside the carb.  This didn't fix it and still leaking which leads me to believe the float needs adjusted, I'm just not sure on correct way to check and correct this.  2nd issue is no speedometer.  Also in researching this it appears to be Hall Effect/speed sensor.  I'll be ordering one of those to replace, which sounds like a pretty straight forward process.  I guess really my only reason for the post is to get some help on the gas leak issue.  Any thoughts?  Other than that, I love the bike and really enjoy riding it.  Thanks in advance for any replies.

[MarkinAR]

Dirty float valve and seat.  Just needs cleaning good inside and out and it'll quit leaking fuel.

[Sonders]

Thanks Mark, I'll have to pull the carb back off and give that a try next.  

[MarkinAR]

You can put 1/2 of a q-tip in a drill and lightly clean the float valve seat and get them pretty darn shiny.  Just don't get over aggressive and scratch the seat.

[Sonders]

great tip Mark, thanks!

[fireslayer]

If it's too pitted or worn, just replace the float needle and seat. they do get worn to the point that no amount of cleaning will stop them from leaking too.