20-09-2017, 01:17 PM
Thanks for all who have offered valuable advice regarding my problem. The damp cloth didn't make any appreciable difference, but I will lightly sand/lap the carb matting surface anyway. I have finally managed to get the head off, after quite a struggle. No obvious signs of leakage or anything to suggest a gasket fault when inspecting the gasket. However, there was a considerable amount of carbon in head and near valves, so I have removed that. I intend to replace head with new gasket Friday morning and keep my fingers crossed that it cures the problem. (domestic arrangements mean that this is the earliest chunk of free time I will have to do the job)