Fuel Valve issues.

[Uzi9mm]

The fuel valve on my 500 has always been difficult to turn on and off.  But recently, I almost need a wrench or a pair of plyers to turn the gas on or off.  Anyone had similar problems?   

[stewart]

all the time ..i take them off and apart and clean and sand till they  turn right

[maddoggy]

i've had that problem a couple of times. they get little burrs on the main shaft from dirt or sand grinding around in the little housing. like stewart said, clean it up, a little light sanding and you will be back in business. if you can, i would put a new o-ring in it when you have it apart to ensure that there is no leaking past the valve. be carefull tightening the screws when you put it back on. if you get too tight the inset nuts could break loose and start to turn inside the plastic.  MADDOGGY

[serafin]

Mine has always been hard to turn.  What I did was take it apart lightly sand the plastic cone and compress the spring that holds the cone inside
the housing so that there isn't so much pressure on the cone.

Serafin

[Uzi9mm]

Thanks for the tips.  I took it apart and just like you guys said there were burrs on the teflon cone.  I used some scotchbright and polished the teflon and inside of the  petcock.  I also compressed the spring with a pair of pliers.  Now it turns much easier.  I am also going to look for a softer spring.