Carb Cleanliness and Gunkless Results?

I posted most of this question in a previous but related thread, and haven't gotten any input thus far, so I figured I'd start a new topic to see if anyone had some data... I have a 2001 VS 800 GL model, and haven't had any problems with it yet, and although it only has 3000 miles on it, it is 15 years old, and I've only owned for about six weeks and rode it a handful of times. That being said, my boss, (who's a bike junkie), said it may be wise to run some carb or injector cleaner through a tankful of gas, just to keep things as well as they are. I was wondering if any of you veteran maintainers had any suggestions as to what may work best? Since the bike is normally aspirated, would injector cleaner serve just as well, or is there a "carburated" specific cleaner that will work better in the fashion of a fuel additive in the tank? I've heard a fair amount of discussions elsewhere, about Seafoam brand, but don't know anything about it, and don't want waste money on something if it's just the popularity of a brand name. Grateful for any suggestions in the right direction to keep the intake smooth and clean...

If you're not having any fuelling issues, then I wouldn't bother mate but if you do wanna run some cleaner through then I'd use Redex.
Don't get the one for fuel injection engines though, the one for carburettors will do the job properly.

I put a complete 'small' bottle of Redex in a tank of fuel a couple of times a year.

I have used Seafoam before and it worked. When I took my bike to be dyno'd I was chatting to the guy and he recommended Silkolene PRO FST Fuel System Treatment. So I got some, my bike had only done 8600 when I got her and she's 24years old, so like yours has been sat around not being used and the carbs could be a little 'varnished' with old fuel, and at £15 for a litre it will do loads of tanks of fuel.

I'm not sure what's readily available in America? Seafoam seems to get mentioned quite a lot and I've not read any complaints about it, give it a try.

The other thing you need to be aware of is the affect of Ethanol on your fuel system.  Not a problem for members with newer bikes, but for those of us with older bikes, it can be an issue.

I always add Briggs & Stratton Fuel Fit to my fuel - it also has the added advantage of keeping the fuel "fresh" when your bikes laid up

Thanks a lot for the suggestions everyone! I've had plenty of time to do some research this weekend, with arctic temps and several inches of snow falling here. It seems that Redex and the Silkolene are not so readily available this side of the swamp, and the only Redex I did find on Amazon, was either "injector" or "diesel" specific types, and not the "carb" type that Mick noted. The consensus of what appears to be the best state-side option is Redline SI-1, which is reputed to have among the highest concentrations of the actual detergents originally engineered by Chevron/Techron, known as PEA, or polyether amines, as stated in part from this review quote: : "Until recently BG 44K, Chevron Techron Concentrate, Gumout Regane Fuel System Cleaner, Amsoil P.I. Performance Improver Concentrate, and Redline SI-1 (among others) listed polyether amines on their Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) in proportions varying from approximately 25% to 50%." That led me to their motorcycle spin-off, Red Line Complete Fuel System Cleaner For Motorcycles, http://www.redlineoil.com/product.aspx?pid=116&pcid=13, which they say is the same formula, only adjusted in size/ratio for motorcycles. At $4-$6 US, I'm going to try a bottle of it, and will post when I'm able to decide if there are any resulting improvements or not. To Mick and Andrew's points; I haven't really had any major issues, but response can be a tad hesitant just off idle, plus hard to start cold, and with the bike being older, I have a suspicion that it has been let sit quite a bit. So with ethanol mixes being ever present here, there's ever the probability that some gunking could be at fault, so I have decided on a minimum of 89 octane gas, and will run a bottle of this additive to see if it clears up any. I like the idea of the Fuel Fit and the added stabilization factor, but it again, that particular version appears to be only available in the UK. I found this 5-in-1 over here from Briggs & Stratton, http://www.briggsandstratton.com/us/en/shop/parts-and-accessories/fuel-additives/4-fl-oz-briggs-and-stratton-advanced-formula-fuel-treatment-100117web,(have a 15.5 HP B&S on my riding lawn tractor that would likely benefit from it as well), so I may pick some of it up as well, to use for the "off months" as a supplement, but at this point, I want the concentrated focus on the cleaning aspect of an additive. To make a long story longer, below is the back of the Redline SI-1 bottle with all its claims for perspective, and Redline's SI-1 MSDS still specifies that the product contains 30-50% PEA. Thanks again gents for all the input, and maybe all this discussion will be helpful to others. Will let you know when I can determine results...
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As she has 2 carbs, more than likely it will need them balancing, I did that on my VX800 and it made the world of difference, when I got it she did not idle well and their was a fair bit of low end vibration (mirrors wobbled at tickover) and she seemed to hunt at constant low revs. After I initially balanced the carbs it all went away.
Whack some cleaner in, ride it for a few hundred miles and then get the carbs balanced

Yeah, I wondered about the balancing, but not sure how far "out" they could/should realistically be after only the 3k miles on it? I know my Kawasaki 750 LTD with 4 carbs suffered greatly until we got them balanced back out, but it absolutely screamed afterward! This bike idles beautifully once it's warm, but I planned on looking into the balance at some point anyway, once I remember how my brother and I made our home-made vacuum device to do the Kaw years ago! I'll try the cleaner and maybe a new fuel filter as you mentioned for now, then look into the carbs once it's warm enough to tinker more in-depth.

My VX800 had only done about 11000 miles when I got it and my 92 GSX1100G had only done about 8500 miles, but they both benefitted from a carb sync.

Yeah, I'm definitely going to see to getting the sync done, once the weather and time permit Andrew. Without knowing the complete history on the bike, I'd say well worth looking into...

v-twin wrote: As she has 2 carbs, more than likely it will need them balancing, I did that on my VX800 and it made the world of difference

Just heard from my brother in North Carolina, and he and his boys are coming up to stay with us over Spring Break. He is going to bring is quad vacuum gauge with him, so we are planning to do the carb-sync while he's up here. I did run one bottle of Redline Motorcycle fuel cleaner through the last tank, and the bike seems to start and idle a bit easier. The fact that it's been at least 20 degrees warmer here as of late probably doesn't hurt either. I was going to pick up another bottle of cleaner, but Summit Racing Equipment was out of it when we stopped there the other day. I'd like to run at least one more bottle before we do the carbs...