Yeah, I'm as dumb as I look. I will have to fix that cable first thing! I can't really think of a way to keep it attached to the carb top though.

Second jet:

I used a couple of small zip ties on the dust boot to help secure it.  It really shouldn't be necessary if the cable is adjusted correctly and the cable housing is completely trapped.  The dust boot fits very snug on the elbow.  Don't use any lubricant, just wiggle and fight it into position.

This is the slide wide open.  To get the slide to open completely (WOT), I adjusted the cable by about 1/3" at the adjuster.  You'll know when is right, when the slide bottom is flush with the top throat.

I wanted to share an update on my PWK40 installation.  Below are some pics of the 'final' installation.  I need to make a final adjustment on the offset length of the carb air boot that connects to the air box.  If you look at the stock air boot, you'll notice it's slightly curved (banana bend) with the top and bottom being slightly different length.  For this modified boot, I bought an 8" long 2.5" ID silicon hose - it needs to be cut to about 5.25" on one side and maybe 5.5" on the other side - this is the little tweak I need to make (measure twice, cut once - I should have done this instead of straight cutting it).  The 2.5" ID is about perfect on the air box side and carb side.  A pair of 3" max diameter worm gear clamps were used Note: these are 1/2" wide and work fine on this air box side of the carb.  On the spigot size of the carb, I would strongly recommend staying with the 5/16" wide clamp that fits in the grooves of the spigot intake - this connection is critical to get the connection air tight.  I need to hunt down a 5/16" wide worm gear clamp with a 1.75"-2.00" diameter fit (hard to find without paying a small fortune, the 1/2" are readily available in the plumbing dept of any hardware store).

Silicon Hose:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/393811095125

A couple notes/tips.  It's running very good with #35 primary and #140 main jets with the e-clip in the 4th slot.  I am 2.25 turns out on the air/fuel mix screw.  It's a crispy lean at 2.0 turns out and the rpms drop a tiny bit at 2.5 turns out and the throttle loses some crispness.  At Houston sea level and temps finally starting to come down, I'll be revisiting this over the coming months.  Note: At 3 turns out on the air fuel mix screw, it starts to weep a tiny bit of gas at the screw.  This seems to be a design weakness in my opinion, but I'd still buy this carb again (carb is very good for the price).  Knowing this tells me to go up to the next primary jet size.  We'll see what cooler weather does - I may go to a #38 primary and move the e-clip up to the 3rd slot and maybe I'll be around 1.0 turns out on the air/fuel mix screw.  Photos below.  Overall extremely pleased with this aftermarket carb modification.

Thanks.  I’ve been in contact with TheSneeze and he’s been extremely helpful like you.  I came up with this concept idea well after you did and major kudos to you!  The needle jet is removable, but it’s a bit funky - at fully tightened it still has 2-3 screw turns left.  I thought it was wrong, but left it alone. It is weird though.  I need to take a good ride, but garage testing is giving me good vibes.  I’ll update more later.  Hopefully you can see my pics now.  I had to take a break and help my daughter with some plumbing issues.

"When I installed the carb, I did buy a new stock clamp, but I'm not 100% confident it's fully clamping with it's limited range."

Paul, I'm 100% confident that the stock clamp won't work correctly.  I would definitely change it with the Ideal clamp that has more range.  I think the part number is specified herein.

The Mikuni manifold link you posted looks to be correct.  The PWK fits very tight in that particular manifold.  I actually prefer the stock manifold.  I make special adapters to tighten up the fit and then I epoxy them on the carb.   But the carb works fine on the stock manifold without the adapters as long as you use a clamp with more range.

Regarding your fuel mileage, I neglected to ask what size rear tire you are running, and what front pulley you are running.  Can you fill me in on those items?

Paul, I prefer the stock manifold because it is robust, and it incorporates an o-ring.  The stock manifold flange is very rigid.  

I have had trouble with the Mikuni manifold for the VM carb.  It's soft and it bends.  It eventually gets to the point where you can insert a feeler gage plumb through the flange joint.

This is an example.

This is an adapter epoxied onto a 36PWK.  Very simple, works great, never had a problem with one.