Saving a '81 KZ750-E

I reused everything other than the O-rings. The choke setup is fiddly, but it's not too hard to deal with once you figure it out. Study the spring arrangement and take a few photos for reference just in case.

Nessism wrote: Heat on the body will soften the varnish holding the slide.

Nice bit of advise. It worked!

That wasn't too terribly complicated.

If anyone wonders what happens to gasoline after sitting for 28 years, here is your answer! Getting the float bowl screws out has been the most difficult part so far. 16 possible points, final score - Skidmark =14, float bowl screws =2. At least one broke above the sealing surface, so I won't have to drill it out. The other broke flush. Bummer. This was after soaking with penetrating oil.

I've seen worse. Those will be okay.

If you need float needles get Keyster brand. They are the only ones with a spring strong enough to hold up the float like the OEM parts.

I have purchased a Dyno Jet kit for these. Going with stage 3. K&N pod filters with a Delkevic 4 into 1 exhaust. I also picked up the stock Keyster rebuild kits with most of the o-rings, float valve needles, etc.

Any issue with soaking these floats in carburetor cleaner for prolonged periods of time?

Never had any issue with the floats in carb dip. This carbs (CB 650) are looking like yours before and are clean as new now.

I would not soak the floats. There should be no reason. Use some spray carb cleaner in a cup and or jar and keep them wet for a few minutes. That should soften the varnish enough to wipe or scrub away with a toothbrush.

How is the condition of the inlet fuel tee? The plastic inlet part likes to crack. Also, be careful of the pilot jet plugs. They are plastic with a tiny O-ring. Don't soak those either. I've posted all the various O-ring sizes here before in older threads so you can supplement those carb kits. Lastly, be sure to remove the bleed pipes and pilot screws since the orifice through those is tiny. You gotta hold them up to a light to be sure they are open.

Good luck

So I picked up the smallest easy-out I could find, drilled a really centered hole in the screw using my drill press, used penetrating oil for 24 hours, and that bitch just doesn't want to let go. I even tried heating the aluminum to get it to expand. I guess I will try again in a day or two with more applications of penetrating oil. In the mean time, I am soaking the second broken float bowl screw at the same intervals, hoping when I get to that one it will let go easier.

My new mantra...
Old bikes are fun
Old bikes are fun
Old bikes are fun
OOMMMMMMMM.....

The fuel T looks pretty good, just needs to be cleaned like everything else. I will be extra careful with it as it's probably very brittle.

EZ-outs are pure evil. They love to break off. LH drill bits are a lot more reliable method to extract broken screws. Harbor Freight sells a useable set. Start small and work up slowly in size. The screw will typically spin out as the wall thickness thins out.