kz550A 1980. Help with a few things

hi Guys. finally getting my bike back together and have come across a few issues

1. my battery seems to be dying easily. I have been trying to figure out the wiring and as i turn the bike on and off over the course of the day the battery eventually dies.

the battery is a new shorai LFX14A2-BS12 www.shoraipower.com/s.nl/it.A/id.91/.f

it cranks the engine no problem, but i have not been able to get the engine to run well yet so I am not sure if the battery is dying because of me playing with the electrical all day or for some other reason. any thoughts?

2. The carbs have been taken off, cleaned and bench synched. but i am only firing on one of 4 cylinders. what should I be looking at in order of importance?

3. I took the clutch cover off and the push rod had slid out a bit. now nothing will go back together correctly. someone said there might be a ball bearing that fell out. I have the clymer manual but dont see anything about the push rod.

here is the bike as she stands now. and the second photo is a photoshop of the color i am thinking of doing.

Perhaps the charging system isn't properly functioning.

After fully charging the battery --

At idle rpm, what is measured voltage between battery posts?

At 4000 rpm, what is measured voltage between battery posts?

Good Fortune!

For issue #2, verify that you have a strong spark on each cylinder. Charge the battery overnight, then pull the plug out and hold it with the tip touching the engine and hit your starter button. You want to see a strong, fat, blue spark on each cylinder. Next, check your fuel levels. You said the carbs were cleaned and synced. Did you set the float level with the clear tube method?

I'd try and fix this first, then the battery/charging issue second. If the bike's barely running on one cylinder it won't be charging properly.

As far as the push rod goes. You say it slid out a little. Will it slide back in?

Forget the Clymer Manual. Go to this thread, www.kzrider.com/forum/3-carburetor/58155...-total-newbie#595960 Look down and see the posts by member Loudhvx. See in his signature there are links to his web site for the 550. He has the best info gathered up for the 550 than anyone I've seen. Download the service manual from his web site, it will have info about the clutch push rod. Also if you go to Kawasaki.com, owner info, parts diagrams, you can find the parts fiche for the push rod.

Patton. I will try that as soon as i can get the bike to idle properly without the choke.I think i will start back at the cabs and fuel delivery as suggested by topper.

Topper. I will check the float levels, should I also be checking for leaks around the rubber connectors to the engine? I didnt replace them so they are old. they looked fine to me but maybe I should use some sort of gasket/silicone sealer?

the push rod goes back in. but i am not sure it is going in far enough, shouldnt is also feel springy? like I should be able to push it in to engage the clutch right?

Motor head. I will check this out! thank you.

thanks everyone. cant wait to resolve these issues and get thi thing on the road.

BCbikes wrote:
the push rod goes back in. but i am not sure it is going in far enough, shouldnt is also feel springy? like I should be able to push it in to engage the clutch right?

No, you will not be able to push it in with your hand. Lot of pressure on the clutch pressure plate. Have a look at the manual and parts fiche. You'll see there is the Arm in the sprocket cover. That has balls/ bearing under it and needs to be positioned correctly, cleaned re-lubed. Also adjusted by the worm gear screw and lock nut.
You'll get it, and be riding the bike soon enough.

I doubt you'd be able to engage the clutch push rod by hand. At least on mine I think I'd have to really lean on it to get it to engage. If it feels like it went back about to where it was, then everything should probably go back together. I'm not sure where your push rod is, but on my KZ750 it's near the engine sprocket. The first few times I took the sprocket cover off, lining it back up and getting it in place took a little finesse. Now it's second nature. Unless the rod came all the way out, I don't think you could have lost the bearing. So maybe that's all fine. Just be patient and careful with the sprocket cover.

You certainly could have leaks around the carb holders, are there visible cracks? I'd still start with fuel level and verifying spark.

The ball bearing can't come out through the pushrod hole on the chain cover side. It only comes out if you pull the clutch cover, remove the clutch hub and pusher mushroom.

As Topper and Motorhead said, the rod won't feel springy or be push-able by hand.

As Motorhead said, there are a bunch of manuals and other 550 info in my signature.

There is also a description for the pushrod adjustment in my signature, BUT there is a good chance your 1980 KZ550 does not have the ball-ramp type actuator. Yours is morelikely the large helical actuator. The manuals will describe that type.




The helical actuator is described in the white base manual starting on page 22 (29 of the pdf).
The ball ramp type is described in the white base manual on page 319 (326 of the pdf).

AWESOME! thanks a lot guys very helpful. going to take a crack at a few of these problems tonight. still cleaning up the wiring but will most likely start with the carb float levels and check for leaks. it is possible that i installed the carb floats incorrectly. ill look it all over tonight.. i also see what you mean by the ball cant come out. that is great news! really didnt want to have to drain the oil again to fix that issue.

Had to drill out one of the bolts on the side cover to the clutch adjustment. it was seized in there pretty good. so hopefully ill be able to get this clutch working properly asap.

thanks again. ill post back with the news.

BCbikes wrote: .......
Had to drill out one of the bolts on the side cover to the clutch adjustment. it was seized in there pretty good....

It really would pay you to buy a can can of Kroil; otherwise you may find yourself drilling out a lot of fasteners and trying to figure out how to fix the holes the drill left behind. If you soaked the screw for a day or two with Kroil and used a proper JIS type screwdriver bit tat screw would have come out without a problem. Ed

hey guys. found out the problem with the bowls. the overflow tubes are cracked and leaking all the fuel out. how do i fix it?

Some folks has had luck soldering them, some have used shrink tubing over them (I don't know how long that lasts) or epoxied a slightly larger brass tube over the original. Be sure not to clog up the hole in the top of the tube. Best bet is to replace them if you can find good replacements at a decent price, but repairing them should at least let you ride and not rush looking for replacements. Ed