1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

bry195
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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

22 Oct 2025 19:22

People treat information as entertainment which means things like personal accusations and shock get more attention than a respectful and reasonable conversation even if we disagree. Getting you emotionally involved is exactly the formula behind social media. They regurgitate what they hear and run from complicated nuance.

So no, I dont agree with you. What i provided was a third opinion that I can personally guarantee makes allot of mistakes, just like i do. I fully expect to learn from my mistakes or chatgpt mistakes or from someone that hase wisdom and is looking for more.

when Im having a face to face discussion im teaching and learning at the same time (even in my mistakes). If someone says something that I disagree with I would ask them if I understood them correctly and what they think about what I understood. If I agree with someone I would ask them what they thought about these other concepts that I disagree with. Both people in both situations would feel like they understand more about the topic and the other person. This is how you learn from your success and mistakes. The only time it doesnt work is when the emotion is stronger than the logic. You dont need to be emotionally involved in other peoples answers. In fact, if you want to be productive on a team to solve a problem you need to separate emotion from logic.

prime example of a wisdom that is beyond the specific wisdom of afr. wookie asks if there is going to be an overheating problem from a 14.7 afr. I said I trust him more on that answer. He knows people will chime in and they do. I provide an opinion from chatgpt to refine the conversation or invite more conversation without saying it’s right or wrong. I have been right and wrong enough to know that the payoff is not in the answer itself but its in the things you learn when you are trying to become wise, like how to listen and questioning yourself and your ego. Wookie and many others have a wisdom that I want and I even got some wisdom from you. Its not personal.

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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

22 Oct 2025 19:52

#918291

OK All
This thread was flagged to me .
So before anyone responds I must insist you all take a deep breath and return to the topic.
Or the short bus will open its door and a valuable thread will be locked down .
Our mod team takes no pleasure in having to take actions other than adding answers to members questions
Peace , Love and RESPECT
Dave

Original owner 78 1000 LTD
Mr Turbo Race Kit, MTC 1075 Turbo pistons by PitStop Performance , Falicon Ultra Lite Super Crank, APE everything. Les Holt @ PDM's Billet Goodies . Frame by Chuck Kurzawa @ Logghe Chassis . Deep sump 5qt oil pan. RIP Bill Hahn

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bry195
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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

23 Oct 2025 06:23

#918310

I am concerned about quite a few things but allot of them will be solved when they become a problem. I think every suggestion or advice is a genuine concern. I cant resolve all of them at the same time so I work on what is interesting to me. The choke seals will probably become an issue over time but they are sealing for now.

I cant stop thinking about zeds point that the jets should be the same between carbs. it looks like one side of the stock petcock fills slower than the other. I bought a pingle to install. When the air correctors come in I will check for leaks around the needle seats and put more time into getting the fuel level in the bowl right.

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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

23 Oct 2025 12:27

#918316

You may have to open up your tank to accept the Pingel petcock. Its not a hard thing to do but obviously shit in the tank is not preferable. I found that the offset plate adapter worked best to give me carb clearance.

Not many secrets to old carb motors that are not already discussed. Cams, Bigger Carbs - Quality filters - Those Emgo Pod filters I saw in one of your photos aint it - , aftermarket exhaust - the basics. I prefer to run a coil relay mod on almost every one of my vintage bikes. Done well and you don't even need to cut into the harness its a plug and play mod and nice peace of mind knowing you will always have the best power supply to your coils possible. Ditch the china jets, the ID is often inconsistent and the bevels are sometimes not even there.

1977 kz1000 - the Rooster, 1981 KZ750 Chopper, 1975 KZ400 , 1984 GPZ750

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bry195
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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

23 Oct 2025 16:13

#918321

Yea, just got it done. what a mess to clean up. I guess I’ll know if I need an offset after the test fit. The relay mod worked out well but I had to cut the harness. The bullet connectors were already damaged from the flood. I did put marine connectors on though so im ready for a flood this year.

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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

16 Nov 2025 11:19 - 16 Nov 2025 11:20

#919112

added the air corrector jets. set all the needles to 3 and set all the fuel service levels to 3mm and put pringle petcock on. Bike is much more responsive. these are the afr curves after the changes. it an improvement. I still have problems but thats what happens when you change everything. I havent compared the before and after on the afr curves yet but i will. I dont know anyone uploading afr curves to chatgpt to tune a carb but it does seem to do a good job of reading the curves and making suggestions. you still have to take it with a grain of salt but here is its suggestion.
FINAL PER-CYLINDER INSTRUCTIONS (PRINT THIS)CylChange needle clipChange pilot jetChange main jetNotes#1Clip 3 → 2 (leaner)Stay at 15Keep 102.5Rich low/mid, good WOT#2Clip 3 → 4 (richer)If still lean → 12.5 → 15Keep 102.5Lean 1/10 only#3Clip 3 → 2 (leaner)10 → 12.5Keep 105WOT dead perfect#4Clip 3 → 4 (richer)10 → 12.5Keep 105Lean low, rich top

Last edit: 16 Nov 2025 11:20 by bry195.

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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

16 Nov 2025 11:56

#919113

Looking at how rich #1 is at 1/10 throttle you may have a leaking choke plunger

1982 KZ1000 Ltd
www.kzrider.com/forum/11-projects/617631...-82-begins?start=192
kzrider.com/filebase-alias?view=download...d-fault-diagnosis&ca

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bry195
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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

16 Nov 2025 18:34 - 16 Nov 2025 18:56

#919114

I’m leaning towards needles because I have to make a few changes on the needles anyways but I cant say it’s not on my list too. Im leaning to needles because all 4 carbs idle perfectly and they respond to the idle adjustment screw like i would expect. However, I cant remember if it was #1 or #4 that was probably closer to 2.25 turns out than 1.33. If the needle doesnt bring in the 1/10 I’ll do another leak down on the choke circuit or maybe it will be convenient and I’ll do it while im setting needles. I always have to convince myself that carbs take a long time of fiddling with and if I get in a hurry I’ll lose patience.

#3 needle valve was stuck open and may have skewed things. I got lucky and closed the petcock and drained the bowl to put the fuel service level tube on. I assume that when I opened the petcock back back up it reset the needle valve or flushed some crap out because it sealed right back up and went to 3mm and didnt stick open again.

It was really nice to jump 4 or 5 jet sizes by having ai analyze the curves though. Its allot of work to define what area of the curve ai should analyze. you have to tell it which carb and the time segments, and feed it information about all the jets and what the afr is on other circuits that arent in the curve its analyzing.it doesnt help that i have to be very careful to not let it run in a lean condition under load for too long becasue that how you destroy valves and pistons. So it was critical to get the idle circuits correct right away so that I had a safe place for the motor to recover when tuning wot and mid that would go very lean.

The air corrector jets definitely helped in the transition from cruise to wot and im certain it will get even better. I wish I could just take everyone’s proven suggestions but I think this bike probably in rougher shape internally than what it should be.

40k on it and never had a valve job
it has been dropped and left running on its side for 2 or 3 minutes.
it was completely submerged in salt water and it took me awhile to bust it loose and get it cleaned up
it has the kerker 4/1 but I made the baffle for it and even though it looks like a free flowing baffle it has added some restriction. (I’ll pull it out when all the tuning is done and see what it does but I will ride it with the baffle. I have not added the glass to the baffle and probably wont.
it has allot of blow by coming out the oil filler even with the crank case venting unobstructed to the number 3 carb.
It was seriously abused by kids
I haven’t done a leak down on the cylinders but thats mainly because Im afraid of what I will find.
Rust is still coming out in the oil after 3 oil changes in less than 50 miles.
But the positive is that after these last set of changes its very snappy and is starting to respond more like a modern inline 4.
its never going to be a good example of an old kz1000 but it will look good and be fun for awhile.

Last edit: 16 Nov 2025 18:56 by bry195.

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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

16 Nov 2025 20:50

#919117

Nice thread and discussions on carb tuning! You asked for ideas on getting more oomph out of a 47 year old KZ. If you do pull the head off, consider changing over to a shim under bucket valve train set up. KZ650/750 retainers and buckets make the switch from 29mm diameter to 13mm diameter shims a breeze. Saving quite a bit of moving valve train weight on quick throttle responses. Also, makes for a little peace of mind if you tend to rev at higher rpms. The drawback--- you need to pull the cams when you make valve clearance adjustments. Ultimately, a personal decision for most folks. I don't mind the extra steps as I've had multiple KZ550s, KZ650s and KZ750s over the years and am comfortable with the procedure.

13mm on the left (3 gr), 29mm on the right (13gr). Both are 2.50mm thick

Cheers,
Bobf

EKKAWI
1976 KZ400D, 1977 KZ1000A1, 1976 KH400, 1979 XS400, 1980 KZ550A, 1980 KZ750E, 1983 GPZ550,1979 KZ1000B LTD, 1986 ZG1000 Concours,1982 XS650 Turbo,KZ1000C, KZ1000P,1978 KZ650C (×2),2003 BMW R1150RT
2014 BMW R1200RT (Current ride)
1971 Norton 750 Commando
1979 KZ1000A3A MKII (Present project)

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bry195
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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

17 Nov 2025 06:10

#919125

Thank you and that is a fantastic idea. The stock shims are gigantic. I do love the feel of a free revving engine.

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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

17 Nov 2025 16:03

#919148

bry195 wrote:

I’m leaning towards needles because I have to make a few changes on the needles anyways but I cant say it’s not on my list too. Im leaning to needles because all 4 carbs idle perfectly and they respond to the idle adjustment screw like i would expect. However, I cant remember if it was #1 or #4 that was probably closer to 2.25 turns out than 1.33. If the needle doesnt bring in the 1/10 I’ll do another leak down on the choke circuit or maybe it will be convenient and I’ll do it while im setting needles. I always have to convince myself that carbs take a long time of fiddling with and if I get in a hurry I’ll lose patience.

#3 needle valve was stuck open and may have skewed things. I got lucky and closed the petcock and drained the bowl to put the fuel service level tube on. I assume that when I opened the petcock back back up it reset the needle valve or flushed some crap out because it sealed right back up and went to 3mm and didnt stick open again.

It was really nice to jump 4 or 5 jet sizes by having ai analyze the curves though. Its allot of work to define what area of the curve ai should analyze. you have to tell it which carb and the time segments, and feed it information about all the jets and what the afr is on other circuits that arent in the curve its analyzing.it doesnt help that i have to be very careful to not let it run in a lean condition under load for too long becasue that how you destroy valves and pistons. So it was critical to get the idle circuits correct right away so that I had a safe place for the motor to recover when tuning wot and mid that would go very lean.

The air corrector jets definitely helped in the transition from cruise to wot and im certain it will get even better. I wish I could just take everyone’s proven suggestions but I think this bike probably in rougher shape internally than what it should be.

40k on it and never had a valve job
it has been dropped and left running on its side for 2 or 3 minutes.
it was completely submerged in salt water and it took me awhile to bust it loose and get it cleaned up
it has the kerker 4/1 but I made the baffle for it and even though it looks like a free flowing baffle it has added some restriction. (I’ll pull it out when all the tuning is done and see what it does but I will ride it with the baffle. I have not added the glass to the baffle and probably wont.
it has allot of blow by coming out the oil filler even with the crank case venting unobstructed to the number 3 carb.
It was seriously abused by kids
I haven’t done a leak down on the cylinders but thats mainly because Im afraid of what I will find.
Rust is still coming out in the oil after 3 oil changes in less than 50 miles.
But the positive is that after these last set of changes its very snappy and is starting to respond more like a modern inline 4.
its never going to be a good example of an old kz1000 but it will look good and be fun for awhile.

It seems you are over complicating this process. What are you going on about having AI analyze your curve for? Do you need AI to explain what circuit does what? You have limited choices to change in a carb and working with a stock motor + bolt ons shouldnt be a drastic change?

- your idle jet wont save you from an overly lean Main jet or needle selection if under load...

- Lastly can you explain what you mean by venting your crank case to carb # 3? It should vent to the box or through a filter but not connected to just one carb.

Hopefully you can get it going before the winter comes! (Depending on where you live, some of you lucky dogs live in much warmer climates)

1977 kz1000 - the Rooster, 1981 KZ750 Chopper, 1975 KZ400 , 1984 GPZ750

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Re: 1978 kz1000a renew and revenge project

17 Nov 2025 16:20 - 17 Nov 2025 16:51

#919149

Mr. E wrote:

It seems you are over complicating this process. What are you going on about having AI analyze your curve for? Do you need AI to explain what circuit does what? You have limited choices to change in a carb and working with a stock motor + bolt ons shouldnt be a drastic change?

- your idle jet wont save you from an overly lean Main jet or needle selection if under load...

- Lastly can you explain what you mean by venting your crank case to carb # 3? It should vent to the box or through a filter but not connected to just one carb.

Hopefully you can get it going before the winter comes! (Depending on where you live, some of you lucky dogs live in much warmer climates)

It had 122.5 mains when i got it and a bunch of other jets that were way off. im now at about 105 mains. I uploaded the AFR curves (pictures) to chatgpt, told it where to look on the curve, and what afr i want. It took an afr of 9.4 to 13 in a single step. I could have jumped 3 jet sizes at a time, a couple of times, but im impressed by the time i was saved using AI. AI told me exactly what jets to put in each circuit, its just new and interesting.

You are correct, idle jet wont help under load. If you are loaded in WOT letting the bike return to idle cools everything back down.

The bike has pod filters. #3 has a large fitting in it so i can connect a hose from the CCV to the #3 filter.

we might get a week or 2 of 45 degree weather and everyone will put their boots, gloves, and jackets on. It’s very comical. I lived up north in wisconsin and michigan and that is winter.

Last edit: 17 Nov 2025 16:51 by bry195.

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