KZ550 High Idle

The boots are almost brand new, and very maleable. I heated them up with a hair dryer when I put them on and could almost fold them back.
Is there anything I could have done wrong when installing the carbs? The boots seemed to fit perfect, and the springs went around them easily.

tyreybel wrote: Alrighty. So you all thought I had just gone and abandoned this issue. I sure hadn't! I have been working on it diligently since I was last on here, and just got done yesterday putting everything back together.

I took everything apart and got the cyl head off. Replaced the valve seals, did a valve adjustment, put a new cyl head gasket on, and new gaskets/o-rings for the tensioner and exhaust.

So after doing all that, and working hard to get it back together, I am in more trouble. When I tried to start it it would not turn over. And worse, when I put it in gear but have the cluth in, it wont roll.

Anyone have any thoughts on what I could have messed up?

Sorry, I did not see the time stamps. If it will not turn over, either the cams are out of time or the cam chain is not on correctly.

It turns over manually and when I attempt to bump start it.
Honestly it might have a sticky clutch from the uber cold weather (thus why the transmission is sticking even when I pull the clutch in), and either my battery is so dead (it's very low) that I'm not getting a spark OR my carbs got clogged while sitting during the past few months of work (I tried to drain them best I could, but might have left some residual).
I'll report back after I get a new battery.

Get a battery tender while you are at it: This is what you want

Well I got the battery charged and tested at my local shop (Flying Tiger Motorcycles). It works fine.
I'll check the spark plugs and then it's off to clean the carbs unless someone has a better idea!

Help is needed.

Battery is good to go. Got it charged and checked out.
Just cleaned the carbs, and gas is getting to them.
Plugs are all good on spark and are bone dry (except #4 seems a bit dark/damp, but I think it just ran rich previously).
Cams are rotating smoothly. Valves just adjusted and seals replaced.
New head gasket and other top end gaskets.
Everything seems to be good to go. Has gas, air, and spark. She still isn't starting!
I haven't checked compression yet, but I was getting good compression before taking it apart.

The only symptom I notice is a smell of gas after trying to start it. If that's an indicator of something, please let me know.

Any quirks you all can think of? Bad gas maybe? Something I did wrong while re-installing the exhaust?

Thanks much

Got a compression tester and checked the engine. Zero compression. Guess my can timing is off. Weird bc I followed the factory manual and loudfx's guide. Going back to check everything again.

Checked the cam timing and, long story short, it was off. I adjusted it and the bike is running now.

However, there is smoke coming out the exhaust and it is running pretty poorly. Thoughts? Carburetors maybe?

Video:

Can't tell what the color of the smoke is. If it's slightly blue, and hangs in the air a long long time, then it's probably oil. If it's white, and you just started the bike and it's cool or humid out, it may just be steam, which is normal.

If it's oil, you have to find out if it's the rings or the valve seals.
If it smokes all the time even when hot, then it's probably rings.
If it smokes a lot at startup, but not much after that, it's probably the valve seals.
Of course it can be a little of both.

The misfire can be ignition, weak charging system, carburetion, vac leaks, valve lash. missing choke flaps if you just started the bike. Your bike originally came with points. What condition are they in? How about the timing advancer?

Was it warmed up? Have you ridden it?

Man that is a lot of variables.
I'll say this:
I didn't touch the piston rings, but the valve seals were replaced by a local shop while I had it apart.
Not sure about ignition, charge system, carburetion, vac leaks, or valve lash. Though I did inspect the choke flaps recently and they are all there and working properly.
The points are in good condition.
I haven't warmed it up fully or ridden it yet.

Could the smoke just be due to the left over oil from the wet compression test in cyl #4? I didn't have the #4 spark plug tightened very well and while it was starting up I could see oil bubbling out of the cyl through the spark hole. I tightened it up and it stopped.

Hi all,
so I have some new issues brewing. The bike is running OK, but the ignition timing is not correct (the "T" mark isn't where it should be).

The points plate on my KZ is fully advanced and still the timing is not right.
I have a self made ignition timing system (two wires and a light bulb). The light is coming on late, and I need to advance the timing a bit more, but the plate is already completely advanced. I am wondering if anyone has had similar trouble with their points plates. Is it because my chains are worn, or maybe some other part in my engine is worn? I have researched and found nothing helpful except for mentions of a points plate spring going bad, which doesn't seem to be a part on my bike.

Additionally, I am having trouble doing a dynamic sync on my carbs. I have a vacuum carb syncher . I have hooked it up with the engine idling, the gas tank removed, and the caps of the carbs removed. When I turn the valve adjustment screws on the carbs, the needles on the syncher hardly move; so it's causing me trouble with dynamically synching. There are no leaks on the carbs, and they are bench synched. Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance. -T

I seriously doubt that the problem is the points plate, the chain, etc. I find it always helps to start with the simplest and most likely cause and work toward the most drastic. In this case, I would first suspect the points. You mention the points are in good condition, but are you using new points? The rubbing blocks wear, especially if the ignition cam is not properly lubed. When the rubbing blocks wear tuning the timing becomes difficult if not impossible regardless of the condition of the contacts. Assuming you already have or buy new points, I recommend you go back and very carefully set the gap. If the gap is not set correctly setting the timing can be difficult if not impossible. Ed