Pods

Hey guys.. Have an 82 kz550 a3, looking to get a set of pod filters. First, its a set of tk carbs, what is the correct size im looking for in MM? 39?
Second, I see lots of different pods on ebay, any recommendations?

Anyone?... Goin once...

I can't tell you what size but measure the outside diameter and you'll know. The pods on ebay have not done well according to some members here. They are not the million mile cleanable ones as K&N. You can buy them and replace as needed or if you have the bucks I would buy genuine K&N's!

K&N all the way !
Some of the cheaper pods will cover intake holes on the air side of some carbs. Something you wont find out until you buy.

JR, First, you are talking about Emgo pods... the rubber lip doesn't seem to sit flush enough on the airjets on the edge of a carb's venturi to block off airflow. I test using Emgo pods routinely and use three different sizes and none seem to block airflow to the air jets. I use 54mm, 42mm and 39mm depending on carb type.

Next, as far as whether Emgo or K&N are better... this is not as straight forward as it seems. Say a person rides ONLY during the summer and does about 1K miles. He might be able to go over 5 years with the Emgos on his bike. While the K&N filters are life-time warrantied, they are also about 5 times more expensive so the person would have to have them on his bike for 25 years to break even. They don't seem to be a great idea from the standpoint of economy in this case. As far as their filtering, dunno... I have seen their tests but have little faith in self testing. I do know that Emgo pods when new and K&Ns when properly oiled flow air about the same and thus need the same jetting. If I were buying pods, I guess I would consider how many miles I rode a year and in what conditions to evaluate which type pod would be most economical. If you go 5K miles (or higher) a summer, the K&Ns start to look a lot better. And before anyone starts sniffing at the low mileages I used as examples, look at the average mileage for any used 30 year old KZ... almost always between 10-30K miles so I think the examples are sort of valid although some folks will obviously put a lot more miles on. I PERSONALLY don't care for pods and use a Z1 airbox on my 79 shafty with a K&N drop in filter. This filter a A LOT more economical than using stockers since you can pick one up for under $20 and the paper stocker is about that.

Thanks for the responses gentlemen.. So its all a matter of economics? Well, on my budget it will definetely have to be the emgos..The ones i see on ebay however, are they emgo's or flat out no-name brands? They range in price to 35-55$.. And what size would i be looking for WG, 39mm?