Manual

Im starting my first bike project and am preaty savvy wen it comes to engins and stuff but im strugling with my carbs. Does anyone have any suggestions on manuals that theyve used. My bike is and 81 kz550.

Right now one of the carbs flows fuel out of the gold circle at the entrance to the carb and leaks fuel out the overflow hose continuasly. Problem with the float?

For reference if needed.



The overflow from float bowl may result from leakage at float needle/seat interface (#21 above). This is often from crud which may sometimes be cleared by smartly rapping outside of the float bowl with a plastic mallet while engine is running.

An in-line fuel filter is recommended.

Am uncertain what is meant by the gold circle at the entrance to the carb.

Good luck with the carbs.

P.S. I'd opt for the Factory Service Manual as and when available.

Post edited by: Patton, at: 2008/02/27 18:57

Post edited by: Patton, at: 2008/02/27 18:59

Post edited by: Patton, at: 2008/02/27 19:01

Does this diagram show the gold circle at the entrance to the carb?

+1 Patton

I think j_bizach is referring to the butterfly.

There is a user on site who has a link to a Clymer 550 manual. Just simply do a search on KZ550 and read a few links to find it.

thats where its coming from its like a brass hole

Am thinking the two small inlet holes are entrances for air passageways leading to the pilot jet and to the main jet bleed pipe. And guessing excess fuel inside float bowl could escape by either or both of these holes as well as via the normal overflow pipe.

Besides crud interferring with the float needle/seat interface, there are other less common reasons for float bowl overflow, such as worn out float needle (usually at the pointed tips), or a leaking (non-floating) float, or a "sticking" float (not moving freely moving up and down), or a crack in the float bowl overflow pipe.

But for now, am thinking crud removal from the float needle/seat interface would be the best first effort toward stopping the existing leaks from both the overflow nipple and the gold circle.

For future reference, remember the float needles and seats are "matched pairs" and should not be mixed and matched. Whenever replaced, it's best to replace both needle and seat together, so the new needle fits a new seat.

Meanwhile, a manual petcock should be turned off while the bike is parked to prevent fuel from even reaching the float bowl. Whereas a vacuum operated petcock is supposed to turn off automatically when the engine isn't running.

Good luck stopping the leaks.

It means the floats are leaking so fast the overflow can't handle the flow. You have to be very careful the fuel is not also flowing into the engine. It's possible if the bike is at an angle. Just make sure to change the oil if it seems thin or smells like gas.

If the motor doesn't want to turn over, then take out the spark plug for that cylinder to make sure it is not full of gas.

You may need a rebuild kit for the carb to replace the needle and seat.
KZ550 carb kit for one TK22 carb

The floats rarely go bad, they are solid foam/plastic so they don't get filled with gas like brass floats. But it's possible it's broken or the pivot is frozen. If the float is broke, and you can get a used one cheap, it'll most likely be useable.

If the carb is leaking continuously even the though the petcock is in the "on" position and the bike is not running, then the petcock is probably messed up too. It is a vacuum petcock so the "on" position is the off position when the bike is not running. The "pri" (prime) position allows gas to flow all the time. You only use that to fill the carbs before starting the bike if it's been sitting for a while.
petcock kit

Here's a non-factory manual:
550 Manual
It's got some errors in the electrical diagrams and the valve-timing section, so ask here on KZrider when the time comes and I'll try to post the corrections.

If you get the problem fixed and the bike running, and you find the cold idle is erratic, here's a modification you can do to make it easier to control when cold.
www.geocities.com/loudgpz/GPZchokeScrewMod.html

Post edited by: loudhvx, at: 2008/02/28 02:22

Are your carbs vented properly?

I ask this,because I had the same problem when I first bought my 29mm Smoothies.I had the vent-lines(2 of them) running from one pair of carbs to the other(bridged) and later realized that they needed to be TWO individual vent-lines.

I too,was getting fuel seaping from the exact same location.

Once I got it figured out,there were no more leaks,and haven't been any since.